The Best Budget Beaches in Alanya

Here is the happy truth about a beach holiday in Alanya: it is hard to spend much money on the sand, because almost every beach here is free. This is one of the great value corners of the Mediterranean, a long sweep of Turkish coast where the public beaches charge nothing to enter, the water is warm and clear from late spring to autumn, and the only real cost of a beach day is a cheap sunbed and a bottle of water. You could lay a towel on famous Cleopatra Beach for nothing at all and want for very little.

The famous names are the free ones. Cleopatra Beach, the long Blue Flag strand of fine golden sand west of the castle, is public and free to walk onto, with inexpensive sunbeds and every facility along the front. East of the centre the Keykubat strand runs for miles, just as free and usually quieter and cheaper on the beds, while Damlatas below the castle gives you the most convenient central swim in clear water. None of these ask an entry fee, which is exactly why Alanya suits a careful budget so well.

Spread west and east and the value only holds. The resort beaches at Konakli and Avsallar, and the shallow calm sand at Incekum, are public and free too, with cheap loungers and a gentler, family friendly feel away from the busy centre. The pattern across the whole coast is the same, free sand, low cost comfort, and no real need to pay a premium for a private setup when the public beach beside it is just as good. The money you spend in Alanya goes on the flight, the room and the meze, not the beach.

So the honest advice is to relax and enjoy how little it costs. Bring your own shade and water if you want to spend nothing, rent a bed and parasol for a small daily fee if you want the comfort, and save any splurge for a special day rather than a whole trip. Prices for sunbeds vary by beach and season and are best confirmed on the day, and conditions are typical rather than guaranteed, so read the flags before you swim. We have ranked the six best value beaches below, the free favourites first.

The honest read is that Alanya makes a tight budget easy, because the thing you came for, warm clear sea and long golden sand, is free almost everywhere. The public beaches are not a compromise, they are the main event, and Cleopatra and Keykubat would be paid headline beaches in many countries. Spend your attention on choosing the right free beach for the day rather than on any entry ticket, because there rarely is one.

Save on the beach and spend where it counts, which in Alanya means the flight and the room rather than the sand. Travel outside the very peak summer weeks for cheaper flights and hotels while the sea is still warm, bring your own shade and water if you want a day that costs nothing, and rent a cheap sunbed only when the heat makes it worth it. The eastern Keykubat strand and the western beaches at Incekum and Konakli give you the same free coast with fewer crowds and often lower sunbed prices than the busy centre.

Keep any splurge for a genuine occasion. A private beach club can be a lovely treat for a special day, but understand that you are buying comfort and service, not better sand, because the free public beach along the same coast is just as good to swim from. Sunbed prices vary by beach and season and are best confirmed on the day, conditions are typical rather than guaranteed, so always read the flags and the sea, and let one of the best value coasts in the Mediterranean do the rest.

Even on a budget there are days when a beach club earns its price, for the loungers, the shade, the calm and a kitchen close by, and Alanya has plenty along the Cleopatra strand and the eastern beaches. They make a pleasant base for a special day or a celebration, though the sand and sea are no better than the free beaches beside them. Operators, opening hours and any minimum spend vary with the season here, so we keep the live list on the directory. Tell us your dates and the kind of day you want and we pass the enquiry on to confirm what is open.