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Car hire in Side is the smartest add-on to a package holiday on the Turkish Riviera — not a car for the whole stay, but one or two days under a specific plan. Side sits on a ribbon of all-inclusive hotels from the centre out to Sorgun, and most travellers transfer in, settle into the hotel, then hire a car for the day-trips the coach won't time well.
A family of four from Manchester, in at Voyage Sorgun on a TUI package, hired for two days only — Aspendos loop on day one, Kaleiçi on day three. The car cost less than the hotel excursion to Aspendos alone.
The other thing that sets Side apart is geography. The drive in from Antalya Airport (AYT) is 75 km of flat dual carriageway: no mountain passes, no hairpins, no tunnels. After Kemer or Marmaris, the road feels like a holiday in itself — just a wide D400 and farmland either side.
75 km of flat D400 from AYT
AYT to Side is 75 km on the D400 — about an hour to 1h15 outside rush. The road runs across flat coastal plain: wide divided carriageway, long straights, junctions signposted in Latin script. That's the strongest case for Side with families and first-time Turkish drivers who don't fancy a mountain serpentine off a night flight.
What that means in practice
A driver with limited Turkish-road experience handles it easily. MOBESE and EDS speed cameras are dense on the D400, so hold 90/120 and don't get drawn into the overtaking line. Heading west to Antalya and Belek — same flat D400. East to Alanya — also flat coastal road.
A couple from Leeds drove into Aspendos at 9:50 on day one, after leaving Çolaklı at nine. The hotel rep had warned them off self-drive after a night flight; they reckoned it was the easiest motorway run they'd done abroad.
AYT is the default airport. GZP (Gazipaşa) is technically closer at ~110 km, but very few flights land there, and for a Side stay it's rarely worth the limited schedule.
Hotel delivery map across Side
Side isn't one resort in one spot — it's a long coastal strip from the town centre out to Kızılağaç and Çenger. The delivery fee depends on which part of the strip your hotel sits in.
Free zone: centre, Kumköy, Çolaklı, Evrenseki
Central Side, Kumköy, Çolaklı and Evrenseki form the base zone — Side Star, Otium, Barut Hemera, Crystal Tat Beach, Adalya all sit here. Most local operators bring the car to the lobby at no charge as part of the standard service.
A guest at Crystal Tat Beach typed only "Crystal" in the booking. The car turned up at Crystal Family Resort in Sorgun — fifteen minutes the wrong way along the D400. Lesson learnt: write the exact hotel name.
Paid zone: Sorgun, Titreyengöl, Kızılot, Kızılağaç, Çenger
The eastern sub-zones — Sorgun (premium hotels in the pine forest: Voyage Sorgun, Selectum Family, Crystal Family), Titreyengöl by the river, Kızılot, Kızılağaç, Çenger — run €10–25 for delivery because the driver loses 15–25 minutes each way. Return is usually a mirror: where the car was delivered free, it's collected free; in Sorgun or Kızılağaç, the same flat fee applies on the way back.
Why book with us
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Local Side hosts
Your car comes from a small operator on the strip — Kumköy, Çolaklı, Sorgun — not a faceless desk in Antalya.
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Real hotel delivery
Free drop-off in the centre, Kumköy, Çolaklı and Evrenseki; flat fee in Sorgun and Kızılağaç.
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Debit cards welcome
UK and EU debit cards accepted for both payment and deposit on most of the local fleet.
Day-trips from Side: the ancient loop and beyond
The classic one-day case for hiring in Side: Aspendos, Perge and Manavgat Waterfall in a single loop. No hotel excursion stitches these three together in the right order.
Morning: Aspendos
Aspendos is 47 km / 40 minutes north-west via Manavgat. One of the best-preserved Roman theatres anywhere. Ticket ₺250 (~$8). Plan ninety minutes on site.
Midday: Perge
Perge is another 30 minutes west (60 km from Side, about an hour). A vast ancient city — colonnaded street, Roman baths, agora. Ninety minutes on foot. Ticket ₺200 (~$6).
Late afternoon: Manavgat Waterfall
On the way back, Manavgat Waterfall is ten minutes north of Side. Free or ₺30 parking, ₺50 ticket. Half an hour around the falls and a coffee by the water.
A couple from Edinburgh did the full loop in a hire car for €72 all in. The hotel rep had quoted €120 a head for an Aspendos-only coach excursion — and that one didn't even include Perge.
Less obvious: Köprülü Canyon, Sapadere, Kaleiçi
Beyond the antique loop: Köprülü Canyon for rafting (an hour north), Sapadere Canyon east of Alanya (90 minutes), and Antalya's Kaleiçi old town to the west — 75 km of flat D400 with paid municipal parking by the marina, then everything on foot.
Frequent Questions
75 km on the D400, 1 hour to 1 hour 15 outside rush. Flat highway, no mountain passes, no toll sections. Junctions signposted in Latin script.
AYT by default — 75 km, 130+ hire operators in the terminal, all the international chains. GZP is only worth it if your charter is genuinely scheduled there.
Yes. Centre, Kumköy, Çolaklı and Evrenseki — usually free. Sorgun, Titreyengöl, Kızılot, Kızılağaç and Çenger — €10–25.
No. The ancient peninsula is car-free. Park at the entrance: paid municipal lot at €5–10/day in season, with free roadside spaces further out.
47 km / 40 minutes north-west via Manavgat. Flat tarmac, easy to combine with Perge (+30 minutes) and Manavgat Waterfall on the way back.
75 km / 1 hour to 1 hour 15 west on the D400. Paid municipal parking near the marina; the old town is on foot from there.
65 km / about 1 hour east on flat coastal D400. Much easier than the Antalya–Alanya route, which goes over the mountains.
No. About 600 km / 7 hours each way on inland roads. Better to fly AYT–Kayseri or AYT–Nevşehir and hire a car at the other end.
Local Side operators accept UK debit cards (Revolut, Wise, Monzo, Starling) for both payment and the deposit. The international chains at AYT still want a credit card in the main driver's name with €500–1500 of available headroom.
International chains: €500–1500 held on a credit card. Locals: €0–300 in cash or on a debit card.
For UK travellers it's the standard MoneySavingExpert play. icarhireinsurance.com or a similar policy at around £40 per year is much cheaper than the £15+/day excess waiver sold at the desk and covers the same ground.
Basic CDW + TPL is standard. Excess €500–1500. Super CDW with no excess runs €5–8/day — on Side's flat roads it's worth it more for car park dings near Aspendos than for the driving itself.
No. Aspendos, Manavgat, Kurşunlu, Antalya and Alanya are all toll-free. HGS only matters if you're heading inland towards Istanbul or Ankara.
21+ with 1 year of licence for economy and mid-range. 25+ with 2 years for vans, SUVs and premium. Young driver fee €5–10/day at chains for 21–24-year-olds; locals are more flexible.
Mid-range — Toyota Corolla, Hyundai Elantra, VW Polo, $30–45/day. The boot fits luggage plus two child seats and the car sits steadily on the D400. Economy is fine on price but tight on boot for four.