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Side (SEE-deh) was
once idyllic, a traditional Turkish Mediterranean village
amid marble Roman ruins
on 2 km (1.2 miles) of unspoiled
beach just an hour (65 km, 40
miles) east of Antalya or
west of Alanya (map).
Tourism arrived with
a vengeance in the 1980s, however,
and although Side is still nice, it
is now crowded in warm weather.
Both Turks and foreigners come for
the perfect white sand beaches,
the seaside restaurants and bars, the variety
of lodgings (from cheap little
pensions to luxury hotels), and the
impressive ruins of a Hellenistic,
then Roman city
which included a Great Theater, and
a seaside Temples of Apollo
and Athena said to have been a place of tryst
for Anthony and Cleopatra.
The best times to enjoy Side
are late April, May, early June and
October. If you must come in high summer, avoid
weekends, when half of Ankara roars
down to Side for a swim.
Car, bus and minibus are
the ways to get here. Buses and minibuses
come from Antalya and Alanya. The nearest airport is Antalya's,
55 km (34 miles) west of Side.
Maps
of Side, Belek, Manavgat & Mediterranean
Turkey
Distances & Travel Times
Alanya: 63
km (39 miles) E, 1 hour
Anamur: 198
km (123 miles) SE, 3.75 hours
Ankara: 615
km (382 miles) NE, 9 hours
Antalya: 65
km (40 miles) W, 1 hour
Aspendos: 37
km (23 miles) NW, 40 minutes
Istanbul: 790
km (491 miles) NW, 13 hours
Konya: 300
km (186 miles) NE, 5 hours
Olimpos: 145
km (90 miles) SW, 3 hours
Perge: 58
km (36 miles) W, 1 hour
Selge
(Altınkaya): 83 km
(52 miles) N, 2 hours
Maps
of Mediterranean Turkey
Mediterranean
Turkey
TTP
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