Hamam guide
What is a Turkish bath?
A Turkish bath is a warm, wet marble bathhouse where, once the heat has done its work, you are scrubbed from head to toe and washed in foam. Here is what a hamam is, what happens during a visit and how to book one in Antalya.
In short
A Turkish bath — hamam in Turkish — is a warm, wet bathhouse finished in marble, where an attendant scrubs you with a kese mitt and washes you in foam once you have warmed up. The basic programme booked on this site also includes a sauna, a steam room and an aromatic oil massage of about 20 minutes, with a round-trip hotel transfer. It takes about 2.5–3 hours door to door and costs from €25 per adult, paid at the hamam on the day.
Hamam: what the word means
Hamam is the Turkish word for what English calls a Turkish bath. It is a bathhouse built around warmth and water: the rooms are warm, the air is wet and the surfaces are marble.
Two features give a hamam its character. The göbektaşı is a heated marble platform where guests lie and rest in the warmth. The kurna are marble basins used for washing and rinsing. The hamams on this site also have a sauna, a steam room, showers, changing facilities and a relaxation area.
Your visit, start to finish
Every booking on this site buys the same basic programme, whichever of the three service areas your hotel is in. This is the whole visit, from booking to the ride back, in the order you meet it:
- Before the day: we confirm your pickup time with you and send you the hamam's address.
- Packing: swimwear, a change of underwear and a hairbrush or comb. What to wear and bring.
- Beforehand: eat only a light meal, and don't drink alcohol before the session.
- Hotel pickup in an air-conditioned vehicle, which may carry other guests.
- Arrival: you change into your swimwear and are given a peştemal wrap, a towel and slippers.
- Sauna and steam room, to warm up before the kese.
- Kese on the göbektaşı: on the heated marble platform, where you can also rest in the warmth, an attendant exfoliates you from head to toe with the kese mitt. If anything feels uncomfortable, tell the attendant. More about the kese scrub.
- After the kese, the foam: a foam wash and a foam massage. What happens in the foam.
- Aromatic oil massage of about 20 minutes.
- Rinse, rest and change.
- A tip for the attendants, if you wish: customary but optional, and not included.
- Return transfer to your hotel.
The exact order and timing can vary with the hamam and how busy the session is. Door to door, the whole visit takes about 2.5–3 hours, with both transfers included.
Turkish bath, sauna or steam room?
The three are easy to confuse, and the difference is simple. A hamam is warm, wet and marble; a sauna is hot and dry; a steam room is warm and saturated with steam.
What sets a Turkish bath apart is less the heat than what is done for you in it: the kese mitt and the foam wash. On this programme you use the sauna and the steam room too, as the warm-up before the scrub, so you meet all three in one visit.
If you are weighing a hamam against a treatment at a spa, we compare the two in Turkish bath vs spa.
A social tradition
The hamam comes from a long bathing tradition in this part of the world, and in time it became part of Ottoman social life. Washing, warming up and being scrubbed in company is the heart of it: the hamam was a social place as much as a washing place.
A visit today keeps the same essentials: heat, the kese, the foam and time to rest afterwards. Coming with children or as a couple? Read Turkish bath with children and as a couple first.
What the price includes — and what it doesn't
The online price buys the basic programme and nothing else. Adult fares start from €25, children aged 4–10 pay half the adult fare, and infants aged 0–3 go free. The price includes:
- round-trip hotel transfer in an air-conditioned vehicle, within our service areas
- sauna and steam room
- traditional kese body scrub
- foam wash and foam massage
- aromatic oil massage of about 20 minutes
- peştemal wrap, towel and slippers
- local insurance
Not included: drinks, herbal teas and refreshments; extended or upgraded massages; extra treatments such as clay or aroma masks; professional photos and video; personal expenses and tips. Tipping the attendants is customary but optional.
Who should check with a doctor first
A hamam is not recommended during pregnancy, with heart or circulatory conditions, or if you are sensitive to heat or humidity.
If you have a medical condition, high or low blood pressure, a skin condition, or a recent operation or injury, speak to your doctor first and tell the hamam before your session.
Booking a Turkish bath in Antalya
This site books hamam visits in three service areas: Antalya city (the centre, Lara, Kundu and Konyaaltı), Belek (Belek, Kadriye and Boğazkent) and Kemer (Kemer, Beldibi, Göynük, Kiriş, Çamyuva and Tekirova).
You don't need to know which is which. Your hotel decides which of the three hamams you visit, and the transfer to it is included. Look up every hotel we collect from, or start with your hotel on the home page.
Reserving is free and nothing is charged online: you pay at the hamam on the day, and you can cancel free of charge up to 24 hours before your visit. We confirm the pickup time and the hamam's address with you before the day.
