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Altınkum beach is Didim's main beach, 4.1 km from the town centre, and the place most visitors mean when they talk about Altinkum, Didim. According to Didim Municipality, it has fine golden sand that the current keeps clean, it has won the Blue Flag many times and big waves are rare. Most of Didim's hotels are here, along with a seafront promenade, restaurants and bars.
Where is Altınkum beach?
Altınkum is one of Didim's 16 neighbourhoods, 4.1 km by road from the town centre, about 9 minutes by car. D-Marin Didim, the yacht marina, lies to the west in the Çamlık neighbourhood, and the Temple of Apollo is in Hisar, 2.1 km from the centre, so both are easy additions to a beach day.
Drive times are approximate, traffic-free estimates (OpenStreetMap/OSRM). Allow extra time at rush hour and in high season.
The name means "golden sand" in Turkish. You'll see it written both as Altınkum, with the dotless Turkish ı, and as Altinkum in English, and both refer to the same place.
What is Altınkum beach like?
Didim Municipality describes Altınkum as Didim's internationally known beach, with fine sand the colour of gold. The current in the sea keeps the water clean, and the beach has collected the Blue Flag many times. High waves are rare, something worth knowing if you're swimming with children, although the conditions on the day are always what count.
Along the beach you'll find a walking path, parks, restaurants, bars and entertainment venues, so you're never far from a drink or a meal. The season is long but not year-round: according to the municipality, tourism businesses here open for about 8–9 months of the year, so in the depths of winter much of the seafront is closed.
Altınkum sea temperature by month
These are average sea-surface temperatures for the water off Didim (Open-Meteo Marine, 2022–2025), not daily readings:
- April: 17.9 °C
- May: 19.6 °C
- June: 22.9 °C
- July: 24.8 °C
- August: 26.3 °C
- September: 25.2 °C
- October: 23.3 °C
- November: 21.8 °C
August is the warmest month in the water, and October's sea is warmer on average than June's. For the coming week's conditions, check the Didim weather forecast; for the full year, including rain and sunshine, see Didim weather and the best time to visit.
Things to do at Altınkum besides sunbathing
According to Didim Municipality, businesses in and around Altınkum offer:
- boat trips leaving from the yacht harbour
- water sports
- diving courses
- horse safaris and jeep safaris
Ask at your accommodation or along the promenade to see what is running during your stay. In the evening, the restaurants, bars and entertainment venues on the promenade are where Altınkum's nightlife happens. For a change of scene, D-Marin is another option for an evening walk, and a morning at the Temple of Apollo fits neatly before an afternoon on the sand; things to do in Didim has more ideas.
How to get to Altınkum
Didim bus station
Didim bus station is in the Cumhuriyet neighbourhood, 3.4 km from Altınkum, about 7 minutes by car. Long-distance buses often arrive late at night or early in the morning. If there's no direct service to Didim, changing at Söke, which has both a bus station and a railway station, is common.
Bodrum Airport
Milas-Bodrum Airport is the closest airport: 64.2 km from Altınkum on the short road via Akbük and Kazıklı, about 91 minutes, or 79.4 km via Lake Bafa. Didim Municipality gives this distance as 80 kilometres. The Didim to Bodrum Airport taxi page explains how a ride to the airport is planned around your flight time.
Izmir Airport
Izmir Adnan Menderes Airport is 143.1 km from Altınkum, about 1 h 59 min by motorway without traffic.
In season some companies run shared shuttles from the airports at set times, and travellers going by bus usually change in Milas or Söke. Times vary with the season, so confirm them before you travel.
Getting back from the seafront late at night
If you're heading back from the seafront late and don't know the street name of where you're staying, use the "Send my location on WhatsApp" button on our site: it attaches a map link of exactly where you are to your message, so the driver knows where to find you.
Munzur Taxi works 24 hours a day, so a ride in the small hours is booked the same way as one at lunchtime. The Altınkum taxi page has the details.
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Not that Altınkum: other beaches with the same name
Turkey has more than one Altınkum. There are others at Akçay in Edremit and at Çeşme, and it is easy to mix them up when searching online. This guide is about Altınkum in Didim, in Aydın province. If you're booking flights for it, Bodrum Airport is the one to look at.