Side Holidays

Side Holidays - Destination Profile

The main area of the town is pedestrianised and it's a wonderful place to visit in the early evening to window shop, buy some bargains, have a drink or grab a bite to eat. It has a great atmosphere but it can get busy in the height of the season.

Side is a well established holiday resort and has a wide selection of shopping opportunities, bars and restaurants to suit the very cosmopolitan collection of holidaymakers who visit the area.

The beach is, of course, one of Side' main attractions, and it is hard to rival the quality of the sand or the length of the beach, with plenty of space to sunbathe even in high season.

Side Holidays - Things to see

• Antalya Museum

Founded in 1922 by Süleyman Fikri Erten and housed first in the Alaaddin Mosque in the old city and then in the Yivli Minaret, the museum was later moved to its current location. The museum consists of 12 exhibit rooms and its gardens and open galleries. In these halls the history of Antalya is given in a chronological and instructive fashion starting with the first humans and continuing without interruption to the modern era.

• Side

The ancient city, 48km east of Antalya, is most famous for its theatre, probably the best preserved in Asia Minor. It is still in use today, and stages the annual Aspendos Opera and Ballet Festival every summer. It was the scene of a huge bloody battle between the Persians and the Greeks in 469 BC, and then ruled by the Spartans 120 years later. The city became part of the Seleucid kingdom after the death of Alexander the Great, and then became part of the Roman province of Asia in 133 BC.

• The City Walls

What remains today are a few bastions inside the city as well as Hadrian's Gate and its towers, the large tower facing the harbour and a few pieces of the harbour walls. One of the walls surrounds the yacht harbour and the other the city, almost like horseshoe. One of the remaining towers in the Castle Gate Square is now used as a clock tower. There are four gates in the city walls, which form entrances to the city.

Things to do on a Holiday in Side

• The Olympos - Bay Mountains National Park in the province of Antalya in the Mediterranean region, for example, contains a wealth of flora and fauna, which are either endemic or relic distributions, in addition to important archaeological ruins.
• Golf in Belek - In recent years, since the golf facilities with international quality enter into service respectively, Turkey has become an elite golf center where golf players all around the world meet in an environment of delicacy, quality and prestige.
• Waterfalls - An excursion to Kursunlu waterfalls makes a refreshing change from the heat of the beach, and the Manavgat waterfalls and river are close by and well worth a visit.
• Diving - Various points of Antalya's coastline provide opportunities for diving.

Great Excursions

Side

Visit Side, an ancient harbour whose name meant pomegranate, a pretty peninsula with severeal ruins.

Aspendos

See the theatre of Aspendos, one of the best preserved of the ancient world, and still used for performances.

Belek Golf

If you play golf, you will certainly enjoy a holiday in Turkey featuring the golf resorts in Belek, Antalya.

Golfers from around the world know Belek's golf courses, and many golf tournaments and corporate events have been held here throughout the year, because of the favorable weather and popularity of Turkey as a tourism destination.

Shopping

Shopping in Antalya can be an exhausting, but exhilarating, experience, with everything up for grabs from the famous local jams and jellies made from a variety of fruits and vegetables, to antique jewellery, kelims, prayer rugs, leather ware, cotton clothing, traditional pottery and wood carvings. Haggling is expected and bargains can be had. The best shopping is in the Kaleici district near the city walls, along winding side streets in the old quarter.

Getting Around on Side Holidays

By Boat: There are many types of cruises that link all the resorts an villages around the area, take a Gullet cruise or a Blue Voyage cruise to explore Antalya and the surrounding areas.

By Bus: The local bus (known as Dolmus) is normally a white mini bus that travels around the resorts. There are no specified bus stops, so to stop the Dolmus just flag one down.

By Taxi: There are numerous taxis in all towns and resorts and are recognisable by their chequered black and yellow bands.

By Car: Rental cars and Jeeps are available from our representatives.

Side Holidays Shopping

• The city of Antalya is famous for its jams and jellies
• Rugs and carpets
• Leather Goods
• Souvenir and gift items

Side Holidays - Beaches

Kumluca and the many coves between Antalya and Finike are home to some of the most famous holiday resorts in Turkey, like Kemer, Camyuva, Belek, Cirali and Adrasan. Closer to the city, Konyaalti is 3 km west of the city, and Lara beach is 10 km east and well connected by dolmus.

• Side

The beach is, of course, one of Side' main attractions, and it is hard to rival the quality of the sand or the length of the beach, with plenty of space to sunbathe even in high season.

• Belek

Most of the forests, thick with pine and eucalyptus, stretch down to a marvelous and almost limitless beach of golden sand.

Belek beaches are one of the outstanding laying eggs beaches for the aquatic turtles (Caretta caretta).

Weather and climate information

Climate for Turkey - Antalya

Antalya enjoys a four seasons climate. The average temperature is 30 degrees celcius. Approximately 300 days of the year is sunny.

Antalya Holidays - View 5 Day Forecast