Cool ancient-ancient history to mooch around, super-pretty beaches and swanky-themed resorts promise to make your Antalya holiday on the Turkish Riviera truly sun-believable.

Bountiful beaches

As the golden gateway to the glitzy Turkish Riviera, Antalya has bagged some of Türkiye’s most beautiful beaches. Promising raki-clear waters and a mix of sandy and pebbly shores, Antalya holidays get beach-bucket-list status whether you want to ride the banana boats, go parasailing or sip caipirinhas in a chic cabana by a blue lagoon.

Antalya puts the A in ancient

Older than Midas himself, Antalya has more ancient ruins than the History Channel. See the Roman theatre in Aspendos, explore the Ancient City of Perge and visit Kaleiçi Old Town, with its narrow cobblestone streets and pretty Roman harbour. Want to go further back in time? Head to the Palaeolithic Karain Cave where the prehistoric bones of elephants, hippos and bears have been found – even early humans lived here and made tools (outside the cave, they weren’t Neanderthals… oh, they were).

Marvellous mountains

An Antalya holiday is not always about sipping cocktails on a balmy beach (or is it?). It has the Taurus Mountains all around you, so pack your kit for a swim in the Düden Waterfalls, explore the pine forest or take a hike among the millennia-old cedar trees in the Ciglikara Nature Reserve.

Turkish night delight

Antalya’s nightlife is a box of Turkish delight – sometimes sticky, often sweet and always a delightful surprise. Whether it’s cocktails on a rooftop bar in Belek - a.k.a the Turkish Beverly Hills – ice-cold beers on Lara Beach or hitting Club Inferno in the city centre, there’s plenty of dance ‘til dawn action on your holiday to Antalya.

Golfing glory

Antalya’s golfing hits a hole-in-one. Antalya’s Belek is Turkey's golfing capital and has a whopping 14 courses right up close and personal with each other. With their backdrop of the Mediterranean and the Taurus Mountains, the greens are so lush, you might be forgiven for wondering if they’ve been Photoshopped in real life.

Sneak Peek

Best for... Beach-loving historians with a taste for cocktails🍹

Go... Scuba diving around the underwater museum in Side 🤿

You have to... Ride the Hyper Coaster at the Land of Legends 🎢

Key facts

Currency

Turkish Lira (₺)

Language

Turkish

Time difference

GMT+3

Cost of a beer

₺70-135

3-course meal

₺450-1,250

Flight time

4.5h

Things to explore

Top beaches: Turkey’s twizzlers

Soft white sands and topaz seas, Antalya’s beaches are the delicious Norfolk Bronze of Turkey's shorelines. The Christmas dinner of beaches, if you will. Lara Beach is the show pony of the Riviera with wide golden sands, lined with themed resorts, so you can step aboard the Titanic, Concorde or under those colourful Kremlin domes. There’s a lotta luxury here. The Taurus Mountains behind Konyaaltı Beach make this one pretty special spot. A four-mile stretch of fine pebbles, it's close to the city and linked by tram. Want to mix culture with cocktails? Head to Side Beach and you could easily spot ancient Greco–Roman ruins from your sun lounger.

Merge with Perge

Lycian, Byzantium, Ottoman, Roman: Antalya sure loves an ancient civilization. The old town of Kaleiçi is like a selection box of history, with Ottoman mosques, Roman temples and Hadrian's Gate, built in 130 AD. Thirsty for more? Head northwest of Antalya to visit Termessos in Mount Güllük National Park, one of the best-preserved ancient cities in Türkiye. Around 15 km from Antalya is the Ancient City of Perge and its Aspendos Theatre, one of the most complete Roman theatres in the world. A holiday in Antalya is like a history lesson from Emperor Hadrian himself.

A family holiday for legends

Like the Florida of Turkey, Antalya really knows its stuff when it comes to keeping kids happy – and it goes way beyond just adding ice cream. Flip between lazy days by the pool, exploring Roman ruins and riding the 62-metre high Hyper Coaster at Land of Legends. There's zero chance of kids getting bored! Want to stay in a Titanic- or Concorde-themed hotel? Head to Lara Beach, which is called the Vegas of Turkey for good reason.