Side Kervan Hotel

We felt safe and welcome during our stay, and this is our third visit. We'll be back. It's a relaxed, friendly, no-frills hotel with great service and good value for money. The location is excellent: quiet and away from the busy areas, but you can walk to the village, seafront, and promenade in about 10 minutes along the lane behind the hotel. Shops and the seafront are around five minutes away in the other direction. The ruins, harbour, main town, and transport links are also easy to reach. Antalya airport is about 50 minutes away. Staff are very friendly and happy to help. Ask reception if you're thinking about a trip. The hotel is small and has four floors, with reception on the ground floor, floor 3, and the pool and restaurant two floors below. There's no lift, though that didn't bother us. Rooms are basic but very clean, cleaned daily, and have the essentials including a shower and air conditioning. You might want to bring a kettle. The pool is standard sized, with a shallow section for little children and no slides. A beach bus runs at 9:30 and 10:30. The beach is lovely, and its restaurant is open to everyone rather than being part of the all-inclusive plan. The food and drinks there are very good and reasonably priced. If you want to come back before 4pm, the kind bus driver will take you for about 5 euros. For a relatively small hotel, there's a good range of food, mostly healthy European-style options, with no junk food. The bar has a good choice of drinks and serves the pool area. During my visits, I've seen couples of all ages and occasional small families, and it's always peaceful.

The cats are everywhere, and they're all keen for food or a cuddle. Staff were mostly nice and helpful, sometimes almost too attentive, which may be a cultural difference. English wasn't always easy, and I got the sense that German or Russian was preferable for them. The hotel's away from the busiest parts of Side, near supermarkets and within walking distance of the Ancient City. It sounds peaceful in theory, but it's beside the road and bus depot, so there was constant noise. During the day it didn't bother me much, but at night I couldn't sleep with the balcony doors open. There's no elevator, just stairs. The restaurant, bar, and pool are on the lowest level, and Wi-Fi reaches everywhere. The hotel and rooms are basic but acceptable, though a bit old and in need of renovation. I didn't care for the decor, but that wasn't a big deal on holiday. The air conditioning worked okay, but it was loud. Trying different settings helped, since some gave cooler air without being as icy and were quieter. The beds were comfortable, though one blanket might not be enough. I need cool air to sleep, but the AC makes me cold, so thicker sheets are essential. The fridge worked, but the TV didn't. There was plenty of wardrobe space. The bathroom had soap but no other toiletries, and a plastic sheet separated the shower from the rest of the room. The hot and cold labels were reversed, so I had to push the lever the opposite way for warm water. The hairdryer was tiring to use because I had to keep holding its button down, and I have very long hair. To lock the door from outside, you first have to press the button on the inside doorknob. I enjoyed the hot food, whether baked, fried, grilled, or boiled, and especially the baclava, which wasn't too sweet or syrupy like the kind I had in Greece and Bulgaria. Some cold dishes weren't seasoned to my taste, but even leaving those aside, there was lots to choose from. I also liked having the occasional glass of dry red wine. The private beach is called Full Moon Beach. A shuttle goes there between 9:30 and 10:30, and returns between 16-17. The walk is about 25-30 minutes, a little over 2 km, if you don't want to stay at the beach for hours or need different timings. There are a few public beaches near the promenade, but they're not as nice and have lots of rocks. Most beaches belong to hotels, so there are hardly any public ones. I was disappointed that the private beach was so far away, since the website didn't mention it. I might have chosen another hotel if I'd known. All-inclusive doesn't cover the beach bar, though the Wi-Fi there was good. I'd honestly give the experience 3.5/5.

I just got back from a family holiday at the Side Kervan Hotel. We had a good time for a great price, so I gave it five stars. The management and staff were helpful, polite, and courteous, and the pool area was pleasant without being too crowded. It's a small to medium-sized hotel in a handy spot for the harbour and shopping centre. There are two beaches within walking distance, one about 10 minutes away and the other 15-20 minutes, or you can take a shuttle to the beach with sunbed concessions. It's a very nice beach. Although the hotel is rated three stars, the food, facilities, and rooms were more than adequate, and everything was kept very clean. If you're looking for good value, consider the Kervan. If you only take one family trip, let the manager arrange rafting for you.

A friendly, smiling reception gentleman upgraded us to a room with a view even though we'd booked a lower standard. The waiters were polite, the pool and other attractions were great, and the food was lovely. Great hotel, I'd recommend it to everyone.