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Karaada is a small island just off Bodrum, Turkey, in the Aegean Sea. It’s easily accessible via a day cruise from Bodrum.
History
Karaada, which translates to Black Island, was known as Arkonisos (Ἀρκόνησος) to the ancient Greeks. According to legend, Cleopatra stayed on the island for three years before moving on to Tarsus.
During the Middle Ages, the island was called Arkos (Αρκός). It was controlled by the Knights Hospitaller until the Ottomans took over in the early 16th century. The Italians occupied the island from 1919 until 1932 when it was ceded to Turkey.
Thermal Baths
Today, Karaada is popular with tourists for its natural thermal baths. Visitors coming on day cruises from Bodrum are able to enter for a small fee. There’s an area to wade in as well as a cave where visitors can take a mud bath. Supposedly, Cleopatra bathed in this very same mud to keep her skin smooth and youthful.
Health tourism has been a part of the island’s history since ancient times, and the waters are said to improve conditions from rheumatism, sciatica, psoriasis, and various skin diseases. The water seeps out from volcanic rocks and stays at a constant 32° C.
Around the Island
The rest of the island is mostly completely natural. There’s an abandoned resort near the thermal baths and scattered ancient ruins elsewhere on the island. Other spots around the island are popular with divers.
