Though undoubtedly known for its tourism, Marmaris, on Turkey's east coast has another asset. Pine honey! It is produced when honey bees collect honeydew, and carry it to their own honeycombs. Pine honey is darker and denser than normal honey due to its higher resin and lower water content.
Honeydew is actually a sugary secretion from the insects that live off the sap of Turkish Pine, a species very prominent around the area of Marmaris and the town plays a great role in pine honey production for the Mugla region. Turkey actually ranks within the top 5 honey producing countries in the world and 92% of the world's pine honey is produced in the Aegean region of Turkey.
The tiny village of Osmaniye, which is not too far from Turunç, is surrounded by pine trees so pine honey production is really intense here. In order to introduce pine honey to the tourist industry, Osmaniye became the location of the Marmaris Honey House project. The idea was to increase awareness and provide a social space for groups and for apiculture activities. The Honey House has been built in an architecturally beautiful honey comb structure. The carefully designed hexagonal buildings tessellate together to create a complex that includes workshops, meeting rooms and information. It supports local development and the key objective is to become a centre for social recreation, scientific research and culture.
The building project makes for an interesting visit and the gardens are lovely too. If you want to see and learn how this unique honey is produced, a visit to the honey house should not be missed.
