Turkey · Turquoise Coast
Alanya
A Seljuk sultan's fortress on a headland, with a sandy beach on either side and the nightlife to match.
Alanya is a big, busy resort town on a rocky peninsula at the eastern end of the Turkish Riviera, where a Seljuk castle wraps its walls around the whole headland and the octagonal Red Tower still guards the harbour below. Sandy beaches run away on both sides, boats circle the sea caves under the cliffs, and the Taurus mountains close in behind. It is a package-holiday and long-stay town first, with more real history than most of its neighbours.
Suggested stay
4–7 days
Language
Turkish
Currency
TRY
Timezone
UTC+3
Why you'll love Alanya
The castle walls climb the whole peninsula to a citadel with views down both coasts, and people still live in the old houses inside
The harbour the Red Tower and the medieval Seljuk shipyard cut into the rock sit right at the waterline
Sand both ways Kleopatra Beach west of the rock, long strands east of it, with warm water well into autumn
Easy going a lively, affordable town that works for families by day and a bar crowd by night
Best time to visit
Apr-Jun, Sep-Oct
22-32° days
36.887° N, 30.703° E
UTC+3 · Europe/Istanbul
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Weather & when to go to Alanya
Month by month: typical highs and lows, rainfall and rain days.
✓ Best Apr-Jun, Sep-Oct
Watch for Dec monsoon flooding risk
Cards tinted by calculated verdict · big number = typical daily high, small = low · hover for conditions
When to avoid Alanya
July and August are hot, humid and at their most crowded, which makes the castle climb hard work at midday. December is the one month to skip, cool and the wettest stretch of the year, though the winters around it still draw long-staying Northern Europeans for the mild sun.
Top things to do in Alanya
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Alanya Castle - walls around the whole headland
history scenic 👍 PopularSeljuk walls and towers wind up the peninsula through a hillside quarter of old Ottoman houses to the inner citadel, the Ic Kale, with a ruined Byzantine church and views along both coasts. Walk up, or take the road or cable car and walk down.
-
Kizil Kule - the Red Tower on the harbour
history ⭐ Highly recommendedAn octagonal red-brick and stone tower raised in the 1220s to guard the harbour and the shipyard, and now the town's emblem. Climb inside for the harbour view; a small ethnographic display fills the floors.
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Tersane - the Seljuk shipyard in the rock
historyFive vaulted galleries cut into the cliff at the water's edge where the sultan's fleet was built, reached on foot along the sea wall from the Red Tower or seen from a boat. A rare survival of medieval naval building.
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Kleopatra Beach - sand under the castle
scenic 👍 PopularA long strip of fine sand on the west side of the peninsula with the castle rock rising at its end, named for the legend that Mark Antony gave this coast to Cleopatra. Clear water, loungers and a promenade behind.
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Sea caves by boat - round the peninsula
scenic nature wildlife 👍 PopularBoats leave the harbour to circle the headland past the Phosphorus Cave, the Pirates' Cave and the Lovers' Cave, with swimming stops in the coves. Pick a small boat over the party boats if you want quiet.
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Damlatas Cave - stalactites by the beach
nature wildlifeA small dripstone cave found by quarry workers at the foot of the castle rock, famous for its warm, humid, still air, which local tradition credits with easing asthma. A short visit, right beside Kleopatra Beach.
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Dim Cay - cool river terraces
nature wildlife foodA few kilometres east, the Dim river runs down from the mountains past platforms built out over the water, where families eat trout and spend a hot afternoon with their feet in the cold stream. Dim Cave sits on the hillside above.
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Harbour front - the bar strip at night
nightlife musicAfter dark the streets behind the harbour become the town's bar and club quarter, loud and cheerful and built for holidaymakers. Earlier in the evening the waterfront is a promenade under the floodlit Red Tower.
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Alanya Museum - finds from the coast
history culture artsA compact regional museum with Roman bronzes, inscriptions and Ottoman household rooms, worth an hour for the context it gives the castle and the ancient sites along the coast.
Best areas to stay in Alanya
$ Budget $$ Mid-range $$$ Premium
Alanya centre and harbour
First-time visitors $$Busy streets between castle and harbour
Explore hotels in Alanya centre and harbour →
Kleopatra Beach
Beach lovers $$Sandy beachfront below the castle rock
Explore hotels in Kleopatra Beach →
Oba and Tosmur
Families and long stays $Quieter residential beach suburbs east
Explore hotels in Oba and Tosmur →
Mahmutlar
Long stays $Long-stay apartment town by the sea
Explore hotels in Mahmutlar →
Konakli
Resort holidays $$Resort hotels along the western coast
Explore hotels in Konakli →
Live nightly prices from Booking.com, Agoda and others, centred on Alanya
Getting to & around Alanya
Getting there
Most visitors fly into Antalya (AYT) and transfer east; Gazipasa-Alanya airport is closer but has far fewer flights
Flight
Antalya Airport (AYT)
Antalya Airport lies about 125 km west, roughly two hours by resort transfer coach, shuttle bus or taxi along the coast road. The small Gazipasa-Alanya airport, about 40 km east, cuts the transfer to under an hour if a flight goes there.
Coach
Alanya Otogar
Turkey's rail network does not reach the coast here, so intercity coaches from Antalya, Konya, Ankara and Istanbul do the work, arriving at the otogar west of the centre.
Drive
The D400 coast road runs in from Antalya and Side to the west, and continues east along a winding cliff stretch towards Gazipasa and Anamur.
Getting around
Walking
The centre, the harbour and both main beaches are walkable, though the castle is a genuinely steep climb.
Free
City buses
Municipal buses run along the coast between the western resorts, the centre, Oba, Tosmur and Mahmutlar, and up to the castle.
TBC
Dolmus minibuses
Shared minibuses fill the gaps along the coast road and out to villages; flag one down and pay the driver.
TBC
Cable car
A gondola rises from beside Damlatas Cave and Kleopatra Beach to the castle, sparing the climb in the heat.
TBC
Taxis
Metered taxis are plentiful; insist on the meter rather than agreeing a figure through the window.
TBC
Day trips from Alanya
Side and Manavgat Waterfall
Full daySeaside ruins
An ancient harbour town with a resort grown through it: the Temple of Apollo stands on the point, and the Roman theatre and agora sit among the shops. Tours pair it with the broad, low Manavgat waterfall and a river boat.
Getting there
car | bus | tour
About 1 hr west by car, bus or tour
Aspendos
Full dayRoman theatre
The best-preserved Roman theatre in the Mediterranean, stage wall and seating intact and still used for performances, with a long aqueduct running across the plain behind it.
Getting there
car | tour
About 1.5 hr west by car or tour
Sapadere Canyon
Half dayMountain gorge
A narrow limestone gorge in the Taurus foothills, walked on a boardwalk above pools and small waterfalls, with the mountain villages on the drive up as much of the point as the canyon.
Getting there
car | tour
About 1 hr east and inland by car or jeep tour
Green Canyon
Full dayReservoir boat trip
A dammed reservoir in the mountains above Manavgat, where boats cruise between steep forested walls on startlingly green water, with swimming stops along the way.
Getting there
tour | car
About 1.5 hr northwest by tour or car
A little history of Alanya
Ancient Coracesium was a rock fortress on the Cilician coast, and in the first century BC a notorious base for the pirates Pompey swept from the sea. Legend says Mark Antony later gave the coast to Cleopatra, and the beach still carries her name. Under Byzantium the fortress was known as Kalonoros.
Its real making came in 1221, when the Seljuk sultan Alaeddin Keykubat I took the town, named it Alaiye after himself and made it his winter seat and naval base, building the Red Tower, the shipyard and most of the walls. The Karamanids followed, then the Ottomans from 1471, and the town became a quiet provincial port. It took the name Alanya in the 1930s and grew from a small town into one of Turkey's big resorts from the 1980s.
Pompey clears the Cilician pirates, who had used the rock at Coracesium as a stronghold
Seljuk sultan Alaeddin Keykubat I takes the town and renames it Alaiye
The Red Tower is completed to guard the harbour
The Tersane shipyard is cut into the rock beside the harbour
The Ottomans take the town from the Karamanid emirs
The town takes the name Alanya
Quarrying at the foot of the castle rock opens Damlatas Cave
Mass tourism turns the coast either side of the peninsula into resort strips
Know before you go
Payment
Cards & cash mixed
English
Widely spoken
Wifi
Reliable
Power
Type C / F
230 V, 50 Hz
Dialing
+90
Monsoon flooding risk in this window; check current conditions before you go.
The months our climate read flags to avoid: the wettest, lowest-rated weather of the year.
Mobile network & SIM card
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FAQs about Alanya
▸ When is the best time to visit Alanya?
April to June and September into October are the pick: warm, clear and comfortable for both the beach and the castle, with the sea still warm in autumn. July and August are hot, humid and crowded. December is the wettest month and the one to skip, while the winter months around it are mild enough to draw long-stay visitors.
▸ Should I fly into Antalya or Gazipasa?
Most people fly into Antalya, which has far more routes and a roughly two-hour transfer. Gazipasa-Alanya is much closer, under an hour away, but has a small number of flights, so it is worth checking first and taking if the timing suits.
▸ Is Alanya good for families?
Yes. The sandy beaches shelve gently, the boat trips and river terraces suit children, and apartments and resort hotels are plentiful and good value. Stay east in Oba or on Kleopatra Beach rather than right behind the harbour, where the bars run late.
▸ How long should I spend in Alanya?
Four days covers the castle, the Red Tower, a boat trip round the caves and plenty of beach time. A week lets you add Side, Aspendos or the mountains without rushing, which is how most visitors use it.
▸ Is Alanya expensive?
No. It is one of the more affordable resorts on the Turkish Mediterranean, with a wide spread of apartments, mid-range hotels and all-inclusives, and everyday eating away from the harbour front is good value.
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