# Side Museum > Side Museum (Side Müzesi) is a small archaeological museum inside a 2nd-century Roman bathhouse next to the ancient theatre: statues, sarcophagi, inscriptions and coins from the city's excavations, plus a garden of carved capitals. Tickets are **€5** for foreign visitors, free under 8. Open daily from 8:30, until 17:30 in winter. Allow 45 minutes to an hour. Web page: https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/side-museum - City: [Side](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side), Turkey - YesGo score: 39/100 (Yes, if nearby) - Time on site: 45 min - Opening hours: Daily from 8:30; 2 October–30 April until 17:30 (last tickets 17:15), 1 May–1 October until 21:00 (last tickets 20:45) - With kids: Fine with kids - Ticket (foreign visitors): €5 (age 8+) - Children: Under 8 free - Museum Pass: Museum Pass The Mediterranean valid - Winter hours: 2 Oct–30 Apr: 8:30–17:30, last tickets 17:15 - Summer hours: 1 May–1 Oct: 8:30–21:00, last tickets 20:45 (portal); ministry leaflet: 1 Apr–1 Nov, until 19:00 - Side ancient city: Separate ticket — €7; theatre closed for restoration since 29 Nov 2024 - Closed: Open every day - Time needed: 45 min–1 h - Getting there: ≈ 5–10 min walk from the Vespasian Gate, by the theatre - Address: Side Caddesi 130, Side, Manavgat, Antalya province - Coordinates: 36.76907, 31.39100 - Facts checked: 30.10.2026 ## Key facts - **2nd century AD** — the baths by the commercial agora were built; they were remodelled in the 5th–6th centuries (source: Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism (Turkish Museums; ministry leaflet); Hürriyet Daily News; Gazete Vatan) - **1962** — the baths opened as a museum on 14 October (source: Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism (Turkish Museums); Turkish Wikipedia, Side Müzesi; Hürriyet Daily News) - **November 2024** — the museum reopened after restoration and a new display under the “Heritage for the Future” programme (source: Hürriyet Daily News, 2025; Gazete Vatan, 2025) - **5 halls** — of the old baths — cold, warm and hot rooms (source: Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism (Turkish Museums); Tonkosti travel guide, Side Museum) - **1959–1961** — the ruined baths were restored and converted into a museum (source: Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism (Turkish Museums; ministry leaflet)) - **1947–1967** — Arif Müfid Mansel's excavations, which yielded most of the exhibits (source: Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism (Turkish Museums); Turkish Wikipedia, Side Müzesi) - **Late 2nd century** — a marble sarcophagus with playing Erotes — one of the highlights (source: ancientrome.ru catalogue of ancient art; NTV, famous sarcophagi in Turkish museums) - **Gymnasium and fountain** — statues come from the gymnasium's Emperor's Hall, its south stoa and the Monumental Fountain (source: Hürriyet Daily News, 2025; Gazete Vatan, 2025) - **Sidetic script** — inscriptions in the local language shown together for the first time (source: Hürriyet Daily News, 2025; Gazete Vatan, 2025) - **Hellenistic to Byzantine** — the periods covered: statues, reliefs, glass, bronze, terracotta, coins (source: Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism (Turkish Museums); Hürriyet Daily News) ## Side Museum tickets: entrance fee and Museum Pass Foreign visitors aged 8 and over pay **€5**; children under 8 go free. That's the fare on the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism's official portal, which lists it in euros. Bring a card or some lira for the ticket office. The museum accepts the **Museum Pass The Mediterranean**, a 7-day card for state museums and sites in Antalya and the neighbouring provinces. It isn't worth buying for Side alone — it pays off only if you're also doing Aspendos, Perge and the Antalya Archaeological Museum. It doesn't cover the summer “night museum” evenings. Is there a combined ticket for the museum and the ancient city? Some unofficial sources mention one, but the official portal lists them separately: the Side Archaeological Site (Side Ören Yeri) charges foreign visitors aged 8 and over **€7**. So plan on two ticket offices. The Temple of Apollo by the harbour and the old town streets are free. > **Separate tickets — and the theatre is under restoration** The museum and the ancient city sit side by side, but each has its own ticket office. The [Roman theatre](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/side-ancient-theatre), according to the ministry's portal, has been closed for restoration since 29 November 2024 until the works are finished — check on the day. From 2 October the museum closes at 17:30 and stops selling tickets at 17:15. ## Side Museum opening hours The museum is open **every day from 8:30**, with no closing day. From 2 October to 30 April it closes at 17:30, last tickets 17:15. From 1 May to 1 October the official Turkish Museums portal gives closing at 21:00, last tickets 20:45. The ministry's own museum leaflet (2022) uses different seasons: 1 April to 1 November, 8:30–19:00 with last tickets at 18:45, and 1 November to 1 April, 8:30–17:30. So we mark the summer hours as “verifying”. Planning a summer evening visit? Arrive before 19:00 to be safe. In late October and in April the two sources disagree most — the safe rule is to reach the ticket office by 17:15. Is Side Museum closed? No — it was shut for restoration and reopened in November 2024. Some map listings and older guides still say “temporarily closed”; that dates from the works. ## How to get to Side Museum 1. Get to Side: take a dolmuş (minibus) from Manavgat or the coastal hotels to the Side stop and car park by the Vespasian Gate. 2. Walk through the gate into the car-free old town and follow the main street with its broken colonnade. 3. After 5–10 minutes on foot — or a ride on the little tourist train — you reach the theatre; the museum is in the Roman baths beside it, across from the commercial agora. 4. Buy your ticket at the entrance — by 17:15 in winter. 5. Afterwards, look at the Roman theatre across the road — from outside while the restoration lasts — then follow the main street down to the harbour and the Temple of Apollo. ## Is Side Museum worth visiting? Yes, if you've come to Side for the ancient city. For €5 and 45 minutes you find out what actually stood in the ruins you're about to walk through. It's also the only indoor, shaded sight in the old town — the best place to be at midday in summer. If you've already seen the Antalya Archaeological Museum, Side will feel small: Antalya's collection is many times larger. In that case come for the bathhouse building and the garden — or skip it and spend the time in the agora, the old town lanes and at the sunset columns instead. How long does Side Museum take? Allow 45 minutes to an hour for the five halls and the garden; some listings suggest one to two hours, but that usually includes the ruins outside. ## What is Side Museum? The museum fills **2nd-century Roman baths** beside the commercial agora, across the road from the theatre. The baths were remodelled in the 5th–6th centuries and later fell into ruin. They were restored in 1959–1961 and opened as a museum on 14 October 1962 — according to the ministry, the first museum in Turkey to open in a village, as the peninsula was then the village of Selimiye. Almost everything inside was found here in Side, much of it in Arif Müfid Mansel's excavations of 1947–1967. That's what makes the museum useful: it's the key to the whole site. After half an hour here, the agora, the theatre and the temples stop being heaps of stone. The museum reopened in November 2024 after restoration, with rearranged halls and courtyard and new cases of finds from recent digs. It's compact — and that's a plus: an hour covers everything without rushing. ## What to see inside - The baths themselves: tall vaults and thick walls of what were once the cold, warm and hot rooms. - Roman marble statues — many headless, but with beautifully carved drapery; some came from the gymnasium's Emperor's Hall and the Monumental Fountain. - Hermes with his purse and short traveller's cloak — one of the finest pieces. - A late 2nd-century sarcophagus with playing Erotes carved all the way round. - Inscriptions in Sidetic, the city's own script, now displayed together. - Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine coins found in Side's own excavations. - The garden: capitals, column bases, altars and frieze fragments set out on the lawn. ## Before you go: checklist - [ ] I'll reach the ticket office in time — 17:15 in winter - [ ] I know the ancient city is a separate ticket and the theatre is under restoration - [ ] Museum Pass only if I'm also doing Aspendos and Perge - [ ] Saving the museum for the midday heat - [ ] Allowed 45 minutes to an hour - [ ] Water with me — there's little shade in the old town ## Side Museum vs the theatre and the Temple of Apollo | | Side Museum | Roman theatre | Temple of Apollo | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | What it is | Statues and sarcophagi in Roman baths | Roman theatre | Columns by the sea | | Entry | €5 | Closed for restoration | Free | | Time needed | 45–60 min | 30–60 min | 15–30 min | | Best time | Midday, in the heat | Morning | Sunset | | Shade | Yes, indoors | Some in the passages | None | The museum and the theatre are neighbours — do them back to back in the morning or at midday, and keep the temple for sunset. The ministry's portal lists the theatre as closed for restoration since 29 November 2024 — check before you go. ## Ancient Side compared Historic sites in and around Side rated by YesGo. - [Side Old Town](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/side-old-town) — YesGo score 54/100 (Yes, go) · 2 h · Free; theatre and museum extra - [Agora of Side](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/side-agora) — YesGo score 45/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 30 min · Free — view through the fence - [Side Harbour](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/side-harbour) — YesGo score 44/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · Free - [Temple of Apollo](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/side-temple-of-apollo) — YesGo score 44/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 30 min · Free - [Side Museum](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/side-museum) — YesGo score 39/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · €5, under 8 free - [Roman Theatre of Side](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/side-ancient-theatre) — YesGo score 39/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · Closed for restoration - [Selge](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/selge) — YesGo score 29/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free, no ticket office - [Köprülü Canyon](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/koprulu-canyon) — YesGo score 16/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 4 h · Free entry; rafting via tours ## Ancient Side in half a day Museum first, so you know what to look for, then the agora, the theatre and sunset at the temple columns. YesGo fits in the timing and walks. 1. [Side Museum](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/side-museum) — YesGo score 39/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · €5, under 8 free 2. [Agora of Side](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/side-agora) — YesGo score 45/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 30 min · Free — view through the fence 3. [Roman Theatre of Side](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/side-ancient-theatre) — YesGo score 39/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · Closed for restoration 4. [Temple of Apollo](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/side-temple-of-apollo) — YesGo score 44/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 30 min · Free ## Good to know Search for “Side Archaeological Museum” and you may get the Antalya Archaeological Museum — a different, much larger museum in Antalya, an hour away. Side Museum is the small one in the Roman baths in Side's old town. ## Tips - Visit the museum before the ruins: once you've seen the statues, you'll picture them back in the agora and theatre. - Spend the hottest hour of a summer day here — it's the only indoor shade in the old town. - Don't miss the garden courtyard; plenty of visitors walk past it, and it holds some of the best carving. - Also doing Aspendos and Perge? Check whether the Museum Pass The Mediterranean works out cheaper. - Afterwards, the Roman theatre is across the road (from outside during the restoration); save the [Temple of Apollo](https://yesgo.io/turkey/side/side-temple-of-apollo) for sunset. - In winter the 17:30 closing comes quickly — plan the museum for the morning. ## Questions ### How much is the Side Museum entrance fee? €5 for foreign visitors aged 8 and over; children under 8 are free. The Museum Pass The Mediterranean is valid. ### What are Side Museum opening hours? Daily from 8:30, Mondays included. From 2 October to 30 April until 17:30, last tickets 17:15; in summer the official portal gives 21:00, the ministry's leaflet 19:00. ### Is Side Museum temporarily closed? No. It reopened in November 2024 after restoration; “temporarily closed” labels on maps date from the works. ### Is there a combined ticket for Side Museum and the ancient city? Not on the official portal: the museum is €5 and the Side Archaeological Site €7, each with its own ticket office. The Roman theatre is listed as closed for restoration since 29 November 2024. ### How do I get to Side Museum? Dolmuş from Manavgat or your hotel to the Vespasian Gate, then a 5–10 minute walk down the main street to the theatre — the museum is beside it. ### What is inside Side Museum? Roman marble statues, a Hermes, a sarcophagus with Erotes, Sidetic inscriptions, coins and a garden of carved capitals — all in a 2nd-century bathhouse. ### How long do you need at Side Museum? 45 minutes to an hour for the halls and the garden. ### Is Side Museum worth it? Yes, if you're exploring ancient Side — it explains the ruins and gets you out of the heat. If you've seen the Antalya museum, it will feel small. ### Is Side Museum good for kids? It's short and shady, and under-8s go free, so it's an easy stop with children; older kids like the garden of stones. ## How we checked Fares, closing days and winter hours come from the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism's official portal, checked 30.10.2026. Summer hours disagree — the Turkish Museums portal gives 1 May–1 October until 21:00, the ministry's 2022 leaflet 1 April–1 November until 19:00 — so we show both and mark them “verifying”. Old lira prices from guidebooks and combined tickets from reviews are left out, as the portal doesn't list them. The theatre closure comes from the ministry's portal (notice dated 29.11.2024); we couldn't confirm whether it has been lifted, so it's marked “verifying”. We date the building as the ministry does: 2nd-century baths remodelled in the 5th–6th centuries (some guides call them “5th-century baths”). Other facts are checked against at least two sources; we give no object counts, as the collection grows with each dig. We leave out the often-mentioned Three Graces: only one source confirmed it. The walking route is marked “verifying”. ## Sources - Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Turkish Museums portal: Antalya Side Museum — history, hours, fees, Museum Pass, 30.10.2026 - Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Turkish Museums portal: Antalya Side Archeological Site — ticket and theatre closure, 30.10.2026 - Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Side Museum leaflet (kvmgm.ktb.gov.tr), 2022 - Hürriyet Daily News, 05.03.2025: Restored Side Museum welcomes visitors - Gazete Vatan, 03.03.2025: reopening of the Side Museum - Turkish Wikipedia: Side Müzesi; Wikidata Q6032977 - ancientrome.ru catalogue of ancient art: sarcophagus with Erotes, Side Museum - romeartlover.it: Side — Museum; Livius.org: Side, Hermes - Tonkosti travel guide: Side Museum --- This is the Markdown version of a YesGo page for AI assistants. Quote the web page link above, not this file.