Mehmet Ali Ağa Konağı

Locals in Datça call it "Kocaev", the big house. The konak (Ottoman mansion) of Mehmet Ali Ağa was built in the early 1800s in the Reşadiye quarter, on the heights above Datça. It saw its golden age in the lifetime of Tuhfezade Mehmet Ali Ağa, a notable who also served as a district governor in Rhodes. Today it is the most history-laden hotel in Sabaro's Aegean selection.

Two centuries of history

In the early 1950s, with no surviving heirs, the mansion and what remained of the estate were put up for sale by the probate judge. It then changed hands several times and served as a tobacco warehouse, a cinema, a school and a wedding hall, suffering alterations and partial destruction. In the early 2000s it was faithfully restored and became a "museum hotel". It is now part of Heritage Homes (Atalık Evler), which runs nine restored historic houses in the Muğla region, in Bodrum, Köyceğiz, Muğla and Datça.

Guided tours of the mansion are held on certain days, depending on room availability.

Choosing a room

The house has 18 rooms, all for two people with a double bed. The stone rooms (Taş Oda), in a simple, modernised Ottoman style, have air conditioning; the five mansion rooms, in the konak itself, stay cool behind their stone walls. Our pick is the Baş Oda Suite (Yemliha), the former room of honour, with its woodwork and wall paintings dated 1831: Condé Nast Traveller named it one of the ten rooms in the world you must stay in.

All rooms are non-smoking and have Wi-Fi.

The garden and breakfast

The garden, where you wake to birdsong, is the heart of the house. Breakfast is served there from 8 to 10 am local time. There is no restaurant: for lunch and dinner, restaurants and shops are close by, and Datça centre is about ten minutes away by car.

Practical details

Check-in is from 2 pm and check-out by noon, local time; staff meet guests at the mansion's car park. Rooms are not cleaned daily on short stays.

Around the mansion

From Reşadiye you head down to Datça harbour and the lanes of Eski Datça, the old stone village where the poet Can Yücel lived. At the tip of the peninsula, the ancient city of Knidos is open daily from 8:30 am to 6 pm local time; admission is €6 from 1 April 2027. See our Datça and Bozburun and museums and culture pages.

Location

The mansion is on Kavak square in the Reşadiye quarter of Datça. Dalaman Airport is 167 km away, about 2 h 30 by road. The sea at Datça is around 23 °C in early June and reaches 26.6 °C in August, the warmest on the Aegean coast.

Price

Rooms for 1 to 3 June 2027 were not yet on sale on the mansion's booking site when we checked in October 2026. Price on request, confirmed by Sabaro when you enquire.

Sabaro's view

Who it suits: lovers of history and old stone houses, couples looking for Datça's calm (see boutique hotels).

Strengths: a restored early 19th-century mansion; the Baş Oda painted in 1831; the garden; a Google rating of 4.5 out of 5 (156 reviews).

Worth knowing: no restaurant, breakfast only; the mansion is not on the sea.