Belek is a family resort at heart, with Kadriye and Boğazkent along the same long beach and pine forest between the hotels and the sea. When the children start asking for something new, the tours from Belek offer plenty of choice – but not every trip works at every age. This guide matches the Belek tours to your children’s ages and shares ideas for pacing the week and coping with the summer heat.
Which Belek tour at which age?
- Babies and toddlers (0–2): the Green Canyon boat tour and the jeep safari both have an infant ticket. The boat is the gentler choice.
- Ages 3–6: the same two tours, with a child ticket for ages 3–11.
- From 7: rafting, and zipline and rafting, on the Köprüçay, with a child ticket for ages 7–11. Children can also ride as passengers on a quad or buggy driven by a parent.
- From 8: horse riding; children under 12 ride with an adult in the group.
- From 16: their own quad or buggy, with a parent’s consent until 18 (some vehicles are 18+).
Jeep, rafting, quad, buggy and horse riding tours are not suitable for pregnant guests.
The gentle day: Green Canyon by boat
For families with small children, the Belek Green Canyon Boat Tour is the easy option. Nobody drives, climbs or paddles: the transfer follows the coast east and climbs into the mountains north of Manavgat to the lake of the Oymapınar Dam, and the boat does the rest. You cruise for about two to three hours between steep, forested walls, with one or two swim stops of 20–30 minutes when the weather allows. Life jackets are on board, and so are a changing cabin and a toilet – a real help with little ones. Lunch and soft drinks on the boat are included.
The day runs from 08:30 to about 16:30. Put a life jacket on children before they go into the water, and keep them close. Our Green Canyon boat tour guide tells you more about the lake itself.
Jeep safari to Yumaklar with children
The Belek Jeep Safari suits children who can sit in a vehicle for a while. Experienced drivers drive, everyone stays seated with the seat belt on, and the day is broken up by stops: panoramic viewpoints, a village house in Yumaklar at about 920 metres, a swim in the natural pool of a mountain waterfall and lunch at a mountain restaurant. Pickup is at 08:30, and you are back at about 16:30.
Two things to prepare for. The tracks get dusty in dry weather, and the mountain roads wind uphill, so a light breakfast helps children who feel sick on bends. And at the waterfall, expect cool water and slippery rocks: keep small children close and pack water shoes if you have them.
From 7 and 8: rafting and horse riding
Belek is the closest resort to Köprülü Canyon, about 45–60 minutes by road, which makes the Belek Rafting Tour a manageable first river day for children from 7. Every raft has an instructor, life jackets and helmets are compulsory, and the class II–III rapids suit beginners. Children don’t need to swim, but they should be relaxed in water, and under-18s raft with a parent. Pickup is at 09:00, and you are back at about 17:00.
From 8, the Belek Horse Riding Tour is a shorter outing of about three hours. After a helmet fitting and a short briefing at the stable, the group rides with a guide for about 1.5 hours along forest paths and sandy tracks through the dunes, with a short stop on the beach for photos. Beginners ride at a walk with some easy trotting on calm horses, children under 12 ride with an adult in the group, and the guide may lead a young child’s horse. Choose the morning group, picked up from 09:00, or the sunset group, picked up from 16:30. Long trousers and closed shoes are a must, and there is a weight limit of about 100 kg per rider.
Pacing the week and beating the heat
- Alternate busy and quiet days. A full tour day followed by a day at the pool or on the beach keeps everyone in a good mood.
- Use the cool hours. In July and August, book the morning group for horse riding or a quad and buggy ride, and keep the middle of the day for shade.
- Head for the hills or the water. Yumaklar lies at about 920 metres, and the river and the lake offer swims during the hottest part of the day.
- Protect against the sun. Hats, high-factor sunscreen reapplied after swimming, sunglasses and plenty of water.
- Pack spare clothes. Water tours end with wet swimsuits, and a dry set makes the ride home more comfortable.
- Tell us all ages when you book, so the right tickets and age rules apply.
The Belek safari tours page lists every trip, with free hotel pickup from Belek, Kadriye, Boğazkent and Serik. Booking needs no prepayment, you pay in cash on the tour day and you can cancel free of charge up to 24 hours before the tour. For the age rules in the other resorts too, see our guide to safari tours with kids in Antalya.
