February has been and gone, so it’s time for another look back at our monthly news from life in Fethiye.
It might be the shortest month of the year but that doesn’t mean there hasn’t been lots going on…
Almond Blossom
The annual February opening of the almond blossom is always a comforting reminder that nature is still doing its thing in this crazy world of ours and spring is on its way.
That said, it’s been a bitterly cold February, particularly in the second half of the month.
But lots of people still braved the elements to go to one of Turkey’s annual festivals – the Almond Blossom Festival in Datça.
And maybe the almond trees love a cold February because the blossom has been abundant, this year.
So pretty!
We’re hoping for some more spring-like weather in Fethiye as March progresses, however…
So far, so good.
Fethi Bey Commemorations
Each year, on 27th February, the town commemorates pilot, Şehit Fethi Bey.
And, each year, those commemorations seem to grow in size.
The town of Fethiye is named after him. And, if you know the area, you’ll know he is the focus of the Şehit Fethi Bey Parkı.
That’s obviously where the main commemorations take place, in the square headed by his statue.
But the skies and the harbour are also a feature.
And, this year, we were treated to air displays from the THK paramotor display team and the amazing Solo Türk who flew low over the rooftops and the bay in his F-16.
Crowds filled the park and lined the length of the harbour for the 40 minute display.
A great day for Fethiye!
Last year, I took lots of photos. This year, it was videos.
There’s a quick clip here, on our Instagram account, if F-16 displays are your thing.
Growing Fethiye
We remember in the late 1990s when we first started coming to Fethiye for holidays and the population written on the sign at the entrance to town was somewhere in the region of 50,000.
In February 2025, that has clearly all changed because it was announced that the population of Fethiye is now standing at 182,280.
Out & About
Quite a busy month by our standards.
Half Bread Delight
You might remember in last month’s news, we told you about the opening of a sister place to Lokum Kokoreç; Lokum Döner.
We love a good quality döner kebab where the meat is cooked over a wood-fired flame and that’s exactly what this place is.
Well, in February, they announced they had started to do döner half breads – ekmek arası döner – as well as dürüm (wraps) and plate service.
We just had to go and sample those en route to the Çalış Sunday Market, one day.
Great! And wow, were we full.
We’ll order the lowest weight option for the meat next time.
And since that visit, they have now announced that they are also serving Iskender Kebab.
We’ll definitely be back for some of that at some point soon!
Return To Paşa Fırını
Errands in town, mid February, so we decided to stay our for a late lunch.
We were in the immediate area so decided to go to Paşa Fırını – a place we used to go to quite a lot.
As tends to happen, we hadn’t been there for ages – for absolutely no reason.
Anyway, our Paşa Fırını article is now all updated and we’re happy to report it’s still a great place!
Double Whammy
And a double whammy at the end of the month on a bitterly cold – and wet – day.
Drinks at Cafe Park Teras with fabulously moody skies and snow mountains for scenery.
Followed by meze and fillet steak at Çarıklı Et Restaurant.
As well as great drinks and food, both of these places are lovely and toasty warm when you most need them to be!
Other than that, February strolls along Çalış Beach usually culminate in a stop off at Calisto or EY’s.
In The Kitchen
Well, the cast iron casserole pot has certainly been a presence throughout February.
Stews and casseroles galore – both Turkish and whatever we fancy.
We have a Slow Cook book that is just a treasure trove of stews and casseroles from around the world.
Open it up on a random page and get cooking.
Cold weather bliss!
Aside from the book, we’ve added a couple of new recipes to the stews and casseroles section of our Turkish recipes collection.
Etli soğan yahnisi – also known as papaz yahnisi – is a perfect, slow cooked winter warmer of pearl onion and beef stew.
We’ve had this on more than one occasion over winter!
And, after eating at local lokanta, Yeşil Asma Yaprağı, a few weeks ago, we fell in love with their ıspanak graten dish – cheesy spinach gratin.
So that’s been a winter addition to our home menu which we added our spinach gratin recipe to the blog in February.
Fethiyespor
It’s not been a great season for Fethiyespor.
But somehow, other results have meant they are hanging on in there mid table.
They have slipped down a place but they seemed to be rooted to the spot for weeks.
Anyway, still a few matches to go with the next game at home on 9th March against 3rd place Altınordu.
They usually do well against higher placed opposition so let’s see.
Here are the remaining fixtures for the rest of the season and this is how the league standings look.
In Other News
Our little section of any news from elsewhere around the country that has jumped out at us.
Short and sweet this month.
Beach Life
Let’s start off with some good news where beaches are concerned.
Congratulations are in order for Iztuzu Beach (Turtle Beach) in Dalyan and Konyaaltı Beach in Antalya city centre.
They secured 14th place and 18th place, respectively, in the Europe Beach category Tripadvisor Traveller’s Choice Awards for 2025.
We might not be particularly beachy people but we do love both of these stunning stretches of Turkish coastline.
Istanbul Transport
If you’ve been to Istanbul before, you will have no doubt very much enjoyed using the famous ferry services as a means of getting from A to B.
It’s one of the great things about a trip to the city.
Well, now there is also a ‘Deniz Dolmuş’ (sea shuttle) set up in Istanbul.
And for those of you who want to visit Galataport on the shores of the Bosphorus, there’s an hourly Galataport Deniz Dolmuş service.
Beşiktaş, Ortaköy and Bebek are served by one of the routes which is really handy.
And, if you’re staying over on the Asian side of the city – or you want to explore that side after visiting Galataport – Üsküdar and Kadıköy are also served by the sea shuttle.
Growing Tourism
In February, Travel Weekly reported that Turkish tourism authorities declared a significant growth in tourist numbers in 2024 with a 16.6% increase in visitor numbers from the UK alone.
4.4 million of you visited from the UK!
Most foreign visitors to the country are from Russia, Germany and the UK and, over all, a 9.8% year on year increase was reported.
We would be interested to see how much the health tourism sector has contributed to this increase.
Into March
We’re already here, aren’t we?
As is the holy month of Ramazan.
And that means lots of yummy, freshly baked Iftar Ramazan pidesi – the special bread baked at this time – for us!
Let’s see what the rest of March has in store for us…