A Ridge Villa at Six Senses Kaplankaya.
Seamlessly bridging old and new, the resort combines contemporary architecture and high tech comforts for its 141 guestrooms, six suites, 66 Ridge Villas and residences.
KAPLANKAYA, TURKEY – Six Senses Kaplankaya, which joined Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas on May 1, 2017, opens its doors for the new season on May 1, 2018. The transformation will bring the property in line with Six Senses design, sustainability and wellness standards to create a unique guest experience that addresses all the senses to achieve balance and well-being.
The magic touch comes from Clodagh Design, the New York based multi-discipline design house. The firm originally attracted Six Senses with its eco-conscious spirit and project portfolio, and is also behind the award-winning renovation of Six Senses Douro Valley in Portugal.
Located across the bay from Bodrum, the vision for Six Senses Kaplankaya is to offer a pioneering approach to wellness while preserving the natural surroundings steeped in history and culture. Seamlessly bridging old and new, the resort combines contemporary architecture and high tech comforts for its 141 guestrooms, six suites, 66 Ridge Villas and residences. The resort is carved into giant rock formations with green roofed buildings layered down towards the coastline to offer everyone a view across the turquoise waters of the Aegean Sea.
The Turkish hospitality begins with the arrival experience: whether by speedboat slicing a foaming wake to the floating dock, by helicopter decent to a green lawn or by driving up through hills flanked with ancient olive trees and hedges of blooming oleander. The arrival courtyard delights all the senses with designs from local artisans and spouting arcs of water into the reflecting pool.
Guests walk through the lantern lit portal and wooden doors into a sky-lit lobby where there is a glass railing to look down over the remaining four floors and out to sea. Beneath the lobby, a sculptural collage of kilim rugs and leather clad ottomans sitting on layered Turkish rugs are interspersed with tables crafted from large pieces of local olive wood. A massive wood table, gold leafed underneath, glows as it presents Turkish delicacies and signature beverages to arriving guests.
The warm design with traditional touches continues in the guestrooms. The wall behind the bed is backed with woven leather and sits on a local flat weave carpet. The soft yellow hue is grounding and conducive to sleep, along with two lamps to regulate circadian rhythms and the incorporation of indigo and ochre and flashes of deep turquoise. There’s a generous walk-in closet, a desk niche with an original painting by a Turkish artist and a comfortable chair. Behind the desk there is a coffee maker, minibar and a pass-through to the outside corridor for discrete delivery of room service. On the technology front, there’s an iPad for mood control of air-conditioning and lights, Marshall Bluetooth speaker and WiFi.
Guests who travel with their families or prefer extra privacy can book one of the Ridge Villas (with or without pool) which are private retreats offering nomadic experiences within the independent buildings. Each villa has a small garden with unique surprises such as an ancient olive tree, an outdoor shower, a plunge pool or a cabana filled with gorgeous pillows. A flower filled garden has a terrace for outdoor dining and deep cushions that can be joined for sunbathing or used for meditation. In the bathroom, a deep window seat offers yet another getaway with a garden view.
The approach to food – Eat With Six Senses – helps guests eat more healthily by default by sourcing local products from the resort’s organic garden and region’s olive trees, local fish market and nearby villages. Mediterranean and Aegean-inspired cuisine is the overarching theme at the three dining venues: Sage & Sea Restaurant and Bar, Wild Thyme Restaurant and Bar, and Mezze by the Sea Restaurant.
Guests will enjoy tempting drinks at the Beach Bar at the resort’s main beach and at the new Library Bar, which also offers morning snacks and coffee. It’s the place to hang out and check emails or forget the tech and spend an hour lost in a book from the long library wall. Day transitions to night via sliding doors on the back wall of the bar for 5 o’clocktail time accompanied by views across the bay.
Six Senses Kaplankaya has five conference and event rooms fitted with state-of-the-art technology in carefully planned neutral colors, which can accommodate a range of groups and events from board meetings and lectures to receptions and cinema nights. Participants can get a charge of sunshine between sessions and break out in the garden, which is richly planted with weaving herbs, fruit trees, fragrant jasmine flowers and grape vines that clamber over shaded pergolas. There’s also a meditation labyrinth and bleachers stepping down close enough to the water to get splashed by a wave.
Retail therapy offers all the joy and energy of a curated souk with a selection of jewelry, carvings, ceramics and crafts to take home. Massive racks holding rugs from nearby towns are displayed like works of art. Weekly popup mini bazaars throughout the resort bring in local artisans for a day to join the fun and allow guests to make connections to the local community.
For a resort that will provide guests and residents a truly integrative approach to optimal wellness, it is no surprise that Six Senses Spa Kaplankaya is an expansive 107,640-square feet (10,000-square meters). The journey begins with a 23-foot (7-meter) long meditation walk filled with gently flickering light and shadow. It is stenciled like a jewel box in abstract ottoman patterns glowing with a ceiling filled with light points like glittering crystals to create a wonderful guest experience. The spa is rich with an impressive array of signature treatments spread over two floors. Unique artifacts and healing visual art pieces punctuate moments to enhance experiences and ease navigation.
Alchemy, long conjured up the very essence of skillfully blending ingredients in order to create wonderful potions and cures to enhance life, is inspiration behind the Alchemy Bar located on the wellness floor. Wellness and sustainability go hand in hand, and the Earth Lab showcases how Six Senses is supporting communities and ecosystems. Guests will be invited to reconnect with the natural world and learn some simple life-hacks that will allow them to make a difference when traveling and also in their daily lives.
Kaplankaya is just north of Bodrum on the Turkish Riviera. From Milas-Bodrum International Airport (BJV), guests can complete their arrival journey by car, yacht or helicopter, with the trip taking 50, 30 or 10 minutes respectively. Alternatively, the resort is approximately 105 minutes from Izmir International Airport (ADB) by car.
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