The three boat days we actually run from Belek
Ask at a hotel desk in Belek and the list of boat names gets long fast. We publish three, because three is what we genuinely operate from here, and each one is a different kind of day rather than the same trip with a different sticker on it: one goes to sea, one goes to a mountain reservoir, and one goes to a market and a river.
All three begin the same way, with a round-trip transfer from your hotel in Belek or Kadriye, and all three end the same way at the payment desk that does not exist: nothing is prepaid and you settle in euros on the tour day. What changes between them is the water, the noise level, the food, the length of the day and the price.
- Alibaba pirate galleon - the sea day. €25 adult, €12.50 child aged 4-11, infants 0-3 free. About 6-7 hours on the boat inside a full day.
- Green Canyon cruise - a freshwater reservoir behind the Oymapınar Dam. €42 adult, €25 child, infants free. Roughly 8 hours door to door.
- Manavgat market and river boat - open-air market plus a calm river cruise. €43 adult, €30 child, infants free. 7 hours.
The pirate galleon: the sea day, and the cheapest of the three
The Alibaba galleon is our flagship and the boat most Belek guests have in mind when they talk about a boat trip. It is a pirate-themed galleon with a painted hull, sails and rigging, and it cruises the Side coastline. One honest detail before you book: Belek itself has no boat harbour in our records, so you are collected from your Belek hotel in the morning, driven to Side Harbour, and brought back in the afternoon. That transfer is included in the €25 rather than added to it.
The day itself is the loud, sociable one. There are several swimming breaks where you go straight off the deck into clear coves, a barbecue lunch served on board, a foam party with music and pirate animation, games for the children, and enough sun deck to opt out of all of it and simply sunbathe. Local travel insurance is included. Drinks from the on-board bar are not, and neither are tips for the crew or the photo and video service.
Green Canyon: a reservoir, not the Mediterranean
This is the trip most often misunderstood, so we will be blunt about it. The Green Canyon is not a sea cruise. It is a deep-green freshwater reservoir held back by the Oymapınar Dam near Manavgat, and you reach it on an inland drive from Belek in an air-conditioned vehicle rather than by heading for the coast. The water sits between pine-clad cliffs that rise straight out of it, and it is deep green and cool.
The mood is the opposite of the galleon: calm, scenic, low on animation. The captain anchors in sheltered coves and you can dive off the deck into cool turquoise water, or stay on the open deck if you would rather not swim at all. A freshly grilled lunch is served on board, local guide assistance and boat and travel insurance are included. Drinks, optional fishing or extra activities, tips and the photo service are not. Budget around 8 hours door to door, because the scenic drive each way is part of the day rather than an interruption to it.
Manavgat market and river: the day that is not about swimming
The third day is a shopping day with a boat attached, and that is the honest way to think about it. You are driven from Belek to one of the biggest open-air markets on the Antalya coast, with a licensed English-speaking guide for the whole day: spices, fresh fruit and vegetables, Turkish cotton and textiles, leather, jewellery, souvenirs and brand look-alikes. Bring cash in Turkish lira or euros, wear shoes you can walk the busy lanes in, and expect to bargain.
The boat part is a cruise on the Manavgat River aboard a traditional wooden riverboat: calm water, reed-lined banks, greenery, local fishermen and birdlife, and a riverside lunch. It is a river rather than the sea, and it is not a swimming tour, so pack for walking and shade instead of for a swim. One thing we would rather tell you now than on the morning of the trip: the market runs on Mondays and Thursdays. That makes Monday and Thursday the only two days this trip departs, and the only two the booking calendar will let you pick.
Price, length and inclusions side by side
Every price below is per person in euros. The child band is 4-11 on all three boats and infants aged 0-3 travel free on all of them. On the galleon the child fare is exactly half the adult one, €12.50 against €25, because that is how this product is priced. The other two carry their own child prices set for those tours, so do not assume the same halving applies there.
The result surprises people: the cheapest day out of Belek is also the most active one. If budget is the deciding factor, a family of two adults and two children pays the €25 adult fare twice and the €12.50 child fare twice for the pirate boat day, with the transfer and the barbecue lunch already inside those figures.
- Pirate galleon: €25 adult, €12.50 child. About 6-7 hours on the water. Sea swimming, barbecue lunch on board, foam party. Transfer from Belek to Side Harbour included.
- Green Canyon: €42 adult, €25 child. Around 8 hours door to door. Freshwater reservoir, swimming in cool coves, lunch on board, local guide.
- Manavgat market and river: €43 adult, €30 child. 7 hours. Market plus a calm river cruise, riverside lunch, guide all day, no swimming focus.
- On all three: round-trip hotel transfer from Belek, lunch and insurance are included; drinks, tips and the photo and video service are not.
Which day suits which traveller
There is no single best boat trip from Belek. There is a best one for the day you actually want to have, and the three split fairly cleanly.
- Families who want a proper swim plus entertainment: the pirate galleon. Games, foam party, barbecue, and the lowest price of the three.
- Anyone who wants scenery and quiet, or cool water rather than warm: Green Canyon, where the cliffs do the talking.
- Non-swimmers: Green Canyon works well, because spending the day on the sundeck is a legitimate way to enjoy it rather than a consolation prize.
- Shoppers, and anyone who wants a day out with a boat in it rather than a boat day: the Manavgat market and river tour.
- Couples: the galleon if you want atmosphere and swimming, Green Canyon if you want photographs and calm water.
- Guests with limited mobility: the galleon is not ideal, since moving around the deck is part of that day. Message us before you book and we will tell you honestly whether it fits.
What we do not run from Belek, and what comes closest
Plenty of people arrive in Belek searching for boats we simply do not have, and we would rather say so on this page than sell you the nearest thing under a misleading name. We do not operate a private boat or yacht charter from Belek. We do not run a sunset or evening cruise, a fishing boat, or a diving boat from Belek. There is no Antalya or Düden waterfall boat trip from Belek in our programme, and no Kemer boat day either.
Suluada deserves its own sentence, because the demand for it is real. Atalay Tour does sell Suluada boat trips, but from Side and from Antalya. There is no Belek-departure Suluada trip, so there is nothing for us to sell you here under that name, and we will not repackage a different boat as one.
What we can do is point you at whichever of our three days comes closest to the one you were picturing, and be clear about where the match ends.
- You wanted a sea day with swimming and atmosphere: the pirate galleon is exactly that day.
- You wanted a private charter or a quiet sunset sail: we have nothing that replaces it. Green Canyon is the calmest water we run, but it is a daytime cruise on a shared boat.
- You wanted a fishing or diving boat: we sell neither from Belek, and we are not going to dress up a sightseeing cruise as one.
- You wanted a waterfall day: the Manavgat River cruise is our greenest, most riverine day, but a waterfall stop is not part of that tour, so do not book it expecting one.
Booking, payment and cancellation
All three boats are booked in the same way and none of them takes money online. There is no prepayment and no card details are collected; you reserve your places, and you pay in euros on the day of the tour. Cancellation is free up to 24 hours before departure on all three, which means you can hold a date now and still change your mind if the week reshuffles itself.
The galleon runs every day of the week. Same-day bookings are not accepted, so the earliest date you can choose is tomorrow. Pickup is arranged after you book: the exact time depends on where your hotel sits on the route and is confirmed the day before, which is why you will not find a departure clock time printed anywhere on this site.