4 December 2008 | Archaeological and natural attractions, as well as submerged planes and ships, make Turkey’s southern coast near the towns of Side and Manavgat, a new hot spot for divers.

To feed into the growing popularity of dicing tourism, many planes and ships were submerged at different points along Turkey’s southern coast, forming a shelter for many sea creatures as well as helping diving tourism, the Turkish Hürriyet newspaper reported.

A 30-metre long, 8-metre high coast guard boat was recently submerged off the port of the town of Side and an artificial reef was created near the port. This is the third purposeful sunk vessel, according to reports.

“Side and Manavgat had a great potential in terms of archaeology and natural richness. However, we have less underwater riches than the Aegean Region has. For that reason, we submerged this boat donated by the Coast Guards to create different opportunities for tourism to ensure tourists coming to spend their holiday in our town have a better time. This boat is the first leg of our project and we are planning to sink a few ships too,” Mayor if Side, Osman Delikkulak, told the publication.

Side, located 75 kilometres from the popular resort town of Antalya, is one of the best-known classical sites in Turkey, which dates back to the seventh century BC.

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