Side, Turkey

Location:
On the S coast, 44 mls E of Antalya. 4 mls E of Kumkoy. 52 mls E of Antalya airport by good, fairly fast road.

Position:
The old town is on a low headland, with modern hotel developments stretching along the coast on either side. Pine woods and sand dunes predominate, particularly to the E. Undulating agricultural land and forests surround; backed by mountains farther inland.

General description:
The old part of town, dominated by a Greco-Roman amphitheatre, has been occupied on and off for well over 2,000 years. Each new cultural phase utilised or built over the ruins of its predecessor and the thriving present-day town incorporates many ancient walls, columns and buildings among more modern structures. Lydians, Persians, Alexander the Great, the Romans and Byzantines have all left permanent calling cards, while today's Turks - a nation of shopkeepers on a scale the British never came close to - have crammed every spare corner with their stalls. With the resort as a whole covering 7 mls by 3 mls, most tourists stay in town or in one of 3 resort areas (Kumkoy/Çolakli, Sorgun and Titreyengol) which have grown up along the beaches on either side. Mostly characterised by bleak, dusty roads and typically large, modern, architecturally discordant monoliths which satisfy holiday needs but do not necessarily please the eye; an expanding mass of smaller, pretty uniform properties sweeps inland behind the established giants.

Market/Suitability:
A good place for both archaeology buffs and beach-lovers, although the tourist hordes tend to rob the ancient sites of their remaining dignity and the beach can get very crowded in high season. The combination of attractions brings in substantial numbers of package tourists in every category. Predominantly German visitors as well as Russian, Dutch, Scandinavian and Turkish; German is the foreign language of choice in the resort.

Accommodation:
All grades are represented. 95% of the budget, character and smaller premises can be found in and increasingly behind the old town; plentiful self-catering apartments and family hotels on the inland side of the main road. A proliferation of 5-star all-inclusives along the coast at Kumkoy and Sorgun.

Shopping:
In the old town, it's "open all hours" for carpets, jewellery, leather, shoes, brassware, cheap fake designer clothing and all kinds of trinkets. Street market to the rear of the amphitheatre. As usual, browsing is near impossible on account of the constant hard-selling techniques of the hawkers.

Beach:
Long, wide, golden beaches extend for miles either side of the old town, dipping gently down to a shallow sea, making it very suitable for children. Coastguard stations are positioned at fairly regular intervals along the beach. Plentiful sunbeds and parasols, mostly belonging to the large hotels, and the beach is lined with beach bars and hotel restaurants. Array of water sports including water-skiing, speedboats, banana boats and parascending. The main beaches can get crowded high season; Sorgun's beaches are less crowded but have been largely annexed by the all-inclusives.

Entertainments:
Daytime: beach-based activities; well-preserved 2nd-century amphitheatre; Temple of Dionysos; Palace of the Emperor; Temples of Athena and Apollo; museum; horse riding.

Nightlife:
scattered far and wide, but liveliest in the old town where there are several nightclubs and music bars.
Eating out: Best place is the old town where some of the waterfront restaurants are particularly pleasant. However, the menus tend to be fairly limited and touting for custom can be somewhat aggressive.

Public transport:
Not the easiest resort to get around, with no single coast road linking the W and E beaches; a change of bus in Manavgat is required to link the two. Some long-distance buses stop at Side.

Local excursions:
Half day: Manavgat waterfalls (more like a weir!! pnf); tours of mountain villages; ruins at Perge and Aspendos. Full day: Antalya for shopping and sightseeing; Taurus Mountains; jeep safari.