The short version, in numbers
Four kinds of day, four reasons to book. The jeep safari is the cheapest of them, and it fills a full eight-hour day. The rafting combos cost more because a full river run, professional river guiding and a complete safety kit are folded into the same day. The night safari trades daylight for dinner and a boat. Quad and buggy sit outside this price list altogether, because we do not sell them on this site and will not quote a number we cannot stand behind.
Everything below is per person in euros, and it is the same amount you hand over on the day. If you want the numbers behind the comparison in full — the child bands, the optional boat, what the river adds — they are set out on the price page.
- Side Jeep Safari — EUR 20 adult, EUR 10 child aged 4-12, free for 0-3. Eight hours. Lunch included.
- Rafting and jeep combo from Side — EUR 28 adult, EUR 17 child. Seven hours. Roughly 12 km of river in Köprülü Canyon, lunch included.
- Rafting and jeep combo from Evrenseki, Kumköy or Manavgat — EUR 40 adult, EUR 24 child. Nine hours. Lunch included.
- Side Night Jeep Safari — EUR 35 per person. Five hours. Ages 12 and over. Dinner on board and a catamaran cruise.
- Alanya Jeep Safari to the Dim River — EUR 30 adult, EUR 17 child. Eight hours. Pickup across the Alanya area, Kestel to Okurcalar.
- Quad and buggy — not sold on this site, so described below without a price.
Jeep safari: the day that fits the whole family
This is the flagship for a reason. Pickup is from your hotel in Side and the surrounding resorts after breakfast time, and you spend eight hours in a convoy of open-top 4x4 jeeps carrying eight to ten guests each, every one with a professional driver. The first stop is the old Roman bridge where the asphalt ends. After that the day runs through orange, lemon and pomegranate orchards, cotton and sesame fields, past ancient Roman aqueducts and up to a panoramic viewpoint over Green Lake, with a chance of seeing nomadic Yörük families in the foothills.
The middle of the day is the part families remember: a swim stop at Oymapınar village with freshly made Turkish pancakes and a drink, a photo stop at Oymapınar Dam, the viewpoint above Green Canyon and lunch at a lakeside restaurant, which is in the price. A one-hour boat trip on Green Lake is an optional extra at EUR 5 per person, paid on the day. There is a village mosque visit with the guide, and depending on the programme the return can include the Manavgat Waterfall, where the entrance is paid on site.
Physically it asks very little: you sit, somebody else drives, and the walking at each stop is short. The honest caveats are the surface and the sun. Roads are bumpy in places, so mention back or neck problems before boarding. In summer the jeeps are open-topped and the convoy runs water fights between vehicles; in winter they are covered and there are no water games. If that trade-off suits you, this is the moment to pick the jeep day and book it: the reservation costs nothing to hold, and you pay in euros on the day.
Rafting and jeep combos: when the river is the point
The combos are not a jeep safari with a splash added. They are a genuine white-water day with the off-road transfer built around it. For anyone who cannot choose between the mountains and the river, this is the combo that puts both in one day: from Side, seven hours costs EUR 28 for an adult and EUR 17 for a child, and covers a river track of roughly 12 km in Beşkonak, inside Köprülü Canyon, with helmets, paddles and life jackets, professional guiding and lunch included.
The nine-hour versions leave from their own resorts at EUR 40 adult and EUR 24 child. From Evrenseki the jeeps run through riverbeds and stop at the Ancient Roman Bridge before the full rafting section, with travel insurance and a riverside lunch included. From Kumköy the run is 14 km of Grade II-III rapids on the Köprülü River, with a crossing of the historic Roman-era Oluk Bridge, a swim stop in the Köprülü water, a riverside grilled lunch and activity insurance. From Manavgat the day pairs off-road through the Taurus Mountains with roughly 12 km of white water.
You do the paddling, so this is the most physical of our days out and the only one where getting soaked is guaranteed rather than traditional. On age, the tour text is clear: guests aged 4 to 11 are charged as a child, and rafting is not recommended for children under four. Drinks outside lunch and any photo or video service are extra on every departure.
Night jeep safari: the version with no small children in it
At EUR 35 per person for five hours, the night safari is the shortest of the three and the only one with an age floor written into it: guests must be 12 or over. It runs from early June to mid-November, with a late-afternoon pickup whose exact time at your hotel is confirmed after booking rather than promised in advance.
The evening takes in the Manavgat Waterfall and a swim at Green Lake, then moves onto a catamaran for dinner on board with music and entertainment, guide throughout. Drinks are not included, guests are not permitted to drive the jeeps, and the operator states plainly that it is not suitable for people with mobility impairments.
It suits couples, groups of friends and families whose children are teenagers — anyone who wants the mountains and a boat without giving up a whole beach day. Nobody under twelve can join it at all, so the right choice with kids in tow is the daytime safari instead, where children aged 4 to 12 pay EUR 10 and infants up to three go free.
Quad and buggy: a different kind of day, and why there is no price here
A quad or buggy day is the opposite trade-off to the jeep. You take the controls yourself, the route is short rather than a full eight hours, and the dust is the point rather than a side effect. There is no long panoramic run through orchards and villages and no lakeside lunch in the middle of it. It is an activity, not an itinerary.
We do not sell quad or buggy tours on this site, so you will not find a price for one here. Where they touch our programmes is inside the rafting combos themselves: the Evrenseki combo lists an optional quad safari and the Kumköy combo an optional buggy, neither included in the tour price, both arranged and paid on the day.
Whether you take the controls or ride along comes down to how confidently you can handle a machine on loose ground; anyone who would rather not drive goes as a passenger. Everybody comes back dusty, so plan your clothes accordingly. And if what you are really weighing is which option is calmer, it comes down to who holds the wheel: on a quad or buggy it is you, on the jeep safari it is a professional driver and your own job is to sit and look out.
Effort, comfort and how wet you get
Swimming is the deciding factor for a lot of guests, so here it is precisely. The flagship jeep safari has its swim stop at Oymapınar village. The night safari swims at Green Lake. Among the rafting combos, the Kumköy programme is the one that explicitly lists a swim stop in the Köprülü water; on the others the river itself is where you get wet. Bring a towel and dry clothes for any of them.
- Least physical: the night jeep safari — five hours, mostly seated, dinner served on board.
- Longest seated day: the jeep safari — eight hours, but the walking at stops is short.
- Most physical: the rafting combos — you paddle the river yourself.
- Wettest by design: rafting. Wet by tradition: the summer jeep safari, with water fights between jeeps and a swim stop.
- Dustiest: quad and buggy, by some distance.
- Most comfortable seat: the catamaran on the night tour. Jeeps are open-topped in summer and covered in winter.
Group size and who you spend the day with
Who you spend the day with is part of how a jeep safari actually works: you share a vehicle with eight to ten other guests and a professional driver, and the convoy stays together all day, so you see the same faces from the Roman bridge to the last stop. Guiding runs in English, German and Russian as well as Turkish, which matters more than people expect at a swim stop or a mosque visit.
A rafting day usually feels busier, because you are one of several groups heading for the river. The night safari is deliberately social: one boat, music, entertainment and dinner together. If your group wants to stay together, book in one reservation and tell us on WhatsApp.
The one-minute decision
There is no risk in choosing wrong today and changing your mind tomorrow. Nothing is prepaid, no card is taken online, you pay in euros on the day, and every one of these tours can be cancelled free of charge up to 24 hours before departure.
- Family with children aged 4-12, or a baby in the group: the Side Jeep Safari at EUR 20 adult, EUR 10 child, free for infants aged 0-3.
- Teenagers who want adrenaline and do not mind being soaked: a rafting and jeep combo.
- Couple keeping the beach mornings and giving up one evening: the night jeep safari, ages 12 and over.
- Staying in Evrenseki, Kumköy or Manavgat and want river plus off-road in one go: the nine-hour combo from your own resort area.
- Staying in Alanya: the Dim River jeep safari, EUR 30 adult and EUR 17 child, with pickup between Kestel and Okurcalar.
- Want to drive it yourself and be back by lunchtime: quad or buggy — which we do not sell, and we would rather say so than sell you the wrong day.