Beginner means most of the group, not the exception
The quad safari and the buggy safari from Side are built for people who have never sat on a quad or in a buggy. Nothing in the programme assumes experience: the vehicle is explained from the first control, the route is driven at the group's pace behind the guide, and nobody reaches the main track without a practice drive. A first-timer and someone who has driven off-road before end up in the same convoy because both have passed through the same steps.
What the day asks of you is simple. Drivers are 16 or older and show ID at the base as proof of age. No driving licence is required — the safari runs on a private off-road course, not on public roads. Anyone aged 11 or over pays the adult fare, driving or riding along; children aged 6–10 join as passengers on the quad safari and the family buggy safari; children under 6 cannot take part.
Wheel and pedals, or handlebars and throttle: your first vehicle
The buggy is automatic: you sit in it, hold a wheel and use pedals, with nothing to shift and nothing to stall — the controls you already know from a car. The quad puts you on top of the terrain instead, with handlebars to steer, a thumb throttle for speed and your own line behind the guide.
Both cover the same private off-road course inland from the Side coast — forest tracks, dirt roads, dust, mud, water-splash stops, uneven ground and small stream crossings — and neither is reserved for experienced drivers. Choose the controls you would rather learn and book that safari; the practice drive does the rest. Adults on the quad safari pay €25 whether they drive or ride; the buggy safari is €30 per person.
Three briefings and a practice drive: what a first-timer gets from each
The day starts with the hotel transfer. Your pickup time is confirmed with the booking — it is earlier than the departure you chose and depends on your hotel and the route. At the base you register, and the learning starts before any engine does.
The information briefing covers the vehicle, the controls, the route, how the group is organised, the rules and what to expect. The safety briefing then goes through following the guide, safe distance, overtaking and stopping rules, appropriate speed, protective equipment and emergency procedures. Your own vehicle is explained while you sit in it or on it, and only then comes the practice drive: a supervised drive on the practice track where you start, steer, brake and stop under the guide's eye.
The guide has the final say — and 'not today' does not end your day
The practice drive is an assessment, not a formality. The guide watches how each driver handles the vehicle and decides who drives the main safari. For a beginner that is reassuring rather than intimidating: the person leading the convoy has seen you drive before the convoy forms, and the same standard applies to everyone in the group.
If the guide decides you should not drive, you are not sent back to the hotel. You ride the same route as a passenger, see the same tracks and water-splash stops, and shower at the base like everyone else. The fare stays the adult fare — what you book is the seat, not the driving.
Rather not drive at all? Book as a passenger from the start
You do not have to want the wheel to want the safari. An adult who prefers to ride books the quad safari or the buggy safari as a passenger at the adult fare and takes part in everything except the driving. A couple can split the roles — one drives, one rides — and the practice drive then applies to whoever drives.
Children are the clearest case. A child aged 6–10 rides as a passenger with an adult driver: on the quad safari at the child fare of €15, on the family buggy safari at €18. The buggy safari itself sells adult seats only, so a family with children books the family buggy safari — same buggies, same course, adult fare €30 plus the child fare. There is no infant seat, and nobody under 6 rides.
Small things that make a first safari easier
Wear closed shoes — sports shoes are ideal — and old, dark clothes that can take dust and mud; flip-flops are not suitable for off-road driving. The helmet is included and worn for the whole safari. Goggles and a bandana are sold at the base and are not in the price; dust is part of the day, so they are worth considering. Changing cabins and showers are at the base, so pack a change of clothes for the transfer back.
Nothing is charged online: you pay on the day and can cancel free of charge up to 24 hours before, so a hesitant beginner loses nothing by booking early. Door to door the programme is approximately 4–4.5 hours, with an 18 km off-road route at its centre; the rest is the transfer, the briefings and the practice drive that make a first safari possible.