Side

The entrance to the old town is from among the well preserved city walls and through the main gate of the ancient city, but the gate itself has been damaged badly. After the main gate, starts the colonnaded street. The modern road follows the exact course of the ancient avenue, although the marble columns that were once used do not exist anymore. A few broken stubs can be seen near the old Roman baths.

The colonnaded street reaches first to the Agora and then to the theater. It was one arm of the two avenues in the Corinthian style. At the left side of the avenue are the remains of a Byzantine Basilica.

The remains of a public bath have been restored and now serve as the Museum. This building is situated before the Agora, on the right side of the street. At the Museum, Roman period statues and sarcophagi are on display. The remains of the Agora can be seen on the left side. This was also the place where pirates sold slaves.

After the Agora comes the theater with the remains of a monumental gate and a fountain at the entrance. The fountain has been restored. The present remains of the theater date from the 2C AD. The skene of the theater is in a bad state. The theater had a seating capacity of 15,000 people and was used in the late Roman period for gladiator fights. The theater was used as an open air church in the 5-6C AD. Near the theater was the Temple of Dionysus of the early Roman period.

The colonnaded avenue which starts at the gate and leads up to the theater used to extend on the other side, down to the harbour. This part of the avenue is now beneath the present town of Side. Near the harbour there are two temples side by side. One of these has been dedicated to Apollo and the other to Artemis. Six columns of the Apollo Temple have been restored and re-erected. In front of the temples was a Byzantine Basilica.