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Side Ancient Theater

Side Ancient Theater

Highlight • Historical Site

Side Ancient Theater

Name: Side Ancient Theater
Rating: 2

Recommended by 43 hikers

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Location: Turkey

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Best Hikes to Side Ancient Theater

4.7

(139)

582

hikers

1. Side Beach Promenade – Side Harbor loop from Ilıca

18.0km

04:36

70m

Intermediate hike. Good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Intermediate

4.8

(67)

376

hikers

2. Ancient City of Side – Temple of Apollo (Side) loop from Sorgun Mah.

17.4km

04:27

70m

Intermediate hike. Good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Intermediate

4.8

(45)

348

hikers

3. Temple of Apollo (Side) – Side Harbor loop from Selimiye

5.42km

01:25

40m

Easy hike. Great for any fitness level. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Easy

Tips

Thomas🍀

September 17, 2024

The Side Theater was built in the 2nd century AD. It could seat approximately 15,000 people. Initially, it was probably only used for plays, but later it was used for animal fights. What's special about this theater is that, unlike other theaters, the seating is not built into a surrounding slope, but rather is suspended freely on high vaulted ceilings.

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Stephan N

August 11, 2025

The formerly classical Greek theater was expanded by the Romans with additional tiers of spectators (cavea) in a 180° arc, slightly larger than a semicircle, and provided with a circular stage (orchestra) for performances.
The site had already been chosen by the Greeks to take advantage of the natural gradient of a local hillside, which was often rewarded with a wonderful view of the landscape.
During the heyday of Greek tragedies and comedies (5th century BC), a raised stage (scenae) was initially built, initially made of wood, which was later replaced by stone in the Hellenistic era.
The Romans preferred to completely enclose the theater with an additional inner wall, which was also built behind the stage, but which retained the Greek form of the tiers. The side entrances (parodos) were never roofed in the Greek era; the Romans combined the entire structure into a large building complex with covered entrances. If there were no natural slopes for the cavea, they were built on an artificial elevation, e.g., in the form of archways. The rows of benches were usually separated by a horizontal corridor (diazoma).
Source:
alaturka.info/de/tuerkei/tuerkische-riviera/side-manavgat/355-theater-von-side

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Marina

April 20, 2025

Amazing building, can be visited for a few TL. Unfortunately, this year you couldn't get in, there were also many structural restorations, which are probably unavoidable, but unfortunately give the historical idyll a small minus point

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Details

Informations

Elevation 50 m

Weather

Thursday 6 November

27°C

17°C

0 %

If you start your activity now...

Max wind speed: 11.0 km/h

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Location: Turkey

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Side Ancient Theater

1. Side Beach Promenade – Side Harbor loop from Ilıca

2. Ancient City of Side – Temple of Apollo (Side) loop from Sorgun Mah.

3. Temple of Apollo (Side) – Side Harbor loop from Selimiye

Other Popular Places to Check Out

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