SAVRAN Camel Safari — Attraction in Ortahisar Beldesi

One word, dishonest. So I call the business number via Whatsapp and schedule an hour riding session with the owner. He told me it would cost $38 (USD) per person, so $76 total. The day of my reservation, as a courtesy, I contacted the owner via Whatsapp and told him I grabbed cash from the ATM but was only able to take out a $100 bill, (nothing smaller), and I just wanted to make sure he would be able to break the $100 bill, to which he said, no problem. When I get to the location, there were 3 guys who worked there (no other customers), who didn't say a word to me. So I introduce myself and tell them I have a reservation. As they didn't seem aware of my reservation, I asked, "$76 for two people, correct?" To which one of the employees states they usually charge $100 per person. At this point, I can see they're trying to milk me for as much as they can as though I'm some ignorant tourist with no regard to money, so I vehemently tell him, "No, I called in advance and was told it would be $38 per person." So the employee eventually calls the owner (who wasn't present) and verified that he did agree to $76. So finally, I hand over the $100 bill to the employee, and he states he can't accept it because it's an older $100 bill (not the latest one with all the colors and the blue security ribbon). As he tells me that banks and businesses don't usually accept it, I informed him that I just withdrew it from one of the only ATMs in the area, to which he tries to act surprised, and calls back the owner once again. He then proceeds to tell me, he'll accept the $100 bill, but won't give me any change for it, as if to charge me a $24 fee for it being an old bill. At this point I say, "nah, I'm good" and leave. Honestly, I was partially relieved it didn't pan out because they ruined the experience from the start by trying to make a fool out of me, in addition to lacking energy and having the personality of a cheese grater. Btw, I ended up going to a horse ranch directly across from this business which was way more welcoming and receptive. If you insist on going camelback riding in the region, find a different place, or just make sure these guys don't try to get...

I went here today, booked via tour agency. Went with my family of 4, got 2 camels. It was a fun ride but an uncomfortable one! One camel was old and its saddle was also fine but one camel in which I sat was very uncomfortable. I asked guide to fix it, he said its new saddle and young camel thats why a bit different than others and he cant do anything about it. Unlike other camels, mine was young and her gait was quite bouncy. I was frustrated by his response but then later he agreed to fix the saddle again, it was a bit better than before.

Do’s: wear comfortable loose clothing, take a hat with you. Always try riding a camel near base before doing the whole tour. It’s better to test run and check out which camel suits you. Do nots: ride on a full belly. Ride on young camels.

Suggestion: camels should be equipped with better saddles with leather seats. So rider can comfortably get on and off using the foot rest. (Pic attached). Our camel did not had any seat (it was just 2 thick blankets) nor a foot rest, our tour guide was kind enough to use his hands as footrest to help us get on and off during the ride. It must be surely uncomfortable for him! Company charging euro 35 per person should consider this. This will not only be better for rider but also for...

This review is for the camel ride booked through airbnb. Overall, it was a great experience. In particular, I wanted to shout out Julia, who was very communicative and accommodating. The whole team put a lot of effort into making sure logistics, pick up, and drop off were a breeze.

The camel ride itself begins on the ranch slightly outside Ortahisar. There were good views of Rose valley during the ride. At the halfway point, the group stops for photos - the team is very experienced and took lots of excellent photos / videos. The overall experience from mounting to dismounting was slightly less than 75 minutes (which was plenty of time).

Some additional notes - it is made clear on airbnb through the description but the price is the 5 euro reservation fee plus an additional 20 euro due at the time of the experience. In addition, I am no expert on camel biology, but some other guests in my group and the one before did comment that their camels seemed tired or had poorly maintained skin (was not a problem for my camel...