Side buggy safari step by step: the whole day in order
The programme runs in the same sequence every time. Knowing it in advance takes the guesswork out of the day and explains why the outing lasts about 4–4.5 hours from hotel to hotel even though the route itself is 18 km.
- Hotel pickup by the transfer
- Arrival at the base and registration
- Information briefing
- Safety briefing
- Vehicle explanation
- Practice drive
- The guide's assessment
- The main off-road safari
- Showers, a change of clothes and the transfer back
1. Pickup from your hotel
The day starts at your hotel, not at the departure time. When you booked you chose 08:00, 11:00 or 13:00; that is the activity departure. The transfer reaches your hotel earlier, and the exact pickup time, which depends on your hotel and the transfer's route that day, is the one confirmed with your booking.
Pickup is included from Side, Kumköy, Evrenseki, Çolaklı, Titreyengöl, Sorgun, Kızılağaç, Gündoğdu and Kızılot. Be ready at the confirmed time already dressed for dust: old outdoor clothes, darker colours, closed shoes or trainers, with a change of clothes in your bag.
2. Arrival and registration
The transfer brings you to the base, set on private off-road land back from the Side coast in the Manavgat district of Antalya province. The first stop is registration.
Drivers show an ID here, purely to prove they are 16 or older. No driving licence is needed, as the whole safari stays on a private off-road course, not a public road. Passengers must be at least 6 and ride with a driver. Anyone under the influence of alcohol or drugs does not take part at all, whether they were booked to drive or to ride along.
Registration is also the last sensible moment to raise anything that affects your day. The safari is not suitable during pregnancy, and anyone with back or neck problems, recent surgery or a heart condition should already have asked us before booking; if something has changed since then, tell the team at the base before the briefings begin.
3. Information briefing
Before anyone sits in a buggy, the guide explains what the next few hours involve. The information briefing covers:
- The vehicle
- Its controls
- The route
- How the group is organised
- The activity rules
- How stopping works
- What to expect on the way
4. Safety briefing and helmet
Next comes the safety briefing, which is where the rules of the route are set out: following the guide, keeping a safe distance, the rules on overtaking and on stopping, an appropriate speed, how the group moves together, what the protective gear is for, what to do in an emergency, and following the guide's instructions.
You are handed a helmet, part of the price, which you keep on from start to finish. Goggles and a bandana cost extra; if you want to keep dust out of your eyes and mouth, they are sold at the base, so this is a good moment to buy them.
5. Vehicle explanation, practice drive and assessment
The buggy is automatic: a steering wheel, two pedals and a seat you sit down inside, with tubing that wraps round and over the seats. The guide shows you how it works, and then every driver takes the practice drive. It is compulsory, and it is not a formality.
During the practice drive the guide watches each driver and then decides who drives the main route. Should the answer be no for you, or should you decide yourself that you would rather not, you still do the full route from the seat beside a driver, at the passenger fare, so your day carries on either way.
6. The main off-road safari
Then the group sets off behind the guide on the Short route: 18 km of forest tracks, dirt roads, dust and bumpy ground, crossing small streams and stopping where the water splashes up. When the ground is wet there is mud too, but that depends on conditions and cannot be promised in advance.
Follow the guide, keep the distance you were shown and stick to the overtaking and stopping rules from the briefing. The buggy shakes over rough ground, which is part of the experience and also the reason anyone with back or neck problems should ask us before booking.
7. Showers, photos and the ride back
Back at the base you can rinse off in the showers and change in the changing cabins. Photos and video taken by the base team are available and paid for separately; food and drinks are not included in the price either.
When everyone is ready, you are driven back to your hotel. That closes a day of roughly 4–4.5 hours door to door. You pay on the tour day, €30 per driver and €15 per passenger, as nothing is charged online when you book.