Antalya A world of impressions

The Antalya coast is so dear to Ukrainian tourists that it is jokingly called the “Antalya dacha”. And what could be better than a carefree holiday at a hotel? But this resort on the Mediterranean coast is filled with ancient sights, and there is plenty of modern entertainment here. Let's explore!

On the list of places that you must visit at least once in your life, the ancient city of Myra near Demre; The old city of Antalya, dating back to 200 years BC, preserves the triumphal arch "Hadrian's Gate" and the harbor - the same age as the city, a park with the Hidirlik Tower, built by the Romans in the 2nd century AD. A walk through the historical center is complemented by observation decks, an archaeological museum, a bazaar and open-air coffee shops.

Canyons, wild rivers, waterfalls, caves - for active people and lovers of nature. Sea trips on pirate boats - for children. For the whole family: an aquarium, a water park and a dolphinarium, where you can watch dolphin and seal shows, swim with dolphins and sharks (by the way, they offer dolphin therapy). There are a lot of interesting things, so the hotel will wait.

Aktur Park

The Aktur Park amusement park in the Konyaalti region has 40 attractions for every taste: for children, the whole family and despair. Roller coaster, Gondola, Tornado, Tower and two observation wheels: 30 and 90 meters high! It was here that Turkey's most observation wheel was launched in 2021, and now you can see the whole of Antalya from its modern air-conditioned gondolas. One spin of the wheel takes 20 minutes. At night, in the glow of the illumination, you can’t take your eyes off the attraction.

The Land of Legends

The highlight of Belek is The Land of Legends, the country’s largest park for families. It has a giant water park with 55 water slides of varying extremes: waterfall towers, a stormy whirlpool, slides with a large number of serpentines and family slides that go down on rafts, an infinity pool with glass walls and sea water, a jacuzzi “among the rocks,” a swimming pool, lagoons, wild mountain and lazy rivers.

The attraction area features incredible roller coasters, including the Hyper Coaster with a track length of 1,287 meters and a height of 62 meters, as well as the Galleon with dizzying speeds and children's carousels. At the park, you can watch a dolphin show, swim with and learn about these wonderful sea animals, and helmet dive into sharks or take diving lessons.

On the territory there is a fairy-tale castle more than a hundred meters high, a 1.2 km long "Little Venice" canal along which you can ride a gondola, a "Masha and the Bear" area designed especially for children, Kingdom Hotel, restaurants, cafes, a boulevard with more hundreds of stores of world famous and local brands, where you can find everything from clothes and toys to household goods.

Every evening there is an extravaganza by Franco Dragone featuring 75 virtuoso performers in impressive costumes. Singing fountains, a parade of 25 musical boats, performances by stunt acrobats high above the ground, laser shows are part of a fabulous open-air performance.

Cable cars

Antalya is generous with dizzying panoramas. Thus, the Olympos cable car in Kemer takes you to Mount Tahtali (2365 m). From this height there are views of the coastline to the ancient Greek city-state of Phaselis and the pine- and cedar-covered mountains of the Olympos-Beydaglari National Park. This Swiss-made cable car is one of the longest in the world - 4350 m.

At the top, where there is an observation deck, you can stay for several hours or half a day, watch the sunrise with a picnic, have dinner with live music, enjoy the tranquility of the resort in the moonlight, confess your love or have a professional photo shoot.

Rise at sunrise and sunset are filled with romance, as well as stargazing and studying the constellations with an astronomer on cloudless nights.

The park has trails for walking tours. Organize paragliding flights. From November to the end of May, the tops of the mountains are covered with snow, at the same time the sea is quite warm, and you can watch the sunrise among the snow, and by noon you can swim and sunbathe on the beach.

The Alanya cable car is special because it gives you the opportunity to view the Alanya fortress of the 13th century. The monumental structure rises 250 meters above sea level, contains 83 towers and 140 bastions. It was equipped with 400 tanks to collect water, some of which are still in use today. The cable car lifts this monument, giving the opportunity to admire the whole of Alanya and its picturesque beaches of Cleopatra and Damlatas.

The Tünektepe cable car is a real queen of panoramas. During the nine-minute climb to the top of Tunektepe, you can enjoy plenty of views of the sea, harbor and resort towns. The upper station, at an altitude of 605 meters, is equipped with a terrace with an observatory and a restaurant, which in addition to the main hall has a pizzeria, a tea room and an ice cream parlour. Pine forests add a therapeutic effect to your satisfaction.

Sandland

Antalya Sand Sculpture Museum is one of the largest, oldest and most prestigious festivals in the world. Every year, a new exhibition of hundreds of giant sculptures, united by a common theme, opens on the sandy beach of Lara. In 2023 they are dedicated to space. You will see the only collection of sand rockets and spaceships in Turkey: scaled-down models (3–5 meters) of Saturn 5, Gemini, Discovery and others.

The only materials used are sand and annual water. The figures are created by experienced craftsmen from different countries; the work lasts three weeks in April. The exhibition opens at nine in the morning and is open during the season, from May 1 to November 1, until eleven in the evening, in other months until 19:00. Visit the world of space adventures.

The path of humanity into space is presented here in chronological order, thus the festival also achieves an educational goal. The sculptures are dedicated to Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo Galilei, the Wright and Montgolfier brothers, Hezarfen Ahmet Çelebi, Neil Armstrong, who were the first to land on the Moon, as well as the spacecraft Columbia and Dragon 2, the colonization of Mars and planets. There are a number of works that were inspired by movies about space and aliens: “Star Wars”, “Star Trek”, “Wall-I”, “Avatar”, “Guardians of the Galaxy”, “The Fifth Element”. The exhibition looks especially magical at night under LED lighting, when thematic music is playing.

Visitors are also invited to see the Sun, Moon and planets through a telescope and experience a state of weightlessness like astronauts training, build a kinetic sand castle at a master class and watch a documentary about the creation of sculptures on the big screen.

Recreation is complemented by water activities and off-road rides.

Underwater Museum in Side

The first underwater museum in Turkey was opened in 2015 in Side. The exhibition is located 2.5 km from the coast at a depth of up to 20 meters, consists of five thematic zones and contains more than 110 statues. Among them are a 3.5-meter figure of Poseidon weighing 50 tons, camel caravans on the trade route, ruins of ancient cities, dervishes dancing, camels and horses. It also depicts the decisive battle for independence in Canakkale. All sculptures are made by Turkish craftsmen from environmentally friendly materials and serve as an artificial reef. The bottom is decorated with natural caves. The composition is filled with life by schools of fish.

The museum is open year-round, but the official diving season runs from April to November. Only certified divers can take advantage of this opportunity.

In Side itself, in addition to the beaches, it is worth visiting the Old Town, which is more than three thousand years old. The Temple of Apollo with five columns has been preserved there. The amphitheater, founded in the second century AD, rises above the sea. In those days, its rows accommodated 15 thousand spectators. Trade and state squares (agoras), Roman baths and other artifacts have also survived to this day. Some of the archaeological finds are located in the pedestrian part of the historical center under glass and the lighting in the evening creates a mystical atmosphere here.