Side, Turkey

Side is one of those rare places where you can wander through ancient ruins on the way to dinner. The old town fills a little headland, its Roman theatre and seafront Temple of Apollo woven between restaurants, shops and small hotels, while long sandy beaches stretch away on either side. It is easy-going, family-friendly and at its most magical at sunset among the temple columns.

Mobile coverage in Side

Side is a compact resort built around an ancient town on a small peninsula, with modern hotels spreading out along the beaches on either side. Most visitors split their days between the old town and their hotel, and both areas are generally well covered by 4G. The peninsula's lanes, packed with restaurants and shops among the ruins, usually give a solid signal outdoors, and the main roads linking the beach hotels to the town and to nearby Manavgat are similarly reliable for maps and messaging.

Turkey's three mobile networks, Turkcell, Vodafone and Türk Telekom, all operate in the area. Coverage is at its least predictable in the countryside: up the river valleys, in the forested hills behind the coast and in the gorges further inland, signal can weaken or disappear for a while. For a typical beach-and-sightseeing holiday that matters little, but if you know you'll spend time off the beaten track, each plan's page shows which network it uses.

Getting around Side

Most UK visitors fly into Antalya Airport (AYT), which is around an hour's drive west of Side along the main coast road. Pre-booked transfers are the norm, since many hotels here are all-inclusive, though taxis are readily available too. The route runs through a largely flat landscape of farmland, towns and resorts, and signal along the way is generally steady, so you can let your hotel know you're on the way or reply to the transfer company's messages without fuss.

Once you've arrived, dolmus minibuses run between the beach hotels, Side town and Manavgat, and they are an easy, informal way to get about. Side's old town is largely pedestrianised and simple to explore on foot, and taxis wait near the entrance for the trip back to your hotel. Many visitors also book organised excursions, with coaches collecting from hotels along the beach roads early in the morning, so it helps to have data working to confirm pick-up times. Data on these short hops rarely gives trouble; it's the longer excursions inland, on winding roads into the hills, where you're more likely to notice the signal dropping away for a few minutes at a time.

Where you'll use data most in Side

The ancient sites are the main draw. The large Roman theatre stands at the edge of the old town, and at the tip of the peninsula the columns of the Temple of Apollo rise right beside the sea, one of the most photographed spots on this coast, especially at sunset. Both are open-air and usually have good signal for photos and sharing, and between them the colonnaded streets and scattered ruins make it easy to lose your bearings, so a map on your phone earns its keep. The small harbour nearby is where boat trips leave from, and as with anywhere on the water, expect the connection to fade once you're offshore and return as you come back in.

Beyond the peninsula, long beaches stretch away to the east and west, backed by big all-inclusive hotels. Many guests rely on hotel Wi-Fi, which can be slow when the hotel is full, so mobile data is a handy back-up. Popular day trips include Manavgat waterfall and the boat trips along the Manavgat river, both reasonably well covered, and the remarkably well-preserved Roman theatre at Aspendos inland, where signal is generally fine at the site but can be patchier on the country roads that lead to it.

Tips for staying connected in Side

• Install the eSIM before leaving home and switch it on after landing at AYT, so you're connected for the transfer.
• UK networks' European roaming deals don't usually stretch to Turkey, which isn't in the EU, so check the rates your own network charges here before relying on your usual SIM.
• Don't depend on all-inclusive hotel Wi-Fi alone; it can struggle in the evenings when hundreds of guests are streaming at once.
• The Temple of Apollo gets crowded at sunset, and if uploads crawl while everyone is sharing the same view, give them a few minutes once the crowd thins.
• Download offline maps before heading inland to Aspendos or into the hills, where quiet country roads can lose signal.
• Store 112, the emergency number in Turkey, in your phone before your first day out.

Plans for the whole country are on our Turkey eSIM page. Side pairs naturally with eSIM for Antalya and eSIM for Alanya along the same coast, or eSIM for Pamukkale if you're adding an inland excursion.