Bodrum, Turkey  - As the evening wind begins to wane, the yacht glides past a rusting wreck beside a rocky outcrop.

"Make ready to anchor," calls the skipper. But hardly anyone on board can take their eyes off the ruins of an ancient temple and theatre basking in the sunshine on the cliffs above Knidos.

In its heyday, Knidos was home to 20,000 fishermen and traders who lived on the slopes above its double harbour. In ancient times, both the Greeks and Romans used Knidos as a naval base for their galleys.

Remains from that period of history are abundant and if you want to see broken shards of amphorae, you just have to put your snorkelling goggles on and go for a dive.

Knidos is also a good place to find out what it means to, "sail through an open air museum," as the former German pop singer and sailing book author Wyn Hoop describes the region.

Hoop, who is originally from Hamburg, wrote the first nautical guide to the area in 1983. He has sailed in waters where the wind is stronger and more constant such as the Caribbean or the Atlantic, but for him the eastern Aegean is unrivalled.

Other sailing enthusiasts would agree. In the summer months, dozens of yachts can be found at anchor at Knidos. That's the high season in this part of the Aegean and in some reputedly desolate bays a string of sailing boats come and go over the course of a day.

The coastal region between Turkey's Bodrum and Marmaris can see Armadas of sailing boats in all shapes and sizes: from wide bottomed yachts, to motor driven excursion boats pumping out loud party music for their guests on deck.

But compared to the even more popular sailing waters in the western Mediterranean, such as Sardinia or Majorca, the eastern Aegean is relatively calm, according to Hans Muehlbauer from southern Germany who has written a book about chartering yachts.

However, if the summer months in this part of the Mediterranean still feel a little too crowded, then you should consider coming here in the spring or autumn as those months are not as stiflingly hot and chartering a yacht is less expensive. The winds are also more varied than in summer months when so-called meltem winds from the north blow almost every day.

The waters off Bodrum are usually spared the most violent gusts common to the central Aegean.

However, sailors more familiar with travelling in other waters are often surprised that yachts must be anchored using the Med-mooring technique with the boat perpendicular to the wharf.

Another thing to look out for is bureaucracy, if you intend travelling between Greek and Turkish harbours. If you don't register and de-register with the authorities properly, you are risking serious consequences.(dpa)