June 19, 2006
They built it, and they came.
It's not as if the Marmara Hotels have to try that hard. It took but a sampling of the hotel's whimsical approach to living well that won me over. I mean, who can resist a graffiti wall? Or institutionalized indolence? Both, and more, are the main features of the hotel's signature living space. The "Tuti" room (a misspelling of the Italian "everything"?), apparently translates to anything, as in, "you can do pretty much anything here." You can climb a rock. You can swing on a swing. You can nap or snuggle or get crumbs all over one of the crisp and fluffy day beds. And you can tell your friends back home about it in real time via one of the handful of computer stations that makeup the business center.
But if the Tuti room offers a new concept in leisure, the main attraction is the feat of engineering that allows the hotel's "revolving loft," - all 2750 tons of it - to continually rotate on a 478 ton foundation of water. With the aid of six engines and 18 wheels, the building can achieve a full rotation in as many as 22 or as little as a vertiginous 2 hours. And if you're lucky enough to have booked one of the underwater rooms, you may want to consider replenishing your stash of Dramamine.
But I digress. The loft rooms, and especially those on the upper levels, are truly out there. With a wall of glass offering breathtaking – and ever changing- views of Antalya, the bed, which faces outward, is the centerpiece of the room. The open design extends to personal hygiene, with the bathtub, vanity and sink integral parts of the room design. Assuming that guests are enjoying a high level of intimacy, this is a delicious design choice. I did always crave a picture window in the bathroom.
As for fun, the Marmara Antalya has pretty much thought of everything. They've even dug a canal so that activity-seekers can kayak through the property's 270 meter long man-made river, and installed water jets to control the flow of the current. The waterfront platform takes advantage of the hotel's position on the Falez cliffs, circumventing the problem of both sand and pebbles that characterized most Antalya beaches.
Bali massage cabins situated high above the cliffs promise both mental and physical rejuvenation, while the wellness center has every type of spa bath there is: a Turkish bath with a Jacuzzi, a steam room, a sauna and a shock shower.
I could seriously do without the pink floral upholstery, and the lovely-yet-incoherent color scheme leaves me baffled. The French designer, Christian Allart, apparently couldn't settle on whether the hotel would represent a beach house, a Balinese resort, an Egyptian temple or a French country inn, so he apparently decided to do them all. But this eclecticism can be perhaps endearing, and certainly user-friendly.
LL
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