Hi Mark.We live here in Antalya.I would say that if you pay in Euros you do stand a good chance of being ripped off as the shop/Shops can set there own exchange rate.Having lived here for eight years we have only ever used Turkish Lira and with no problems.Having been to Side many times we have always found it very nice and never ever ever an attempt to rip us off.You will enjoy it and I would not worry just be careful.

Ian

We found it more expensive than Marmaris,in fact all the resorts in Turkey seem to be more expensive than Marmaris and Icmeler but thats probably as there is more restaurants and bars in these 2 resorts.
We are off to Calis Beach in May for a change and the prices that people have quoted are more expensive than what we paid last October in Icmeler.
Side is lovely but we have only visited recently in March and we were AI so couldnt compare prices.
We did buy things in town and used TL.and if anything was priced in Euros we asked for the price in TL.

Hi Jay Trip.If you ask for a LIRA Price List they will give you one.Most Bars and Food Places in Tourist Resorts have two Price Lists.Euros for the tourist and Lira for the locals.Not saying that this is the case in Marmaris etc but true around Side,Antalya and down this side of the coast.

Ian

Thanks for the answers.
I was just worried about the reviews I have read where people say they ask for price in lira and get frowned at and the price they get told works out more expensive than it would in euro

RIK,After going to Turkey for 20 years we are good at bartering and are not easily ripped off.It was only when buying small items that we told the shopkeeper that we only had sterling or TL.
One thing I found when we were in Side 5 years ago was the amount hassle.Maybe its calmed down now as it certainly has in Icmeler and Marmaris.
Mark we found Side to be much more expensive than Marmaris but we were AI so it wasnt a problem.
When we went in 1994 we ate every night in the Soundwaves restaurant in the old town as we were B&B and it was exceptionally good value.
If you look on the Side forum on Trip Advisor there is lots of information about which are the best restaurants etc.

If that is the case Mark then maybe it would be wise to take some Euros. I have never been to Side so I don't know how things work there but I know when I was living in Bodrum there were times when it was cheaper to buy things in sterling than lira, which was not so good for me at the time as I only had lira!

That was only clothes shopping though, not in restaurants.

I've been to Side,very nice it was too. We only used lira wherever we went.We visited in 2009 and didn't experience much hassle,only friendly banter. The Turks like us British and like nothing more than brushing up their English speech, I found this to be the case in Side. Probably because the majority of visitors are German.

Been to Belek more than twenty times now and yes they price things in Euro ,but as Rik says that is only an excuse to allow vendors to set their own rate of exchange .Always better to use Lira which you have exchanged for Sterling in Turkey ,that way you will always get a better rate .If you ask for the price in Lira it is always cheaper than Euro ,for instance they always price in euro to the nearest never half .

Peter

Thanks guys, feel better now

Hi Mark,
We have a holiday in Side every September and each year we take enough lira to see us over the first couple of days. We take stirling and change it into Lira as we need it. Plenty of change offices and the post office so no problem. Most shop keepers will also take stirling and will not rip you off when doing so, just make sure you know more or less what the current exchange rate is. I have never used the euro. There are numerous restaurants in old Side, the Soundwaves mentioned, is still operating. The prices are about the same provided you stay away from the harbour area, where there have been reports of tourists being ripped off. I give the same advice about looking on trip advisor for restaurants, our favourite is the Gul.
but I think Suncity is some distance from Old Side so you will no doubt find restaurants close to you.

hey mark,dont forget to print off a cheat sheet which can be found in holiday tools, i did GBP - TURKISH LIRA, EURO - TURKISH LIRA AND GBP - EURO and worked it out from them, just a thought hope it helps. Gavin.

We have just stayed at the Lara Beach Hotel and all there is on Lara Beach is shops so we went shopping..... We made the mistake of just taking Euros as we took them to Bodrum and they were fine - not on Lara Beach. We went in a shop and a bag was priced at 35 TL which was quite good for the type of bag it was (just a beach bag) so we asked 'how much in Euro' answer we got was 40 euros !! After laughing our way out of the shop with the man chasing after us saying 'how much do you want to pay' we went back to the hotel and changed some english to Turkish and got a good deal...we didn't go back to that shop but found it easier and cheaper after that to pay for goods marked up in TL to pay TL - I know they like to haggle but the prices seemed reasonable in TL anyway so we just knocked them down a few and it wasn't as much hassle.. The nice lad in reception at Lara Beach Hotel said it was better to pay for goods in TL than the Euro as they still work it out at about 1.50euro to our pound..When we went to Side we called for 2 Turkish Teas and he charged us 6 euros as we only had euros - this should have been about 6TL.... We are going to Ovacik in June so we will take a bit of each - you live and learn and we won't be ripped off - Hopefully !! Hope this helps some who aren't sure what to take