Destinations and vacation tips and tricks in Side 2023

Hot Side travel destinations and vacation recommendations: If you’re looking for a mix of beach time and history, the resort town of Side is one of the best places to visit on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast. Side may be all about soaking up the sun on the sand but for those who fancy a slice of culture with their sunbathing, the wealth of Greco-Roman ruins right in town are major tourist attractions. By 1000 BC Side, had its first settlement but it was in the 7th or 6th centuries BC, when Greek settlers established a colony and built a harbor here, that the town began to prosper. During the Roman era, this town became an important commercial center, and it was only when the harbor began to silt up in the 7th century that the town was eventually abandoned. At the tip of Side’s peninsula are the remains of the ancient town’s two principal temples, dedicated to Athena and Apollo. Although they are in no way complete, they have a dramatic location looking out over the Mediterranean and are especially atmospheric in the evening, when the ruins are lit up. Side harbor is a great place for a sunset promenade, with plenty of cafés dotting the shoreline near the ruins.

While Side is, particularly, popular for its serene bays, there are, definitely, more on the table! Join our Buggy safari and rafting tour, during your holidays in Side, and be part of two adrenaline-boosting activities. Exceptional landscapes, big doses of enthusiasm, laughter, and an opportunity to get away from the crowds, are some of the things you can expect from this tour. This experience begins in the morning, with a pick-up service from your hotel in Side. Our guide will explain to you the details of the schedule, and let you know some interesting information about Köprüçay river and the surrounding area. To join this combo experience you need no prior experience in rafting and buggy driving. In what regards the later, you need no driving licence. Therefore, this excursion is ideal for all, children, and adults.

Lonely Travel is an expert licensed travel agency in Alanya & Side. We organize travel tours services since 1997. We let our customers to save their time and money also providing them a high quality service. In our Travel Agency employees highly trained specialists that are licensed by the Ministry of Tourism of Turkey. We work 7 days a week to provide the best service to our guests. We organize more than 50 tours around Alanya and Side, each and every single excursion of ours is fully insured and maintained by our professional tour guides. See more details at Side Jeep Safari & Rafting.

The legendary Cleopatra Beach is one of the most beautiful beaches in Turkey, clearly worth visiting during your trip to Antalya. With its crystal-clear water and numerous water sport activities, it attracts about 2 million tourists a year and gets more and more popular every year. The Alanya Archeology Museum is located in the very center of Alanya, on Ismet Hilmi Balcı Street behind Alanya Castle and Damlataş Cave. Alanya is a city with a very rich historical heritage in every aspect. However, you don’t have a lot of chances to visit a cultural places in Alanya. Although the best cultural museum in the region is the Antalya Museum, followed by the Side Archaeology Museum, the Alanya Archaeology Museum is the best witness of the area’s heritage. It’s located in the heart of the city. The Archaeology Museum in Alanya exhibits bronze, marble, terra-cotta, and glass artifacts, mosaics and coin collections belonging to the Archaic and Classical periods, and also Turkish Islamic works of art from the Seljuk and Ottoman Periods.

In 1228 the Anatolian Seljuk Sultan Kayqubad I ordered the construction of this remarkable shipyard, facing east across the bay, just south of Kızılkule. In Medieval times Alanya was the Seljuk Empire’s prime shipyard on the Mediterranean, and what remains is in great condition and open to the public for free along a wooden boardwalk. There’s a row of five pointed arches, more than 55 metres long in total, and these vaulted bays go back 44 metres inland. The shipyard was oriented east to get as much sunlight as possible, and is flanked by a mosque and guardroom. Slightly back and posted on the rocks on the south side is a defensive tower once armed with cannons.

This sleek resort is squeezed against the Gulf of Antalya by the dark slopes of the Taurus Mountains. The scenery is defined by a 250-metre-high promontory, sticking out into the Mediterranean and fortified since time immemorial. In Alanya, your days will be spent lazing on an enticing beach and adventuring through those lofty castle ruins, which can be reached by a cable car that opened in 2017. This is one of a few projects that have helped turn Alanya into a 21st century beach resort. The city is also a jumping off point for scuba diving, cruises and trips into the Taurus Mountains where you can hike in canyons, explore caves and bathe in cool mountain streams.

Located 6 miles away from Selcuk town, popular village. First inhabitance dates back first century. The early christians from Ephesus escaping from the persecutors founded the village. This was a Greek Orthodox village till 1924. Was named as “Cirkince” meaning the ugly for while. The word Kirazli is derived from the word “kiraz” which means “cherry” in Turkish. Kirazli refers to the place that has cherries. A traditional and non-touristy Turkish Village, 10 km away from Kusadasi. Surrounded with Cherry Trees, Fig Trees, Olive Groves, Tobacco Fields… We offer private tours of Ephesus with a traditional Turkish breakfast at Kirazli Village from Kusadasi.

You can plan a full day trip to see the ancient city of Side with the temples of Athena and Apollo, and the magnificent theater of Aspendos. The theater is one of the most distinguished representatives of Roman Age theaters today, with its well-preserved condition and architectural features. If you choose to make this trip with an organized tour, it will be either combined with the famous Manavgat bazaar where you can find many things such as souveneirs, clothes, spices, fresh fruits, and vegetables, or the marvelous Manavgat Waterfall. The itinerary depends on which excursion you book. Some have Side, Aspendos, and the waterfall, some have Side, Aspendos, and the bazaar. The weekly market days of the Manavgat Bazaar also make a difference.

Trajan Fountain, M.S. It was built between the years 102-114 in the name of Roman Emperor Trajan and Artemis of Ephesus. The original architecture of the fountain, which has 2 floors, was later restored and rebuilt as a single-staired. Some of the sculptures in the fountain are exhibited today in the Ephesus Museum and some in the British Museum. The fountain used to be Rome’s most famous fountain, we also can see that within its architecture which includes lots of engravings on the columns. See more information on https://www.sideexcursion.com/.

When the Seljuk’s took control of this region in the 13th century, they built on the foundations of previous rulers. Much of the remaining building works still standing today in the castle area date from this period, when Alanya became a commercial hub. The lower castle area, nearest to the entrance gate, is known as the Ehmedek neighborhood. Wander the alleyways of red-roofed Ottoman-era houses and historical buildings here, then follow the winding lanes up to the Iç Kale (the castle’s inner fortress) for older Seljuk and Byzantine ruins plus views that soar across the sea, the coastal plateau, and the peaks of the Taurus Mountains beyond.

Teleferik heading to Cleopatra Beach: The most scenic way to reach the Alanya Castle area is by hopping on the cable car that connects Cleopatra Beach with the lower castle district of Ehmedek. The cable-car operates between 11am and 9pm daily, and the trip over the cliff is great for capturing sunset coastal views, as well as a means of transport. The 900-meter ride offers excellent views over the forested cliff face leading up to the castle, the yawning strip of Cleopatra Beach’s sand and Mediterranean Sea below, as well as the dusky mountains in the distance. The lower station is just behind the beachfront, while the upper station deposits you just outside Alanya Castle’s main gate from where you can wander farther up the slope to explore the historic buildings and ruins.