Sandland

Sandland is an annual sand-sculpture festival held on a site beside Lara beach, running from around May to October. Sculptors from a number of countries are brought in each spring to build figures and scenes from compacted sand - typically several thousand tonnes of it - on a chosen theme, which changes year to year and has covered mythology, world civilisations, cinema and fairy tales. The pieces are large, some several metres high, and they are sprayed with a water-based fixative to hold through the season; rain damages them and repairs happen through the summer. At the end of the season the sand is simply pushed back and used again. There is no shade on the site, which is why the evening opening with floodlighting is the better visit, and there are cafés and a play area. It is a family attraction rather than an art destination, and an hour or so covers it.

What you actually see

• The sand sculptures - large figures built for the year's theme.
• The annual theme - a new subject each season.
• The floodlighting - the sculptures lit after dark.
• The build site - the open sand ground beside Lara.

When to go

May to October, when the festival is up - outside those months there is nothing to see. Evenings, both for the lighting and to avoid the heat.

Honest expectations

There is no shade whatsoever - a daytime visit in summer is punishing. Sculptures weather and can be damaged by rain late in the season. It is a commercial family attraction, priced as one.

Nearby

Lara beach is alongside; the Land of Legends park is further east at Belek.