Antalya Airport to Antalya City Centre
Antalya Airport to Antalya City Centre is about 13 km and takes roughly 25 minutes by car. A private transfer costs from around €28, or take the bus via the city centre.
Antalya City Centre, AntalyaHasan.unal / Wikimedia, CC0The old town (Kaleiçi) and the main hotel districts are a short hop east of the terminal, so you have every option — tram, bus, taxi or a pre-booked transfer.
Every way to get there
Our verdict: for Antalya City Centre, a private transfer is the easiest door-to-door option (from €28). Travelling light on a budget? The bus is cheapest (from €7) but slower, with a change in the city.
What it costs for your group
The bus is charged per person, while a taxi or private transfer is one price for the whole car — so the more of you there are, the better door-to-door value looks.
| Group | Bus (per person) | Private transfer | Best value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo · 1 traveller | €7 | €28 | Bus |
| Couple · 2 travellers | €14 | €28 | Bus |
| Family of 4 · 4 travellers | €28 | €28 | Bus |
Which option should you choose?
| If your priority is… | Our pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Lowest price | Bus | From €1, though slower with a change in the city. |
| Speed & comfort | Private transfer | Door-to-door, fixed price, a driver waiting for you. |
| A group of 3–4 | Transfer or taxi | One flat fare splits cheaper than several bus tickets. |
| A late-night arrival | Transfer or taxi | Both run 24/7 when buses and the tram have stopped. |
By transport mode
Private transfer
Meet & greet at arrivals, fixed price, flight tracking, child seats on request.
Where to catch it: Your driver meets you in the arrivals hall with a name sign — no queue, no hunting for a stop.
Best for families, groups & late arrivalsTram
Airport tram stop to the city; pay with AntalyaKart or contactless.
Where to catch it: AntRay Airport-line stop opposite Terminal 1 and the Domestic Terminal (bridge-linked). Terminal 2 passengers cross over first; the tram serves Antalya city, not the resorts.
Best for budget travellers near a stopBus / shuttle
Municipal bus to central Antalya.
Where to catch it: Bus stands in front of Terminal 1 / the Domestic Terminal. Terminal 2 passengers reach them via the inter-terminal link.
Best for solo & budget travellersTaxi
Metered from the rank; agree an approximate fare before long trips.
Where to catch it: Official taxi rank right outside arrivals, open 24/7. Check the meter is running and reset before you set off.
Best for small groups in a hurryCar rental
Per day; the flexible choice if you plan to explore the coast.
Where to catch it: Car-hire desks are in the Terminal 1 arrivals area.
Best for travellers who want to exploreAntalya City Centre & Antalya in photos
Buying tickets in Antalya
Antalya uses the reloadable AntalyaKart for the T2 (Antray) tram that leaves directly from the airport terminal, plus city buses and dolmuş. Buy and load the card at the machine on the airport tram platform, or from AntalyaKart kiosks and the Android app; the blank card costs about 100 TL and a single ride is roughly 27 TL. You tap the card on boarding rather than paying the driver. There is no contactless bank-card tap on the tram, so load enough credit before you travel.
Taxi scams & safety in Antalya
The tram is fixed-fare and scam-proof, which is the main reason to use it. If you take a taxi, use the official rank outside arrivals and insist the meter (taksimetre) runs; drivers who quote a flat price or claim the meter is broken usually overcharge, especially with luggage. Do not follow touts inside the terminal offering a car. Uber operates in Antalya but mostly dispatches licensed taxis. Agree nothing verbally, and keep small notes so a driver cannot claim to have no change.
Getting from AYT to Antalya City Centre
Thirteen kilometres. That's all that stands between the arrivals hall at Antalya Airport and the tangle of Ottoman lanes, Roman stone and boat masts that make up Kaleiçi, the old town. On a clear run it's about 25 minutes by car — barely time to shake off the plane and start noticing that the light here is different, softer and more golden than it had any right to be. Of all the places people fly into Antalya to reach, the city centre is the easy one. It's close, it's well connected, and for once the public transport actually goes where you want it to go.
What you're heading into
Kaleiçi isn't a district so much as a survivor. The old harbour once launched Roman and Byzantine ships; the walls that ring it have been patched by every empire that fancied the coastline. Hadrian's Gate — three marble arches raised for the emperor's visit in the second century — still marks the eastern entrance, and you walk through it the same way people have for nearly nineteen hundred years. Inside, the streets narrow and tilt downhill toward the water, past carved wooden houses now turned into small hotels and cafés, past the fluted minaret they call Yivli, past courtyards you'll want to photograph and then, mercifully, forget your phone in. It rewards wandering. Which is worth remembering when you're choosing how to arrive.
The tram proves its worth here
Here's the thing worth flagging loudly, because it's true almost nowhere else along this coast: the AntRay tram genuinely serves you. The Airport line runs into central Antalya proper — not out to the resort strips — so for the old town it's a real option rather than a compromise. Board at the stop opposite T1 and the Domestic terminal (if you've landed at T2, cross over first), tap an AntalyaKart or a contactless card, and ride toward the city. For Kaleiçi you want to alight at İsmetpaşa, then it's a short walk into the old quarter. Trams come roughly every 14–16 minutes from around 06:00 to midnight, the fare sits at around €1–2, and the whole trip runs about 40 minutes. It isn't door-to-door, and it won't love your suitcase over the cobbles at the far end, but for a solo traveller or a couple travelling light, it's honestly hard to beat.
The other ways in, and who they suit
If the tram doesn't fit, the choices sort themselves out fairly quickly:
- Private transfer (Kiwitaxi, Welcome Pickups) — roughly €28–36, about 25 minutes, booked ahead and available around the clock. A driver takes you straight to the door of your hotel, the price fixed when you book. The per-car price is the point: split three or four ways it undercuts the tram, and it spares you the walk into the lanes with luggage.
- Official taxi — metered, from the marked rank outside arrivals, 24/7, usually €38–54 depending on traffic and where in the old town you're staying. Same 25-minute ride, no pre-booking, slightly more than a transfer because you're paying the meter.
- City bus — around €7–12, roughly 38 minutes, every 30–60 minutes. Route 800 heads into the city and on toward Lara and Konyaaltı beaches; the 600 runs to the otogar, the intercity station. Cheaper than a taxi but pricier and less frequent than the tram, so it's more useful if your stop happens to sit on the line.
- Car rental (Localrent, DiscoverCars) — desks are right there in arrivals, roughly €22–41 a day. Handy if you plan to explore the wider coast, though Kaleiçi's lanes are no place to park; leave the car at the hotel.
Doing the sums, and landing late
The maths is simple once you see it. Transfers and taxis charge per car, so a group divides the fare; the tram and bus charge per person, so a group multiplies it. Two people watching the budget, tram every time. Four people with bags after a long day, a booked transfer often wins on both comfort and cost. If your flight gets in after midnight, the tram will have stopped — there are a few late bus runs, but for a tired arrival the metered rank or a pre-booked driver is the calm choice, both running 24/7.
Two things worth knowing
Grab an AntalyaKart from a terminal kiosk before you head for the tram — it smooths the fare and you'll use it again around town. And use only the official taxi rank outside arrivals; ignore anyone offering you a ride inside the terminal, and once you're in the cab, check the meter is switched on and reset to zero. Do that, and the last stretch of your journey is as honest as the first.
Then let the old town take over. Somewhere past Hadrian's Gate, down where the lanes meet the harbour, is a table with your name on it — and the marble's been waiting a lot longer than you have.
