Bodrum Castle Guide: Tips For Visiting & What You Need to Know


If you’re planning a trip to Bodrum and reading up on travel guides and itineraries, you’ve most certainly come across Bodrum Castle. 

In fact, we’d go as far as to argue that it’s the most popular tourist attraction in Bodrum!

Also known as Bodrum Kalesi in Turkish or the Castle of Saint Peter, this historic landmark is more than 500 years old and has seen the rise and fall of the Genoese, Byzantine, and Ottoman empires. 

Besides being a historical treasure, there are so many things to do inside Bodrum Castle — you can spend hours walking along the castle walls, checking out ancient shipwrecks and artifacts at the 14 (!!) exhibits, climbing up the towers, and much more.

If this all sounds overwhelming, no worries — that’s why we wrote this helpful Bodrum Castle guide! It has everything you need to know to plan your visit, including useful information (like ticket prices and opening times), the history of the castle, a step-by-step walkthrough, and much more.

Bodrum Castle Opening Hours, Price & Travel Tips

Bodrum Castle Location

Bodrum Castle is located in the center of Bodrum, right next to the marina. You can click here to check the location of Bodrum Castle in Google Maps.

Bodrum Castle Hours of Operation

During the tourist season (April to October), Bodrum Castle opening hours are between 8:30 to 18:30.

During the off season (November to March), the castle is open between 8:30 to 16:30. 

Please note that the ticket office closes 30 minutes before the castle closes. However, we recommend at least 2 hours if you want to comfortably see the castle. 

Bodrum Castle is open every day. 

Bodrum Castle Entrance Fee

As of May 2024, the entrance fee to Bodrum Castle is 23 EUR (about 800 TL). This includes entrance to the castle, an audio guide (be sure to ask), and entrance to the Underwater Museum. 

If you have an Aegean MuseumPass, entrance is free. 🙂 

* Please note that due to inflation and other factors, the Bodrum Castle ticket price may increase. If you read a review somewhere a year ago and saw a different price, it probably won’t stay the same and it’s best to contact the castle ticket office for the most up-to-date information. 

Facilities at Bodrum Castle

There are multiple facilities and amenities inside Bodrum Castle, including restrooms, cafes (selling drinks and snacks), and a gift shop near the exit. ​​There are also plenty of information placards posted around the castle.

Bodrum Castle Travel Tips

☀️ It’s best to visit Bodrum Castle in the morning, before the afternoon sun comes out. While there are many shaded areas, the castle also has a lot of open-air areas that are exposed to the elements. If you visit the castle when it first opens, you’ll practically have the place to yourself. 🙂 

👟 Wear comfortable shoes! You’ll be walking a lot around the castle (we clocked in at 2.5 km during our last trip), which also includes slippery stones, steep and uneven steps, and staircases (up the towers and the upper levels). 

👒 Wear a hat, put on sunscreen, and bring plenty of water. Don’t let a sunburn or dehydration ruin your trip. 🙂 

⏰ You can expect to spend between 1 to 4 hours — We spent about 2.5 hours, which included walking at a casual pace, taking lots of photos (for this blog post 😉), reading the information placards, and visiting the museums and exhibits (the Underwater Archaeology Museum, shipwreck amphora collection, the golden crown exhibit, etc.) 


🗺️ Consider booking a guided walking tour — If you’re in Bodrum for only a few days, booking a tour guide is an excellent way to get the most out of your trip. This top-rated private guided walking tour of Bodrum Castle and Bodrum city is fully customizable and can accommodate up to 15 people (for one price!). You can also choose to do the tour in English, French, or German. 

History of Bodrum Castle

Bodrum Catle’s history goes back multiple centuries and empires. To gain a deeper appreciation of the castle’s history and enhance your visit, we recommend giving this section a quick read before jumping into the main article below. 🙂 

Originally known as the Castle of St. Peter, this landmark was actually built to serve as a fortress — in fact, its construction spanned from 1406 to 1523, which meant that it took more than a century to build! 

Bodrum Castle (*ahem* fortress) was built by the Knights of St. John, who were also known as the Knights Hospitaller. If the name sounds familiar, you’re correct — those were the same people who built Kos Castle (a popular day trip from Bodrum!) earlier. 

Since the construction was so arduous, knights from various countries came together to build the fortress. When you walk through Bodrum Castle, you’ll notice this on the map, as each of the towers were named after the countries who took part in the construction! (French, German, Italian, English, and Spanish Towers)

The castle was used for more than 120 years, until it was captured by the Ottoman army in 1532. From then on, the building served as a garrison base and a prison from the mid-1500s to 1895.

When World War I began, the castle was unfortunately​​ bombed by the French and English forces, and eventually abandoned around 1915.  

Thankfully, its story doesn’t end there. In the 1960s, the castle was brought back to life and restored by the Turkish government — and eventually converted into the Bodrum Museum of Underwater Archaeology. It functions as a museum and serves as a reminder of the region’s history to this day. 🙂 

P.S. You might see Bodrum Castle also being called The Museum of Underwater Archaeology. However, this isn’t totally correct, as the museum is only a part of the entire castle — plus the 14 exhibits are scattered all around the castle instead of in one place. 

What To Do at Bodrum Castle: A Walkthrough

Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s talk about what to see at Bodrum Castle! We’ll go through each of the attractions in Bodrum Castle step-by-step, along with some interesting tidbits, history, and additional travel tips to make your visit even better. 

Map of Bodrum Castle

We’ve included a map of Bodrum Castle above (click on the image to open the full size photo).

This photo was taken right after entering the castle and will help you orient yourself when going through this guide. 🙂

The Gateway Tower: Cannons, Views, and Coat of Arms

Immediately after entering Bodrum Castle, you’ll step into an open-air area — on the right side is a door, and along with it, a map of the entire castle and some history. 

After passing through the door, there’s a staircase that will lead you to the first area: the outer wall. Along a narrow corridor, you’ll see a small cannon exhibit along with some archaeological exhibits (marble statues and columns). These cannons were used in the 18th and 19th centuries and made of cast iron. 

When you get to the end, there’s a small plaza. On the right are some short steps that will take you to the top of the walls to a viewing platform. Be sure to go upstairs and take a look, as there are lovely views of the Bodrum Marina and the Aegean Sea. If it’s a clear day, you can even see Kos island from Bodrum Castle! 

To the left is a thin stone bridge that is the entrance to the main castle. Interestingly, this was originally a drawbridge back in the day, but was reconstructed to make access to the Bodrum Castle easier. 

Walk across the bridge and you’ll arrive at the Gateway Tower, which is exactly what it sounds like — the ‘gateway’ to the castle! When walking around the area, we recommend looking up to see the various carvings and coats of arms above the archways and on the walls. Don’t worry too much about accidentally missing them, as there are also information placards placed nearby.

Follow the long corridor and you’ll arrive at a fork in the road. On the left is a large door and the continuation of the castle, while straight ahead (and down the stairs) is the amphora exhibit. You can spend a few minutes here learning more about amphoras, which are clay jars that were used to store goods like wine, grain, oil, and so on. 

Come back and proceed to the large door for the next section…

The Garden: Hamam, Chapel, Artifacts, and a Cafe Break

After walking through the doors, you’ll arrive at a beautiful open-air garden. This is our favorite area out of the entire castle because it’s so peaceful and well-done — it feels like you’ve been transported to a sultan’s summer house. 🙂 

Let’s take a look at some of the things you’ll find here:

One of the first things you’ll see when you walk into the garden is the Chapel Mosque. It was originally built by the Knights of St. John in the early 1400s and reconstructed into a chapel by Spanish knights a decade later. When Suleinman the Magnificent attacked in 1522 (during the Siege of Rhodes) and took ​​over the area, he converted the chapel into a mosque and added a minaret. Inside, there’s a glass floor where you can look at the original excavated ruins below.

As you walk through the ‘garden,’ you’ll also notice rows and rows of marble altars with motifs featuring bulls, fruits, and flower wreaths. This was a common sight in Caria, the ancient civilization that lived in this region. The altars were used as tombstones between 330 to 30 BC. 

At the far end is a cafe and some chairs where you can sit down and enjoy a break. If you’re lucky, you’ll also get to see the colorful peacocks (and albino peacocks!) and turtles walking around. 

As you walk back to the chapel mosque, you’ll notice a small anchor exhibit and some stairs. Between the anchors and mosque, follow the stairs to go to the upper section.

 

Learn More About Underwater Life at the Underwater Archaeology Museum

At the top of the stairs is a building that houses the Museum of Underwater Archaeology. This is one of the most popular attractions ‘inside’ Bodrum Castle, as it contains hundreds of underwater discoveries from the Aegean Sea.

It’s the biggest museum of its kind and has a collection of amphoras, glass items, metal weapons, treasures and even a life-sized shipwreck. In fact, the shipwreck is one of the oldest in the world!

One of our favorite features of the museum are the mini documentary videos that play on a loop. You can take a seat and watch the videos, which feature interviews from people who participated in excavation expeditions of the items found in the museum. 

After finishing at the museum, let’s go back outside and continue our Bodrum Castle tour. 🙂 

Marvel at the Artifacts of the Yassi Ada Shipwreck Hall

Across the Archaeology Museum, you’ll arrive at another open-air area with a lot of marble artifacts among olive trees. 

Go further up the stairs and inside the tower, and you’ll arrive at the Yassi Ada Shipwreck Hall. Yassi ada (Yassi island) is an island off the coast of Bodrum that’s notorious for being a “ship graveyard,” as the strong winds and hidden reefs make it difficult to sail around the island. 

It’s rumored that dozens of ships have met their fate around the island, and you can see some of the uncovered shipwrecks (including maps, artifacts, and interesting information) inside the exhibit hall. ​​

After checking out the shipwreck artifacts, continue following the path until you come to the final open-air area. This is the top of the Bodrum Castle and where the famous five towers are located. Let’s take a closer look…

Climb The Five Towers of Bodrum Castle

The final area of Bodrum Castle is another open-air section that has benches, marble statues, and a walkway with access to the towers. 

Remember in the History section where we mentioned how Bodrum Castle has a total of five towers? These include the French Tower, German Tower, Italian Tower, English Tower, and Spanish Tower. Each of the towers was named after the countries responsible for constructing the castle. 🙂 

Likewise, each tower also has their own exhibition! Both the Spanish and German towers have shipwreck exhibitions — the Spanish tower holds the Tektaș shipwreck, while the German tower talks about the Bozukkale Archaic shipwreck.

The Italian and French towers have necropolis exhibits — the Italian tower showcases early bronze age, while the French tower has an exhibit about the Müsgebi necropolis. The French tower also has an exhibit talking about Pedasa ancient city, and is the tallest tower of them all (rising at nearly 50 meters!) 

Finally, the English tower features an exhibit on the Knights of Saint Jean exhibit, complete with a life-size mannequin wearing knight regalia from that time period! 


After walking around Bodrum Castle, you can follow the signs for the exit. There is a neat little gift shop and cafe towards the exit, as well as a bathroom across the shop. We hope you enjoyed this walkthrough! 

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