# Syedra, Alanya > Syedra is an ancient hilltop city about 400 m above the sea, 20 km south-east of Alanya, above the village of Seki. Expect a colonnaded street, a bath with mosaic fragments, cisterns and a baptism cave. It is now a ticketed state site: €7 for foreign visitors aged 8 and over, paid in lira, open 8:30–17:00 in winter. Allow 1.5 hours plus 30 minutes’ drive each way. Web page: https://yesgo.io/turkey/alanya/syedra - City: [Alanya](https://yesgo.io/turkey/alanya), Turkey - YesGo score: 22/100 (Yes, if nearby) - Time on site: 1 h 30 min - Entry: €7 for foreigners, under-8s free - With kids: Better without small kids - Entrance fee: €7 for foreign visitors aged 8+, paid in Turkish lira only; under-8s and Turkish citizens free - Hours: Winter (1 Nov – 1 Apr) 8:30–17:00; summer 9:00–18:00, last tickets 17:30 - Location: Asar Hill above Seki village, ≈ 20 km south-east of Alanya - Road: D400 east, turn inland at the brown “Syedra” sign - Last stretch: Narrow, rough road, then about 1 km uphill on foot - Facilities: Almost no shade; the official page lists toilets, parking, a café and a shop - Coordinates: 36.44120, 32.15243 - Facts checked: 30.10.2026 ## Key facts - **≈ 20 km** — south-east of central Alanya, on the way to Gazipaşa (source: Russian and Turkish Wikipedia; Turkish Archaeological News) - **≈ 400 m** — above the sea — the upper town on the hill, with a harbour below (source: English Wikipedia; Turkish Archaeological News) - **7th century BC** — first settlement; the hill stayed inhabited until the 13th century AD (source: English and Turkish Wikipedia; Turkish Archaeological News) - **48 BC** — Pompey held his last war council here before sailing to Egypt (source: Lucan and Florus, via English and Russian Wikipedia; Turkish Archaeological News) - **AD 194** — Emperor Septimius Severus praised the citizens for fighting off pirates — the inscription is in the Alanya Museum (source: English and Turkish Wikipedia; Turkish Archaeological News) - **Colonnaded street** — the main street of the upper town and its best-preserved feature (source: Turkish and Russian Wikipedia; Turkish Archaeological News) - **Baptism cave** — with traces of early Christian frescoes (source: English, Russian and Turkish Wikipedia; Turkish Archaeological News) - **Bath house** — two storeys with remains of mosaic floors, next to a gymnasium (source: Turkish and Russian Wikipedia; Turkish Archaeological News) - **Own coinage** — minted from the reign of Tiberius to Gallienus (source: Russian Wikipedia; Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism museums portal) - **1994** — the Alanya Museum began work on the site; excavation and restoration continue today (source: English, Russian and Turkish Wikipedia; Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism museums portal) ## Syedra entrance fee and opening hours Syedra is now an official archaeological site of Turkey’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism, with a ticket office. According to the ministry’s page, **foreign visitors aged 8 and over pay €7**; children under 8, Turkish citizens and university students of archaeology or art history get in free. The price is set in euros but **payment is in Turkish lira only**, so bring lira in cash or a card. The page does not mention the Museum Pass, so ask at the desk. Until a few years ago the site was open without a ticket, which is why older guides say entry is free or quote 5 TL — that is out of date. Winter hours run **from 1 November to 1 April, 8:30–17:00**; in summer the site opens 9:00–18:00 with last tickets at 17:30. No closing day is listed. Come right at opening, before the rock heats up, or in the last couple of hours before closing, when the light over the coast is softer. ## How to get to Syedra from Alanya 1. From the harbour and [Alanya Castle](https://yesgo.io/turkey/alanya/alanya-castle), drive or take a taxi east on the D400 coast road through Mahmutlar and Kargıcak — about 20 km. 2. Near Seki, turn inland at the brown “Syedra” sign and climb about 5 km on a narrow road. 3. Keep left at the fork and continue roughly 1.5 km to where cars are left. The final stretch is rough — go slowly in a low car. 4. Walk the last part uphill — about 1 km, around 20 minutes. 5. No car? Two travel guides say the Alanya–Gazipaşa bus on the D400 stops at Seki; we could not find a line number or timetable, and Turkish Archaeological News says there is no public transport to the site. From the road it is several kilometres uphill on foot, so a taxi that waits for you, or a tour, is far more practical. > **Hot, exposed and hard without a car** Syedra sits on a bare ridge: hardly any shade, and paths over rubble and thorny scrub, in places along a cliff edge. In summer arrive at the 9 am opening or late afternoon, bring your own water, a hat and closed shoes, and keep small children close near the edges. ## Is Syedra worth visiting? Yes, if you like ancient ruins without crowds and you have a car or a driver. There are few coach groups and no real queues: you can wander a city where Pompey once held council, and look down on the whole coast from Alanya to Gazipaşa. Skip it if you want a restored, signposted site like Side or Perge. Syedra is an active dig with little shade and few information boards, and in the midday heat of July without a car the trip is more ordeal than outing. A tour makes sense if you want Syedra and [Sapadere Canyon](https://yesgo.io/turkey/alanya/sapadere-canyon) or a swimming bay in one day without sorting out the road yourself. Check the programme for what is actually included. ## A short history of Syedra Greeks settled the hill in the **7th century BC**, and people lived here until the 13th century AD. Ancient geographers could not agree whether it belonged to Cilicia, Pamphylia or Isauria — it sat right on the border. According to the Roman historians Lucan and Florus, **Pompey** held his last war council here in 48 BC, after his defeat by Caesar and before the voyage to Egypt that ended in his murder. In AD 194 Emperor Septimius Severus wrote to praise the citizens for resisting pirates; the letter was carved in stone and is now in the Alanya Archaeological Museum. The city peaked in the 2nd and 3rd centuries, minting its own coins and building baths, temples and a colonnaded street. Churches came later, along with a cave used for baptisms. The Alanya Museum began work on the hill in 1994; excavation and restoration now run all year, so you may well find archaeologists at work. Recent digs show that Syedra lived on olive oil: more than a hundred oil workshops have turned up beneath its houses and public buildings. A large house has yielded a mosaic inscribed “May the envious burst” (Kıskanan Çatlasın in Turkish), and the remains of a theatre and a stadium have been uncovered. ## What to see at Syedra - **The colonnaded street** — the upper town’s main avenue, with column bases, fallen drums and shop fronts along the sides. - **The bath house** — two storeys with arched windows and fragments of mosaic floor; the classic Syedra photo. - **The baptism cave** by the west gate — a font and the remains of Christian frescoes. - **The cisterns** — plastered tanks that stored rain and spring water; sources count between three and five. - **The “May the envious burst” mosaic** in a large house — a recent find still being worked on; ask at the ticket desk what is open to view. - Olive oil workshops, traces of a theatre and a stadium, walls, a temple, churches and houses, and a necropolis outside the city. - The view from the ridge: sandy beaches, banana greenhouses and open sea in both directions. ## Before you go: checklist - [ ] Car, taxi that waits, or a tour - [ ] Arriving at opening, or 2–3 hours before closing - [ ] At least a litre of water each - [ ] Hat, sunscreen and closed shoes - [ ] Lira for the ticket — euros are not accepted - [ ] Offline map — signal can drop in the hills ## Syedra vs Alanya Castle vs Side | | Syedra | Alanya Castle | Side | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | What it is | Ancient hilltop ruins | 13th-century Seljuk fortress | Ancient city by the sea | | From central Alanya | ≈ 30 min by car | Cable car or bus | ≈ 1 h by car | | Entry | €7 for foreign visitors | Walls free, İç Kale ticketed | Own ticket | | Crowds | Almost none | Busy | Very busy | | Shade | Almost none | Some | Some | | Time needed | ≈ 1.5 h | 2–3 h | Half a day | First time in Alanya? Start with the castle. Syedra is for a second day out, or for anyone who likes their ruins empty. ## Alanya’s historic sights compared Every historic sight in Alanya rated by YesGo. - [Alanya Old Town (Tophane)](https://yesgo.io/turkey/alanya/alanya-old-town) — YesGo score 43/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free - [Alanya Shipyard](https://yesgo.io/turkey/alanya/alanya-shipyard) — YesGo score 39/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 30 min · Price being verified - [Red Tower](https://yesgo.io/turkey/alanya/alanya-red-tower) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · Paid, price being verified - [Alanya Castle](https://yesgo.io/turkey/alanya/alanya-castle) — YesGo score 35/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h 30 min · Walls free, İç Kale ≈ €12 - [Syedra](https://yesgo.io/turkey/alanya/syedra) — YesGo score 22/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · €7 for foreigners, under-8s free ## East of Alanya in a day Ruins on the hill in the morning, the cool canyon at midday, lunch by the river and the cave on the way back. YesGo fits in the timing and transfers. 1. [Syedra](https://yesgo.io/turkey/alanya/syedra) — YesGo score 22/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · €7 for foreigners, under-8s free 2. [Sapadere Canyon](https://yesgo.io/turkey/alanya/sapadere-canyon) — YesGo score 21/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h · ≈ 225 TL, being verified 3. [Dim River](https://yesgo.io/turkey/alanya/dim-river) — YesGo score 26/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h 30 min · Free, you pay only for food 4. [Dim Cave](https://yesgo.io/turkey/alanya/dim-cave) — YesGo score 26/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · 300 TL, children 7–12 150 TL ## Good to know Syedra is not a hotel or a beach — several Alanya hotels use the name and have nothing to do with the ruins. The caves and bays that tours add to Syedra are separate places that vary by programme, and the Cleopatra stories you will hear belong to other beaches. ## Tips - The best light is the last couple of hours before sunset, when the coast below turns gold. - Landing at Gazipaşa? Ask for a transfer with a stop and see Syedra on the way to your hotel. - The Severus inscription and a mosaic from Syedra are in the Alanya Archaeological Museum — worth a look after the site. - Cool off afterwards on a beach in Kargıcak or Mahmutlar — they are on the way back. - Stay on the paths: wall edges crumble, and snakes and scorpions shelter under the stones. ## Questions ### Where is Syedra? On Asar Hill above the village of Seki, about 20 km south-east of central Alanya on the road to Gazipaşa, in Antalya Province. ### How do I get to Syedra from Alanya? Drive or take a taxi east on the D400 for about 20 km, turn inland at the brown “Syedra” sign, climb about 5 km, then walk roughly 1 km uphill. About 30 minutes’ drive. ### Is there an entrance fee for Syedra? Yes. According to Turkey’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism, foreign visitors aged 8 and over pay €7, payable in Turkish lira only; children under 8 and Turkish citizens go free. ### What are Syedra’s opening hours? From 1 November to 1 April it is open 8:30–17:00; in summer 9:00–18:00, with last tickets at 17:30. No closing day is listed. ### How long do you need at Syedra? About 1.5 hours on the hill plus around 30 minutes each way by car — half a day with time to spare. ### Can I get to Syedra by bus or dolmuş? Guides mention the Alanya–Gazipaşa bus stopping at Seki, but we could not confirm a timetable, and from the road it is several kilometres uphill on foot. A taxi that waits or a tour is better. ### Is Syedra worth visiting? Yes, if you enjoy quiet ruins and have a car. No, if you want a fully restored site with shade — choose Side instead. ### Are there toilets or a café at Syedra? The ministry’s page lists toilets, parking, a café and a shop. We have not seen them on site, so bring your own water anyway. ### Is Syedra suitable for kids? Fine for older children in the cool of the morning with plenty of water. Hard with toddlers: rough paths, no shade and unfenced drops. ### What is Syedra famous for? Pompey held his last war council here in 48 BC, and in AD 194 Septimius Severus praised the city for fighting off pirates. ## How we checked On 30 October 2026 we checked the fee and hours against Syedra’s page on the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism museums portal, so they are marked official; an Anadolu Agency report from July 2026 also says the site now takes ticketed visitors. Free entry and the 5 TL fee in Wikipedia and older guides are out of date. The same price table also has an “adults — free” row that contradicts the €7 fare; we show the fare for foreign visitors. The page starts summer hours on 1 July although winter ends on 1 April, so we do not give summer dates. Toilets, café and shop come from the official page and are unverified on site. Two guides mention a bus to Seki while Turkish Archaeological News says there is no public transport — we show both. Sources give three to five cisterns. Only Turkish Wikipedia gives the length of the colonnaded street, so it is left out. The theatre is named by Anadolu Agency and Russian Wikipedia, the stadium by Anadolu Agency and Greek Reporter, the mosaic by Anadolu Agency and Habertürk. We could not confirm the sea cave that tours sell with Syedra from two sources. ## Sources - English Wikipedia: Syedra; Wikidata Q1431866 - Russian Wikipedia: Сиедра - Turkish Wikipedia: Syedra — based on S. Güzel’s thesis (Istanbul University, 2018) - Turkish Archaeological News: Syedra — history, layout and directions - Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism, museums portal: Syedra Archaeological Site — fee, hours, payment, facilities - Anadolu Agency (as published by Ekonomist, July 2026): ticketed visitors, theatre, stadium, olive presses - Greek Reporter: Syedra’s olive oil workshops and stadium, from excavation reports - Habertürk: the Kıskanan Çatlasın mosaic from Syedra - Sputnik8 and Holidify travel guides — on the bus to Seki - Lucan, Pharsalia; Florus, Epitome — on Pompey’s council --- This is the Markdown version of a YesGo page for AI assistants. Quote the web page link above, not this file.