Antalya is a touristic coastal city with shopping, restaurants, nightlife and beaches. It is quite the family holiday destination which is important to keep in mind when booking a trip here!
Whilst it’s quantity over quality here, it is possible to find some hidden gems. I’ve detailed my favourite spots below
where to stay
We had a less than desirable experience with our Airbnb in Antalya. Luckily the weather was good and we spent most of our days out at the beach. This experienced cemented the wisdom to avoid Airbnb’s in Turkey and to opt for hotels or hostels instead.
Regarding location, Antalya is quite a big city. If you’re looking for a cute medieval vibe stay in the Old Town. There is lots of shopping, restaurants, cafés and nightlife around this area and it is easily accessible to bus routes. However, there is only one beach near the old town (Mermerli) which is quite expensive and overcrowded.
If your looking for a beach holiday in Antalya stay on the eastern outskirts of the city. There are lots of smaller beach clubs on this side which are much more affordable and less overcrowded as I will detail in the next section…
transportation
⭑ The tram from the airport to the city centre is incredibly convenient. You can tap on with a debit mastercard.
⭑ Buses are a really good way to get around. We got to some of the smaller beaches outside of town on the bus. They’re usually on time and stops are easy to locate. At the bus stops there is a QR code you can use to check where the bus is. There is also an app. You can use your debit card to tap on but keep in mind they accept Mastercard only.
⭑ Antalya bus terminal is a bit far out of town. So ensure you leave yourself enough time to get there!
what to do
Antalya was a big relaxation part of our trip. So we didn’t do much sightseeing ! However, we spent a lot of time exploring different beach clubs, eating and drinking.
sulu ada boat tour
We did our day trip through excursion mania. They were really good and attentive via WhatsApp pretty much 24/7. It was the cheapest one we found at €25 which included transfers to and from Antalya, the boat ride, free tea, lunch and watermelon. The boat itself was subcontracted to Carpe Diem.
The three swim spots they took us to were AMAZING. However, like all mass boat trips you do, our boat was quite full and there were probably 8 other big boats at each spot we went to. So they were quite packed but still very beautiful. One of the downsides of the Carpe Diem boat was that they blasted music the whole trip. I know I sound like a grandma but it was hard to enjoy the sights ! However, the experience was amazing and the scenery was beautiful. Definitely something I don’t regret doing.
beaches and beach clubs
Mermerli Plajı is the main beach in Antalya Old Town. It is overpriced, overcrowded and the water looks dirty. We were told to wait an hour for a beach chair. We did go to Antalya in peak season so it is not unexpected to wait this long.
We decided to get a bus instead to some smaller beach clubs and had a much better experience. A lot of locals visit these clubs and they are a lot more reasonably priced. I have listed some of these below.
sightseeing
Some popular sightseeing in Antalya includes seeing Hadrian’s Gate, The Old Clock Tower, The Yivliminare Mosque and walking around the old town. We did none of the former but did a lot of exploring of the old town. Whilst the area is nice and very interesting architecturally it is catered to tourists. So, don’t go to Antalya expecting an authentic Turkish experience.
eat and drink
Australian prices but good coffee and yummy treats!
Also a little expensive but great coffee. They also do a Turkish breakfast for 300 lira pp which looked good but unfortunately not in our price range.
Great woodfired pizza. A little pricey but worth it ! Make sure to book in advance.
Not the best Mezze I’ve ever had but you get a whole plate which would feed 2 people for about 250 lira.
Great baklava not too far out of town. A little bit pricey (70 lira for one piece). Not too syrupy and nice nutty.
for next time
I won’t be rushing back to Antalya. However, if I were to go back here are some things I would do differently.
⭑ Stay in the old town
⭑ Perhaps stay in a smaller, less touristy town such as Çirali.
⭑ Avoid peak season
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