ATV Safari in Antalya: Quad Tours from Side, Belek and Alanya

An ATV safari swaps the sunbed for a set of handlebars: you drive your own quad bike, or share one, along dirt tracks, forest trails and muddy dips in the hills behind the coast, following a guide in a small convoy. On the Antalya coast it is one of the easiest ways for first-timers to try off-road driving, because the tours listed here need no licence and no experience and start with a briefing and a practice lap.

This guide explains what an ATV safari is, how the day runs, where the tours actually take place, who can drive and who rides as a passenger, what to wear and bring, how to stay safe, and how ATVs compare with buggies, jeeps, horses and rafting.

At a glance

• Vehicles: single quads, double quads for a driver and a passenger, and buggies; some tours add a family buggy for three to four people

• Experience: none needed on the tours listed here; a safety briefing and a practice lap come first

• Driving age: 16, 17 or 18 depending on the tour; younger guests ride as passengers

• Time: about 90 minutes to 2 hours at the base, of which roughly an hour to an hour and a half is actual riding, plus the hotel transfer

• Included: hotel transfer within each tour’s pickup area, helmet, briefing, guide and insurance

• Extra: drinks, photos and videos, and dust goggles or a bandana

What is an ATV safari?

ATV stands for all-terrain vehicle: a four-wheeled motorbike with handlebars, a thumb or twist throttle and a wide seat you sit astride. Because it has four wheels, it is usually called a quad bike or simply a quad, and in tour listings “ATV safari” and “quad safari” mean the same thing.

On a safari you are not touring roads but riding a set route over unpaved ground: gravel, packed dirt, pine needles, puddles and ruts. A guide rides at the front and sets the pace, the group follows in single file, and the point is the ride itself rather than sightseeing. Most tours on the coast offer quads and buggies on the same track, so you can choose between handlebars and a steering wheel when you book.

What happens on an ATV safari, step by step

Each tour has its own programme, but the ATV tours listed here follow much the same order:

1. Hotel pickup. A minibus or transfer vehicle collects you before the session time; the exact pickup time is sent after you book.

2. Arrival at the base. You check in, and on some tours pick your vehicle there.

3. Helmet and briefing. The instructor fits your helmet and explains the throttle, brakes, hand signals and the distance to keep between vehicles.

4. Practice lap. A short loop on easy ground lets you get a feel for the vehicle before the trail.

5. The guided ride. The convoy heads out on forest and dirt tracks, with bumpy, dusty and muddy stretches.

6. A break. Depending on the tour: a photo stop, a viewpoint, or a river stop where you can cool off.

7. The ride back. A second stretch returns to the base, often through the muddiest part of the route.

8. Return transfer. You hand back your helmet and are driven back to your hotel.

The session time on a listing (10:00, 13:00 or 14:00 on the tours here) is when the activity starts at the base, not when you are collected. The listed length of about 90 minutes to 2 hours includes the briefing, practice lap and stops, so the time actually spent riding is shorter: roughly an hour to an hour and a half, depending on the tour. Add the transfer each way, which depends on where your hotel is.

Where ATV safaris take place around Antalya

“Antalya” can mean three different things: the city of Antalya, Antalya Province, or the whole holiday coast from Kemer to Alanya. An “Antalya ATV safari” in a search result is usually a tour somewhere in the province, and it rarely starts in the city itself. Side, Manavgat, Belek, Alanya and Kemer all belong to Antalya Province, but they are separate towns, often an hour or more apart by road, and each tour only collects guests from its own pickup area.

On Maxtoria, the ATV tours are grouped like this:

Side and Manavgat

Two tours collect guests from hotels in the Side area. One rides near Beşkonak, a village inland on the Köprüçay River at the edge of Köprülü Canyon National Park, with pine tracks, shallow stream crossings and, in summer, a short stop at the river. The other uses an off-road camp in the countryside behind Side, with forest roads, mud pools and short rocky climbs, and has showers at the camp. Compare them on the quad and buggy safaris from Side page.

Belek and Kundu

The tour sold as an Antalya quad safari collects guests from hotels in Belek and Kundu, not from Antalya city, and drives inland to the same Beşkonak area on the Köprüçay River. Its ride is a little shorter and includes a swim break in the river. You will find it among the ATV safaris in the Antalya region.

Alanya and Avsallar

Two tours ride in the Taurus foothills behind the Alanya coast, on pine forest roads with gravel bends and muddy dips and a stop at a viewpoint over the mountains and the sea. One collects from hotels between central Alanya and Mahmutlar, the other from the coast between Okurcalar and Dinek, including Avsallar. See the quad and buggy safaris from Alanya.

None of the ATV tours listed today collects from Antalya city, Lara, Konyaaltı or Kemer, so if you are staying there, check the pickup area on a listing before you book rather than assuming “Antalya” covers your hotel.

Do you need a driving licence or experience?

Not on the ATV tours listed here: all of them state that no driving licence and no previous riding experience are needed, and some point out that their vehicles are automatic. That is because the riding happens on a guided off-road route after a briefing and a practice lap, not on public roads. Rules are set by each operator and can differ elsewhere, so treat a listing’s own requirements as the ones that count.

What does matter is age. The minimum age to drive is 16, 17 or 18 depending on the tour, and younger guests can only ride as passengers. Check the listing if anyone in your group is close to that line.

How hard is it to drive an ATV?

Most people get the hang of it within the practice lap. Four wheels make a quad stable at low speed, the throttle sits under your thumb or right hand, and the brakes are on the handlebars. What takes getting used to is the ground: loose gravel moves under the tyres, ruts pull at the steering, and mud and water change how quickly you can stop.

Steering a quad is more physical than steering a car. You turn the handlebars and shift your weight, and every bump travels up your arms. Keep your speed to what you can control, look where you want to go, and brake before a bend rather than in it. Ride within your ability rather than trying to keep up with the fastest driver.

Single, double and family vehicles

Every ATV tour listed here offers both quads and buggies, usually as single and double options:

• Single quad: one person driving their own vehicle.

• Double quad: a driver with a passenger sitting behind. The passenger holds on rather than steering, so this suits couples and parents with an older child.

• Single or double buggy: a steering wheel, seats and a roll cage instead of handlebars, with one or two people side by side.

• Family buggy: on some tours, one buggy for three to four people.

Only the driver needs to meet the driving age; passengers follow the tour’s own minimum age. The option you book decides which vehicle you get, so choose it when you reserve.

ATV safari with children and families

Families can take part, but children ride as passengers with an adult driver; none of the tours lets under-16s drive. The youngest passenger age ranges from 3 to 12 depending on the tour, and one operator may limit very young children for safety, so read the requirements before booking.

For a family, a double quad or a family buggy keeps everyone together. Talk children through the day beforehand: it is loud and bumpy, the helmet stays on, and they must hold on and stay seated. Pack a full change of clothes for them, because they will come back dusty and probably muddy.

Terrain, dust, mud and water

The routes run on unpaved ground in the hills behind the coast: forest tracks under pine trees, packed dirt and gravel roads, ruts and, on some tours, short rocky climbs. In dry weather the convoy throws up a lot of dust; after rain the same tracks turn to mud.

Most of the tours listed here include muddy stretches or shallow water crossings, so expect to get dirty and possibly wet. Swimming is not part of every tour: two of them, both near Beşkonak, stop at the Köprüçay River (one only in summer), while the Alanya tours stop at a viewpoint instead. If a swim matters to you, check the programme on the listing.

Staying safe on an ATV safari

An ATV safari is a motorised off-road activity, so it is never risk-free, but most problems come from riding too fast or ignoring the guide. The tours listed here all include a helmet, a safety briefing, a practice lap and a guide leading the convoy. On the day:

• Keep your helmet on from the briefing until the ride ends.

• Follow the guide. Stay on the route, keep your place in the line and watch for hand signals.

• Keep your distance from the vehicle in front, which also keeps you out of its dust.

• Control your speed, especially on gravel, downhill and in bends.

• Don’t overtake unless the guide tells you to, and avoid stunts such as spins or wheelies.

• Tell the staff before you start about anything that could affect you, such as a back or neck problem, a heart condition or pregnancy. Most listings advise against the ride in pregnancy or with back problems.

Wear closed shoes (required on some tours), and make sure your travel insurance covers motorised activities.

Weather and seasons

ATV safaris run through much of the year, and the weather mainly changes what the ride feels like. Summer means heat and thick dust, so go for the morning session if you can and bring water. Spring and autumn are milder; after rain the tracks are muddier and slipperier.

Rules for bad weather differ by tour. One says its safari runs in most conditions and rain simply makes the track muddier; another offers a new date or a full refund if heavy rain makes the trail unsafe. If the forecast looks bad, contact us with your booking reference.

What’s included, and what’s not

On the ATV tours listed here, these are included:

• Hotel pickup and drop-off within the tour’s pickup area

• The quad or buggy for the option you book

• Helmet, safety briefing and practice lap

• A professional guide and instructor

• Insurance

Usually not included:

• Drinks and snacks

• Photos and videos, which may be offered for sale after the ride

• Dust goggles, a bandana or a dust mask

• Transfers from outside the pickup area, and personal expenses

Check the included and not-included lists on each listing before you book.

ATV, buggy, jeep, horse or rafting?

All of these get you off the beach and into the hills, but they feel very different:

• ATV or quad: you straddle the vehicle and steer with handlebars, and you feel every bump. The most hands-on option.

• Buggy: you sit in a seat with a steering wheel, a seat belt and a roll cage, with a passenger beside you. It feels closer to driving a car and suits people who want more protection. The differences between ATV and buggy safaris are explained in more detail on our blog.

• Jeep safari: a larger open 4x4 driven by a professional, so you are a passenger for a whole day of villages, viewpoints and swim stops. See our jeep safari guide.

• Horse riding: slower and quieter, at a walk along forest and beach trails, with the horse doing the work. See the horse riding guide.

• Rafting: water instead of land, paddling down a mountain river with a guide. Browse the rafting and combo tours.

None is better than the others: pick the one that matches how much you want to drive, how much noise and dust you enjoy, and whether you prefer land or water.

Riding responsibly

Off-road routes cross forest and farmland that people live and work in. Stay on the marked route, don’t cut corners through vegetation, keep your speed down near villages, walkers and animals, and take all your rubbish back with you. In the summer fire season, never smoke in the forest.

Mistakes first-time riders make

• Wearing clothes and shoes they want to keep clean

• Bringing a phone or camera without a dust- and waterproof pouch

• Riding too fast in the first minutes, before they know the vehicle

• Following the vehicle in front too closely and riding in its dust

• Treating it like driving on a road, and braking in the middle of a bend

• Forgetting sunscreen and water on a hot day

• Not checking the driving age or passenger age before booking

• Assuming an “Antalya” tour collects from any hotel in the region

Booking an ATV safari on Maxtoria

Compare the tours on this page by where they ride, the pickup area, the vehicle options and the age rules, then book the one that fits. On the tours listed here, the exact pickup time is sent after booking, you can pay on the day or by card, and cancellation is free up to 24 hours before the start. For anything else, see the booking and payment FAQ and our cancellation and refund policy.