Aydin and Kusadasi Traveller Health Guide: Ephesus Heat, Cruise Days and Finding a Doctor
Health guide for visitors to Kusadasi and the Aydin coast: Ephesus heat, cruise-port days, sunburn, tummy bugs, summer nightlife and how to reach an English-speaking doctor.
Kusadasi, in Aydin province, is one of the Aegean’s best-known holiday towns and a major cruise port. Many visitors stay only a day or two, using the town as a base for Ephesus, the House of the Virgin Mary, Sirince and the beaches of the Dilek peninsula. That short, packed pattern of travel is what shapes the health problems seen here.
Ephesus: heat, marble and very little shade
The ancient city of Ephesus is a large open site with polished marble paths, steep sections and almost no shade. In summer, heat exhaustion, headaches, sunburn and dehydration are common, and the slippery stone causes slips and twisted ankles. Visit early in the morning or late in the afternoon, wear a hat and sturdy shoes, and carry plenty of water.
Cruise days
A cruise stop in Kusadasi can be as short as eight hours. If you feel unwell in the morning, a video consultation can help you decide quickly whether it is safe to join an excursion, and a doctor can send an e-prescription for a local pharmacy before you sail. Keep the ship’s medical contact and your insurance details with you, and tell the ship’s doctor if you have been treated onshore.
Summer nights and beaches
Kusadasi’s Bar Street and the beaches of Long Beach and Ladies Beach make summer evenings lively, and alcohol, heat and little sleep add dehydration to the mix. Sea urchins on rocky coves, water park injuries and sunburn on the sea ferry are other common complaints.
Traveller’s diarrhoea in Kusadasi
Restaurants along the seafront and in the bazaar serve fresh seafood and salads, and most are perfectly safe. In hot weather, choose busy places where food turns over quickly, avoid ice from unknown sources, and drink bottled water. Rehydrate with oral rehydration salts and rest if you are affected; if symptoms continue after two or three days, or you see blood, see a doctor.
Spring, autumn and winter
Spring and autumn are comfortable for sightseeing, though pollen and sudden changes in temperature can bring on allergies and colds. In winter the town is quiet, with mild, wet weather and the usual seasonal flu and chest infections for long-stay residents.
Getting help in Kusadasi
There are hospitals, private clinics and pharmacies in Kusadasi and the nearby Selcuk, and in an emergency the number is 112. A video doctor is available around the clock if you are staying in a hotel or on a cruise stop, and in selected areas a doctor can visit you. Use the link below to see what is available where you are staying.