Well having started all this off I thought I'd post and let everyone know that we had a great weekend there. The hydrofoil trip was fine in both directions even though in the Rhodes area especially it was very windy, the crossing wasn't any rougher than the Virgin East Coast train I catch from London to Newcastle on a regular basis! So arriving at Rhodes became the first test of patience because the 2 hydrofoils from Fethiye arrive at the same time as a huge ferry The Marmaris Express. This has the delightful impact of chaos and disorder at passport control, where there are only 2 gates and maybe 200-300 people all trying to get through. I would recommend for anyone travelling that when they arrive they make their way to the righ hand side of the crush because that's where they filter all EU passport holders (and so far we can still make use of that). It took us the best part of 30minutes of forcing our way through the throng to get to the right hand side of the queue. Then there is the issue of getting a taxi which in itself can be somewhat confusing with ranks of taxis and not a driver to be seen. That's the end of the problems though. We stayed at the Lydia hotel which was booked and arranged for us by the Hydrofoil company. The hotel was clean, the staff were friendly and it was in a great location for walking to the old town. It in all fairness was not the best hotel but we only stayed one night and had a great breakfast so it was ok. We then basically hit the Old Town for the best part of the 2 days we were there. Fascinating place and of course lots of places to see. We did go to see the Acropolis on Sunday morning but in all honesty were very disappointed - there are much more impressive structures to be seen in Turkey so we had a nice walk down from the top and into the Old Town again. We did try to visit the Rustico restaurant that Jacqui identified but it was full at about 8.15. We went to another called Romeo and had a very nice Greek meal, with live music and a street act performing as well to watch. The meal, we though was reasonably priced at 65 euros including a couple of G&Ts and a bottle of reasonable wine plus a two course meal, we couldn't eat any more! We were given a free ouzo at the end. A few things to watch out for: beer comes in 2 sizes - large and very large unless you buy a bottle. Inside the old town you could end up paying twice as much as outside. (Indeed we bumped into a couple who had been charged (but not paid) 44 euros for 2 drinks). Golden rule there is never to go into a place where you cannot see the prices. If you are on a diet basically forget it! The food comes in huge portions. We ordered a couple of chicken wraps for lunch and each got 2 plus chips and each wrap being a complete flatbread. That together with a 1.5 litre 'boot' of beer though outside the Old Town was (for 2) a very reasonable 20 euros but can't remember the name of the café. It certainly meant that yours truly had to walk a very long way just to work that lunch off. But there is plenty of sightseeing to do.
For the ferry, on the way out we were told to get to Fethiye port at 8 am for a 9 am crossing, which we did but people were still turning up at 9am for what turns out to be a 9.20 crossing. Cue sitting on the hydrofoil for about 50 minutes waiting. On the way back we got to the port far too early - we got there at 3.15 for a 4.30 crossing only to find that the ticket office didn't open until 4 and that although it said a 4.30 crossing on the ticket it actually meant 5pm. So my suggestion would be aim for 8.30 for the morning crossing and probably 4pm for the return. A quick whizz through Duty Free and a top up of the gin supply and we were back on the hydrofoil. My suggestion re the hydrofoil is don't sit at the front because once you leave Fethiye Bay the bows lift and you can't see out of the front windows, and it is a much bumpier ride than in the middle . Take a drink and a book and relax back for 90 minutes.
To all who contributed with excellent suggestions on where to go and what to see - thank you very much although the climb to the top of the Clock Tower is tough. It's nice to hear and visit others' recommendations.To all who seem to have spent their time apparently trying to score points and nit picking off some of the people who tried to help ... get a life. You're doing CBF no favours at all.
