Side Museum : info and guided tour

Overview of Side Museum

Located inside Side’s former Roman bath, Side Museum displays the archaeological remains discovered in the ancient city and its surroundings. Set on Liman Caddesi, just a short walk from the harbor and the ruins, it offers a clear overview of the city’s Greco-Roman history, once one of the most important ports on Anatolia’s Mediterranean coast.

The building itself is worth seeing, with vaulted rooms and passageways that recall the architecture of an ancient thermal complex, later reused as a museum. This layout highlights sculptures, inscriptions, reliefs and architectural fragments found in Side, presented in a way that recreates the monumental setting of the ancient city.

The museum is especially known for its collection of statues and sarcophagi, among the site’s most iconic pieces. Visitors can also see altars, funerary steles and decorative elements from temples, necropolises and public buildings, all bearing witness to the artistic and religious richness of ancient Side.

The visit helps connect the remains scattered across the ancient city into a more coherent whole, easier to understand in a museum setting. Between architectural fragments and sculpted works, Side Museum sheds light on daily life, religious practices and the urban planning of a city that left a lasting mark on the history of Pamphylia.

Discover Side with a private guide

A private guide can make it easier to understand the collections at Side Museum and place them in the wider history of Side. By explaining the purpose of the objects, the building’s architecture and its links with the ancient city, they make the visit more precise and enriching, without turning it into a complicated tour.