Side transfers
Ancient city on a peninsula with the Temple of Apollo, theatre and harbour; 70 minutes from the airport.
Airport transfers
About Side
Side, in the Manavgat district, is built on a small peninsula where an ancient city and a holiday town merge into one. The columns of the Temple of Apollo at the tip of the peninsula, the 15,000-seat Roman theatre, the colonnaded street, the Vespasian gate and the Side Museum housed in a Roman bath can all be visited on foot from within the town. The small harbour is the departure point for boat trips; West Beach and the quieter East Beach stretch along either side of the peninsula. The town's lanes are full of shops and restaurants.
Accommodation is in boutique hotels and guesthouses inside the peninsula, and in large resorts at Kumkoy just west of the town and Sorgun to the east. It suits couples and families wanting to combine ancient sites with the beach, and anyone who wants a centre they can walk into in the evening. Manavgat's waterfall and market are 15 minutes away, Aspendos and Koprulu Canyon about an hour; Alanya is an hour to the east.
From Antalya Airport to Side it is a straight run along the D400 highway, about 72 km / 70 minutes; traffic can slow through Serik and Manavgat. The ancient-city part of the peninsula is closed to vehicles in summer; your driver comes to the nearest permitted point, from where the hotel's golf cart or a short walk takes you the rest of the way, so light luggage is advisable. Hotels outside the peninsula are reached door to door. Colakli, Evrenseki and Kumkoy lie along the route.