What actually leaves from Kumköy
Kumköy is one of the four resort areas our jeep safaris are confirmed to serve, alongside Side, Evrenseki and Manavgat. It is worth being precise about what "from Kumköy" means, because the two tours work differently and that difference is easy to blur.
The rafting and jeep safari combo genuinely starts in Kumköy: it is sold as its own Kumköy departure, with a round-trip transfer from Kumköy hotels written into the price. The standalone full-day jeep safari runs on the Side collection route, which covers Side and the surrounding resort areas — your Kumköy hotel is a pickup point on that route rather than the start of a separate convoy.
On the day the distinction is invisible: you wait at your hotel, the jeep comes to you, and you are dropped back at the same gate in the afternoon. It matters only for knowing exactly what you booked, and if you want the whole shape of a safari day before you choose, read the main jeep safari guide, where the route and the practicalities sit in one place.
Option one: the full-day Taurus jeep safari, EUR 20
This is the flagship day out, the full-day tour that collects from Kumköy hotels on the Side route, and our lowest-priced way into the mountains behind the coast: EUR 20 per adult, EUR 10 per child aged 4 to 12, free for infants aged 0 to 3, eight hours from pickup to drop-off.
You travel in convoy in an open-top 4x4 carrying eight to ten guests, each with a professional driver. The tracks begin where the asphalt ends at an old Roman bridge, then run past orange, lemon and pomegranate orchards and fields of cotton and sesame. In the foothills there is a chance of passing nomadic Yörük families — a chance, not a promise. Then come Roman aqueducts, a panoramic viewpoint over Green Lake and a photo stop at Oymapınar Dam.
The middle of the day is the heart of the programme: a swim stop at Oymapınar village with freshly made Turkish pancakes and a drink, a viewpoint above Green Canyon, then the included lunch at a lakeside restaurant. Afterwards comes an optional one-hour boat trip on Green Lake at EUR 5 per person, paid on the spot, and a visit to the village mosque with the guide. Some programmes take in the Manavgat Waterfall on the way home, entrance paid on site — that depends on the day's programme, so treat it as a bonus rather than a fixture.
Option two: rafting and jeep from Kumköy, EUR 40
If you want water as well as dust, the Kumköy rafting combination is the tour written for this resort: nine hours, EUR 40 per adult and EUR 24 per child, round-trip transfer from Kumköy hotels included.
The jeep half takes an open 4x4 through pine forest and mountain villages and crosses the Roman-era Oluk Bridge. The rafting half is 14 kilometres of Grade II-III rapids on the Köprülü river. The full kit is handed to you at the river and activity insurance is included, so nothing is bought or hired on arrival. There is a swim stop in the Köprülü water and a grilled lunch on the riverside.
Drinks, the waterproof photo and video service, gratuities and any optional zipline or buggy add-on sit outside the price.
Which of the two suits your holiday
Neither tour is a watered-down version of the other. The EUR 20 safari is a scenery-and-villages day with a swim and a long lunch; the EUR 40 combo trades some of that slow time for a serious stretch of white water.
- Lowest price and a first taste of the Taurus Mountains: the EUR 20 jeep safari
- One big adventure day with white water included: the EUR 40 Kumköy combo
- Travelling with a child: EUR 10 for ages 4 to 12 on the jeep safari; on the combo the child rate is EUR 24, with its own age guidance for the river section
- Slightly shorter day: eight hours on the jeep safari against nine on the combo
- A dedicated Kumköy departure written into the ticket: the combo
The evening alternative: night jeep safari and catamaran
A third option runs from early June to mid-November: a five-hour night jeep safari at EUR 35 per person, with hotel pickup and drop-off, dinner on board, a catamaran cruise, music and a guide. It takes in the Manavgat Waterfall in the evening and a swim at Green Lake.
Two honest caveats: it is designed for guests aged 12 and over, so it is not the tour for a family with small children, and it is not suitable for people with mobility impairments. Guests do not drive the jeeps on this tour. Pickup is in the late afternoon, with the exact time confirmed after booking — message us first if you want your Kumköy hotel checked against the route.
How pickup works from a Kumköy hotel
Pickup for the full-day safari is in the morning, after breakfast time, at the main entrance gate of your hotel. We deliberately publish no clock time for any resort area: the exact minute depends on where your hotel falls on that morning's route, so it is confirmed after you book.
Hotel pickup and drop-off is included on every tour on this page. There is no transfer supplement for staying in Kumköy rather than central Side, and on the combo the Kumköy transfer is round trip and part of the ticket. If your hotel sits just the other side of the boundary, nothing changes on the full-day safari: it is the same Side collection route at the same EUR 20. Only the rafting differs, because the departure from Evrenseki is its own combo at EUR 40 rather than a seat on the Kumköy one.
Prices, children and paying on the day
We take no prepayment and no card details online, so you can see what each departure costs, reserve a seat, have it confirmed and pay in euros on the day. Cancellation is free up to 24 hours before departure.
On the full-day jeep safari the bands are simple: adult 13 and over at EUR 20, child 4 to 12 at EUR 10, and infants 0 to 3 free. On the Kumköy rafting combo the child rate is EUR 24 and infants are free, but the rafting section carries its own age guidance — with a young child, message us on WhatsApp before reserving, so you are not left guessing at the riverbank.
What to wear, and who the day suits
In summer the jeeps are open-topped, so plan for sun, wind and some dust. Sunscreen, sunglasses and something to pull over your shoulders beat a fashionable outfit. Summer departures include water fights between jeeps — tradition, not accident — so bring a change of clothes and keep phones and passports somewhere waterproof. In winter the jeeps are covered and there are no water games.
Both tours have a swim stop, so pack swimwear and a towel. The tracks are bumpy in places: if anyone in your group has back or neck problems, say so before boarding rather than halfway up the mountain. Guiding is available in English, German and Russian, as well as Turkish.