Alanya is one of the hottest resort towns in Turkey.
It is located in the south-east of the country, 150 kilometers from Antalya. The resort season there lasts from May to October, and vacation prices are often lower than in other Turkish resorts.
I have been to Alanya about ten times and I am ready to come again and again. There is a stereotype that a vacation in Turkey is limited to the territory of the hotel and the all-inclusive system. I don’t like package tours and prefer to plan trips on my own. Alanya is suitable for such a trip.
In the article I will tell you how to organize a vacation at the resort without the help of a tour operator and choose accommodation, where to eat delicious food and have fun.
It is important to take into account that the country has a high inflation rate. Prices change very quickly, sometimes within one month. I updated this article in February 2023, since then some prices may have increased 2-2.5 times.
Weather
Alanya is much hotter than other resort towns in Turkey. It is protected from the cold air by the Taurus Mountains. In summer, the temperature in the shade reaches +35 °C, and in the sun tends to +40 °C. Tourists are recommended to wait out the hottest hours and come to the beach before 11 am and after 4 in the afternoon. In spring and fall, the sun is not so warm and the temperature stays at +24…26 °C.
During the peak season the sea warms up to +26…28 °C. In May the water is still cool – about +22 °C, and by the end of the season its temperature differs from the air by only a couple of degrees. In my opinion, mid-September is the most comfortable period, when the sun becomes milder and the sea is still very warm.
Rains in summer are very rare, usually they are short and do not interfere with the rest.
Insurance
Usually travel agencies include insurance in the price of the tour. If you are traveling on your own, be sure to buy insurance in advance. This will save you from serious medical expenses in case of illness or injury. Please note that injuries sustained while under the influence of alcohol are not considered insured events.
How to get to Alanya
Flight. There are two ways to get to Alanya. The first is to fly to Antalya airport. It is located 150 kilometers from the resort. The road, taking into account the distribution of tourists to hotels, will take 3-3.5 hours. The second option is to use the Gazipasa airport. It is about 45 kilometers from the center of Alanya, the road usually takes about an hour.
Shuttle. To get to the hotel and back to the airport, I always use the group transfer of the popular company 7/24 Transfer. The application is made on the website, in the column “Arrival time” indicate the time of arrival of the flight. You can also send an e-mail or contact the support service in “Whatsapp” or chat, which is located in the lower right corner of the site.
Travelers in Antalya are met at the square in front of the airport at a counter marked 7/24 Transfer. In Gazipasa, a company employee with a sign is usually waiting at the terminal exit. In summer 2023, a group transfer from Antalya to the center of Alanya will cost 350 TRY per person, from Gazipasa – 175 TRY.
Tourists are taken exactly to the address to the hotel. But be careful if it is located in the center of the city on the mountain. The locals call this area castle – castle or fortress. Minibuses are not allowed to enter there. In 2023 they forgot to warn me about it. So I found myself in the square in front of a steep mountain with a suitcase and a heavy backpack. The driver directed me to a cab stand and left. It took me 30 TRY to get to my accommodation in the fortress area. The cab driver and I reached the place in exactly two minutes.
Alanya neighborhoods
Alanya includes several tourist areas that stretch along the coast. I have marked them on the map above. I will tell you a little about each one.
The center of Alanya. It includes the famous Cleopatra Beach and several more kilometers of coastline on the other side of the mountain. There are many city hotels without their own territory, dozens of cafes, restaurants, bars and stores, and all city entertainment is in walking distance. I usually choose this area for my vacations. I will tell you about its beaches and other infrastructure separately.
Okurdjalar, Inzekum, Konakli, Türkler and Payallar are compact neighborhoods in the west of Alanya. All of them are filled with large hotels, which most often work on an “all-inclusive” system. The beaches here are mostly pebbly, sandy beaches are in Türkler and Konakli.
There is hardly anything interesting outside the hotels, except for a couple of stores. You will have to get to the center of Alanya by bus from half an hour and longer, so I recommend to choose the hotel carefully, so that it had everything you need for a comfortable rest.
Avsallar is a large village about 20 kilometers from Alanya. The beaches in this area are also sandy. There are large hotels on the coast, and across the road there is a bazaar, pharmacies, cafes, restaurants and supermarkets. But you will still have to go to Alanya for entertainment.
Both and Tosmur are the nearest districts of Alanya to the city center. A cab or bus ride to them will take 10-15 minutes. There are also many hotels here, all of them are located across the street from the beach. For tourists sometimes build underpasses, but they are not everywhere, and the traffic on the highway is intense. Rest in these areas will be calmer than in the city center. To find a store, pharmacy or cafe will not be difficult. There is also an Alanyum shopping center located in Obe It has a small store, which in format resembles Stockmann, where you can find, for example, things by Karl Lagerfeld or Guess at discounts.
Kestel, Mahmutlar and Kargycak are even further away from the center of Alanya – about 20-30 minutes by car – and are also suitable for a quiet holiday. There are more foreign home owners in Kestel. In all these neighborhoods, equipped beaches are located across the street from the hotels.
Beaches
The center of Alanya is divided by a mountain range into two parts. If you look at the map above, to the left of the mountain is the famous Cleopatra Beach. Its length is about 2 kilometers. Part of the beach is covered with sand, the other – with small pebbles.
The clearest emerald-colored water is near the mountain at the Damlatash cave. The entrance to the water is not everywhere convenient: over the years the sand is washed out and exposes concrete slabs. But the farther away from the mountain, the less they are. The depth starts sharply, you should be careful if you have a vacation with children.
To the right of the mountain stretches the municipal beach of Keikubat. I found it not as comfortable as Cleopatra in terms of infrastructure, but it has a smoother entrance to the water.
Both beaches are marked with the Blue Flag, i.e. officially recognized as clean and safe for recreation. They are divided into numbered sections. The numbers are written on large plaques or flags and are clearly visible from the sea and the seafront.
Each site is the responsibility of its own owner and team of staff, some may be dirty and have old sunbeds, others may be perfect. All beaches have free street showers, toilets, usually one for several beaches and paid – 5-8 TRY.
The cost of a sun lounger in the summer of 2023 is 40 TRY. One umbrella costs the same amount. After payment, they can be used all day long.
Tickets are bought from the beach owners. Sometimes they offer discounts. For example, if you pay for a sun lounger five or ten days in advance, one or two tickets will be given as a gift. But before buying tickets for a week, I recommend trying out several beaches and choosing the one with the most convenient entrance to the water, comfortable sunbeds, clean sand and pleasant staff.
You can also sometimes get a small discount from your hotel. This information should be clarified at the reception and then show your hotel bracelet to the beach attendant. In this way you can save about 5-10 TRY.
Alanya sights and surroundings
Alanya Kalesi (Alanya Fortress) is located on the mountain that divides the city into two parts. In the evening it is very beautifully illuminated from all sides. The cheapest way to get up to the fortress is by bus number 4 from the stop near Damlatash cave. The ticket price on all routes in the city is the same – 13.5 TRY.
There is a fee to enter the fortress. The price of an adult ticket in summer 2023 is 150 TRY. But a significant part of the fortress is allowed to see for free. To do this, you have to walk along the slope.
You can walk down to the city, though the last part of the way will be right on the highway. It’s not safe, but I love walking this route. All the way down, you are accompanied by great views and the smell of sun-warmed pine trees, and the old private houses of the locals below.
The funicular (Teleferik) is both an attraction and another way to get up the mountain and into the castle. The cable cars arrive at the top of the mountain, where you can walk around and take photos at several observation points.
The price of an adult one-way ticket is 175 TRY, round trip – 190 TRY. You can pay by cash or bank card.
The Red Tower (Kızıl Kule) is another open-air museum in Alanya. It is worth walking along the remains of the fortress wall, visiting the shipyard and looking at the ancient wooden guns. The basement of the tower houses the Alanya Museum. There are two types of tickets: only to the tower or the shipyard for 30 TRY or a combined ticket for 70 TRY, which includes a visit to the tower, shipyard and Damlatash cave, which I will tell you about below.
The museum has a very small exhibition: models of the tower and ships, as well as a history of the tower in English and historical photos of it. At the very top there is a viewing platform, but the view from there will not be as spectacular as from the top of the mountain. So you won’t lose anything if you don’t go there.
I recommend going down to the shipyard for those traveling with children. There is a small unfinished ship there, and an ancient wooden mechanism for lifting cargoes has been recreated. In the heat of the day, the shipyard is pleasantly cool and semi-dark – you can take a break before a walk along the fortress wall.
Within the walls of the fortress there is an old residential area: there are many small houses and vegetable gardens where chickens and goats walk. I love this place, every time I find something new and unusual there.
Damlataş Cave is located at the very beginning of Cleopatra Beach. Inside you can see ancient stalactites and stalagmites. Turkish doctors recommend visiting the cave for asthmatics: the moist ionized air makes breathing easier. The entrance ticket costs 30 TRY. You can also buy a comprehensive ticket at the Red Tower.
Archaeological Museum. Archaeological finds and ethnographic artifacts are exhibited in 14 halls and in the open air: household utensils and clothes of the ancient inhabitants of Alanya, a large collection of weapons and ancient coins.
The museum is open every day, except Monday, from 9 am to 7 pm. The price of an adult ticket is 40 TRY. If you like history, I suggest you take a look.
The I love Alanya observation deck is located 450 meters above sea level. It offers an impressive view of the bay and the city. There is a small park and a barbecue area.
You can get to the site by bus No. 8 from Ataturk Boulevard. The standard fare is 13.5 TRY. A cab ride will cost at least 100 TRY.
Sapadere Kanyonu (Sapadere Canyon) is located 50 kilometers from Alanya. It is a small gorge with footbridges and waterfalls. The length of the route – only 700 meters, places for bathing are marked with special signs. The water temperature is also indicated on them. A mountain river flows through the canyon, so the water is approximately +10…15 °C.
You can’t get to the canyon by public transportation. If you don’t plan to rent a car, the easiest way is to buy a jeep safari tour, as I did. In the summer of 2022, street agencies offered such tours for an average of $35, but you can always haggle. Once there were four people in our company, and after a relaxed half-hour conversation with the salesman on distracted topics, we easily negotiated a discount. In the end, each ticket cost 25$. In Turkey, they appreciate politeness and love to chat.
Entertainment in Alanya
Water activities. There are many points on the beaches offering jet skis, bananas, canoes and catamarans. Prices are in euros and in the summer of 2022 start from 20 € for a seat on a banana. A jet ski ride costs 40 € for 10 minutes for one person and 50 € for two. Prices for summer 2023 are not yet known.
I am afraid of this kind of entertainment, so I never risk trying it. I also doubt the level of training of the staff. Be careful and make sure that safety measures are observed.
A picnic on the Dim Chai River is a change of scenery when you’re tired of the heat. The river flows through a narrow gorge, along which there are several cafes right on the water. After the hot coastline, this place looks like a real oasis. A few hours there feels like a day at the spa.
There is a bus number 10 from the central bus station behind the LC Waikiki store, there is no point in buying any special excursion. You can spend the whole day on the river, have lunch, swim in the icy water and sunbathe. Once my friends and I were waiting for the bus at the bus stop, and we were picked up by a free shuttle of one of the cafes. We took it back to the city afterwards.
Alanya Water Park is located in the city center, near Damlatas Cave. The price for adults in summer 2023 is 500 TRY, for children – 400 TRY. The water park is small and, judging by the reviews, is much inferior to the Water Planet water park, which is located 30 kilometers from the center of Alanya, in the village of Okurdjalar.
Boat trip. Large and small ships leave every day for boat trips from the central bay. The boat trip takes all day and includes stops for swimming, sometimes animation or foam disco and lunch.
I don’t like to overpay. The tour operator in the summer of 2022 offered rides starting at $50 per adult, in the bay you could buy a ride for $15. On the second one, drinks will be at an additional cost. If you don’t drink alcohol or limit yourself to beer for 75-85 TRY, you can save money.
Street tours also do not include passenger insurance, transfers and guides. Although arrangements can often be made to pick you up from your hotel.
Jeep safari is another popular excursion. It includes a trip to Sapadere Canyon, stops at several viewpoints in the mountains and lunch. The price ratio between tour operator and street agencies is the same as for boat trips.
There is a hamam in almost every hotel. It is not necessary to go on a separate excursion, you can find out the prices in your hotel or choose one of the establishments in the city. For example, in the hammam “Cleopatra” summer of 2022 I visited and was quite satisfied. I paid about 700 TRY for peeling, foam massage and half an hour of intensive massage with oils.
Nightclubs, bars and live music. At night, the bay of Alanya is illuminated by the light of floodlights. Nightclubs in summer open after 11pm and end at 3am sharp.
Prices for cocktails are from 200 TRY and up. To get the right to stand at a table, you need to book it in advance or order a lot of alcohol. Otherwise, the table can be unceremoniously given to other visitors. This approach annoys me terribly. Unless you start bringing the establishment a lot of profit, you are not interesting.
Before the clubs open, you can sit in a bar. There is a whole street dedicated to them in the city center near the seafront. Mostly there is one music for everyone, but there are also those that invite their own DJs. In bars the atmosphere is more relaxed. Unlike clubs, they have a lot of competition, so there are active inviters at the entrance.
If there are only girls in the company, sometimes bars offer free cocktails of good quality. It seems to me that sometimes they do this simply to keep guests longer and attract other visitors. The bar staff do not bother with intrusive attention.
For those who like Turkish rock music, I recommend Harry’s Pub. There are cover bands that sing popular songs here every night. This bar is rarely visited by tourists, but Turks come with pleasure, order bottled beer, dance and sing along. Entrance to the concerts is usually free.
At the end of September, the city hosts the International Jazz Festival “Jazz Days”. The festival lasts 3-4 days and admission is free. The stage is set up on the seashore, next to the Red Tower. Because of the pandemic, the festival was not held for two years, but in 2022 it returned and ran from September 22 to 25.
If you like good music and are interested in Turkish culture, check out Çello Turku Bar Alanya, a tiny bar by the bay. It has live music every night, singing Turkish songs and playing national instruments. There is no food in the bar, only drinks and snacks. But people come there not for dinner, but for the atmosphere: guests pass notes with the names of songs to musicians, sing along, dance. The only disadvantage of the place is cigarette smoke: like almost everywhere else in Turkey, they allow smoking inside. But I have a tolerant attitude to it.
Alanya for children. There are many playgrounds for children in Alanya. All of them are perfectly equipped: there is a special coating, slides, ladders and swings. Free clean toilets are often provided nearby.
In the center on the embankment you can ride a small children’s train, which cost 15 TRY in summer 2022. You can also ride the big tourist train, which cost 30 TRY in the summer. It leaves from the corner of the bay and makes a circle around the city center.
At the entrance to the city there is a small luna park. Judging by the reviews, the rides there are few and old. For 6 tokens in the summer of 2022 asked to pay 150 TRY. In the center of Alanya you can ride electric cars, in 2022 one ride cost 40 TRY per person.
If children love cats, there are several places in the city where you can feed and play with them. Two are located in the public gardens near Cleopatra Beach and one in the center near the seafront. Cats live in fenced areas, where they have houses and beds, and come out to people at will. The animals are cared for by volunteers, treated and fed. I do not advise you to bring ordinary food with you – it is better to buy a bag of food in the store. There are usually fountains near cat parks where you can wash your hands.
Money
The national currency of Turkey is the Turkish Lira, 1 TRY. You can pay in stores, cafes and restaurants by cash or card.
I recommend choosing ATMs that are located in bank branches. There are also many points located around the city, but sometimes the machines there turn out to be old: the card compartments in them are very tight.
In 2019, my card got stuck in such an ATM, and then it just ate it. A call to customer support did not help: they said it would take at least a week to get it back. I was saved by euro balances and PayPass. It works great in Turkey. Now I either go to banks or make sure that the people in front of me don’t have any problems with the card.
Housing in Alanya
Hotels are located along the entire coast of Alanya. They are mostly small three- and four-star hotels without their own territory. A few hotels stand on Cleopatra Beach near the coastline, but usually there is a road between the hotel and the beach.
Hotels most often work on the system “all-inclusive” or “half-board” – breakfast plus dinner. There are apartments with breakfast only. In the half-board format, drinks at dinner are usually paid for, even water. And it is about five times more expensive than water in the store.
It is not profitable to rent an apartment in 2023, as there are now many people in Alanya who have come to Turkey for a long period of time. After that, housing prices have skyrocketed. For example, in February 2023 I rented an apartment for 28 days for 850 €, and it was the cheapest option. In winter, you can find apartments in advance for June at prices starting at 700 TRY per night. Be prepared for the fact that electricity charges are sometimes not included in the price. In February 2023, they charged 2.9 TRY for 1 kW.
Transportation
City buses allow you to get to any point of the city. The price is fixed at 13.5 TRY. You can pay by cash or bank card. You can also buy a Kentkart pass, which is sold at kiosks and stores with the sign Yükleme Noktası – “refill point”.
Kentkart costs 30 TRY, one ride costs 10.2 TRY. To get off at a stop, you need to press a button in the cabin. If you don’t know where to get off, you can ask the driver – he will tell you.
Intercity buses can take you to neighboring towns or to Gazipasa or Antalya airport. They leave from the bus station near Cleopatra Beach. To get to the airport, we found out the time and place of bus departure at one of the kiosks at the station and then bought tickets from the driver before boarding.
In 2023, you can get from Alanya to Gazipasa for 40 TRY, to Antalya for 85 TRY and to Istanbul for a minimum of 329 TRY. Tickets can also be bought in advance on the transportation company’s website if you have a bank card.
Dolmushi are minibuses that run between the outlying areas of the city and neighboring cities and towns. They depart from the central bus station. The exact price is found out from the driver, it depends on the distance. For example, a trip from Alanya to Manavgat will cost about 35 TRY. You can pay for the dolmus only in cash at the exit. You have to tell the driver the stop where you got off, for example, the name of the hotel or village.
Cabs in the city are yellow in color and fares are paid in cash. You can call a car using a button – they are located all over the city on signs with the inscription Taksi. Drivers, as a rule, quote exorbitant prices for tourists, so I recommend asking to turn on the meter right away. I usually do not use cabs in Alanya, I walk everywhere. The media say that the last time the official fares were raised in July 2022 and set the price at 10 TRY per landing and 14 TRY per kilometer.
Renting a car is for experienced drivers: traffic is very heavy in Turkey. Not everyone follows the rules, and in the evening they may well drive drunk. I have not used rental services in Turkey, but I have seen many firms that offer their services. Many acquaintances recommend Rentalcars. As a rule, you need a bank credit card to rent a car everywhere.
Scooters. BinBin scooters are now available for rent in Alanya in 2022 if you are over 15 years old. To ride, you need a bank card. Its data is uploaded to the app along with a passport photo and selfies with the document. The starting price of a ride is TRY 1.99 and the cost per minute is TRY 2.49. Free scooters are searched for on the map using the app. You can ride on bike lanes, but no one enforces this rule.
Food
Turkey is a Muslim country and pork is not eaten there. Cafes and restaurants serve beef, lamb, chicken and fish. Free spreads and white bread are often offered before meals. Water is also free in some restaurants. Fruit for dessert is sometimes brought as a gift if you maintain a friendly conversation with the staff.
Alanya is a tourist town and there are a lot of restaurants with the same menu aimed at foreigners. This makes me a little sad: it is not easy to find something unique. But when you do, you really enjoy the cuisine and the atmosphere.
For fish and seafood I go to Bumbabalık restaurant in the very corner of the bay. It’s a very nice place, like a Greek cafe. They sing Turkish songs in the evenings. Dinner for two with beer will cost 1000-1200 TRY. Very tasty small fish in batter – hamsa, popular in Turkey. You can have it for two as an appetizer. I also tried grilled octopus and shrimp – all fresh and excellent quality. And the vegetable salad is served with a specialty dressing of locally produced balsamic vinegar.
For more formal dinners I choose the Merlot restaurant, it’s close to the Red Tower. It has a beautiful view of the bay. I know the owner of the restaurant and I know how much he cares about the quality of the service and the food. There’s the best grilled fish there and a good selection of Turkish wines. Choose sea bass or dorada – you can’t go wrong. The average check for dinner for two people is 1200-1500 TRY with alcohol.
For a romantic dinner, take the funicular up to the fortress and at sunset check out the Gardenia restaurant. It is terraced on the top of the mountain and offers a marvelous view of the sea. The restaurant is also accessible by a free shuttle, which is ordered by phone. The number is indicated on the advertisement, which is hung all over the city and in hotels. By the same number you can order a table: in the evening the restaurant is often full. The menu is European cuisine: in the summer of 2022, salads were offered for 100-180 TRY, pizza for 150-185 TRY, and pasta for 160-170 TRY on average.
Limani restaurant has been operating in the bay for many years. It serves large portions, but the prices are also above average. For example, 600 grams of grilled fish cost about 250 TRY, sautéed beef with vegetables, rice and French fries on the side – 319 TRY.
From Turkish dishes I recommend you to try baked mussels with rice. They are often sold on the street, but I don’t risk it and eat this dish only in cafes. The popular appetizer cigar börek can be found on almost any menu – it is cheese wrapped in thin dough and deep-fried.
It is also worth ordering the famous Turkish kebab – it can be meat on a skewer or roast in a clay pot. Each restaurant has its own special recipe. Try a few to get an impression of Turkish cuisine.
For a snack, I recommend trying Turkish shawarma – doner. Every place cooks it differently, so I recommend going around a few and choosing the most delicious one. In 2023, an average doner will cost 50 TRY.
An economical lunch is Turkish lentil soup. It is rarely served in tourist restaurants – you should look for it in small cafes and places for locals. The average price is the same 50 TRY.
There are several grocery store chains in Alanya: Migros, Bim, Shok, Karfur and others. Plus on every corner there are many small markets with basic necessities that are open 24/7. For fruit, it’s best to go to the Friday bazaar in the Hajet neighborhood near the mosque. A kilogram of fruit or berries costs 15-40 TRY.
Internet and communications
In hotels, free wifi most often works only at the reception, its speed depends on the number of guests in the lobby. But free fast internet can be found in any café by asking the waiter for the password. Therefore, you won’t have to use expensive mobile internet without an urgent need.
You can also buy a travel SIM card from a local operator. It will work for 90 days, then the card will be blocked. I have never bought such SIM cards, but I have read reviews that they are overpriced in 2023. For example, one tourist told me that in a telecom salon she was offered a SIM card for 600 TRY.
In Alanya there are street telephones. Phone cards are sold in any kiosk, the price is 17 TRY. The card will already have 8 TRY on it, the cost per minute depends on where you call. How much money is left on the card is shown on the pay phone screen.
What to bring from Alanya
Turkish sweets are sold in any street store, but it is not known in what conditions and how long the boxes are stored there. Therefore, it is better to buy them by weight at the Karfur chain or at the Friday bazaar. I rarely buy sweets, but if I do, I choose Koska. It is more than 100 years old. A box of lukum at Migros costs 150 TRY, a pack of my favorite halva pişmaniye sade, which resembles cotton candy, costs 71.96 TRY.
The stores sell bed linen from the famous Turkish brand Taç. The price for a set starts from 1000 TRY, but everywhere you can bargain.
There is a street of music stores in the city center. There you can choose a national instrument – a saz or a baalama – as a gift. Prices for them start from 600 TRY.
In 2022, the main souvenir from Turkey for me was clothes. For example, in August I bought Mavi jeans for 449 TRY. The same price was for a denim skirt by U. S. Polo. In the winter of 2023, the prices went up a bit.
Features of vacation in Alanya in 2023
I was in Alanya in the summer of 2022 and came here again in the winter of 2023. The city is still welcoming tourists. In the summer, it seemed to me that there were fewer than usual.
It’s also worth noting that prices continue to rise. I updated this article in February, but by the start of the tourist season, the cost of goods and services had risen even more.
Safety rules
Alanya is safe. The locals are good-natured and always ready to help, even if they don’t know the language. I have not heard of anyone stealing on the beaches. I leave my bags unattended on the sun loungers and swim in peace.
At night, the beaches are patrolled by security guards, so it is better not to drink alcohol there or not to do it very obviously. However, if you politely apologize and leave the beach, there are usually no problems.
I have been to other resorts in Turkey, but only in Alanya I know that I can safely return to the hotel at late hours and my safety will not be threatened. This is probably the biggest plus for me.
