The Roman bath itself
You move through second-century bath rooms restored around 1960; the building is the museum's best exhibit.
Dosseman — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Dosseman — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Dosseman — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Dosseman — CC BY-SA 4.0
The building outranks most of what it holds: a second-century Roman bath complex, restored between 1959 and 1961 and opened as a museum in 1962, the first museum ever opened in a Turkish village. You enter through the old tepidarium, pass through halls that were once cold and hot rooms, and come out into an open-air sculpture garden beside the agora and the theatre. That garden is the part you will remember. The collection comes from the Side excavations that began in 1947 under Arif Müfid Mansel and Jale İnan, and runs from the Late Bronze Age to the Byzantine era: carved stone sarcophagi, statues of gods, heads and torsos, coins, jewellery, amphorae, the weights of harbour merchants, and a Poseidon frieze along the courtyard wall. The oddest thing here is a set of inscriptions in Sidetic, a local Anatolian language still not fully deciphered and barely attested outside Side and its immediate hinterland, gathered into one display since the museum's recent re-hang. Be realistic, though: Side's finest pieces went to the Antalya Museum decades ago, and what remains is a modest provincial collection you will cover in an hour at most. The ticket is separate from the archaeological site, but a combined ticket saves you two euros. Note that the theatre opposite has been closed for restoration since late 2024, so do not plan your day around it without checking. In August heat the garden and half-open halls are punishing after noon; come early in the morning or after sunset, since the museum stays open until 9 pm in summer and Side's evenings are far kinder. For families: stone floors with a few steps, and a pushchair rolls more easily in the garden than in the halls. Leave the car at the old city gate and walk ten to fifteen minutes along the colonnaded street, which is half the pleasure in itself.
You move through second-century bath rooms restored around 1960; the building is the museum's best exhibit.
Sarcophagi, torsos and the Poseidon frieze in an open courtyard by the agora, the prettiest and most photographed part of the visit.
A local Anatolian script still not fully deciphered, and this is the largest group of its inscriptions on display anywhere.
Liman Caddesi No:1, Side Mahallesi, Manavgat, Antalya
The Antalya Museum is far richer, and Side's best statues are there, not here. But this museum sits on your way from the gate to the harbour, costs €5 and an hour, and the Roman bath and garden justify that. If you are short of time, the colonnaded street and the Temple of Apollo are free and enough.
No, the theatre and archaeological site are ticketed separately (€7), with a €10 combined ticket available. More importantly, the theatre has been closed for restoration since November 2024, so ask at the ticket window before paying for the combined ticket.
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