Sitting on a small peninsular, 65 kilometres to the east of Antalya, Side (pronounced See-Day) is a popular family tourist resort that has grown up beside the atmospheric remains of an ancient Roman city. A UNESCO world heritage site, the main street is lined with touristy shops and boutiques, and descends to a small harbour overlooked by restaurants and bars. The ruins of ancient Side, including an impressive amphitheatre and the Temple of Apollo, are scattered around the centre.

Sandy beaches stretch along the coast in both directions, attracting thousands of holiday makers through the Summer months, both Turkish and foreign. As well as the excellent water sports on offer, leisure activities in the area include horse riding, white water rafting, and golf. The golfing resort of Belek is only 20 minutes away, and a new course in Side is now under construction and due for opening in 2007.

Property In Side and Surrounding Areas

Because Side is based on a small peninsula, and there are a large amount of historical ruins in the area, there is a real shortage of available land in the centre of the resort. This has caused development to spread along the coast to the east and west of the resort, as well as inland towards the coastal highway. There is also a different concept for building in Side, and local planning regulations restrict building to two and half up to four storeys, depending on the area. Further to the West there are some well established cooperative developments, built primarily for the Turkish market, but now increasingly bought by foreigners.

A three bedroom villa in Colaklı, around 7km West of Side, starts from as little as €80,000. For more central Side properties, there are some new apartments but they tend to be more expensive than a lot of properties in the area. A small two bedroom apartment 15 minutes walk from Side town centre starts from around €80,000, going up to €135,000 for a larger 3 bedroom duplex. There are also resale villas available close to the town centre, but these are generally in need of refurbishment.