Cyprus

SP123_3

Can you fill a week or two easily enough in Cyprus? Is there lots to see and do? We're not beach people and are not into pubs and clubs, but we do like sightseeing and exploring and will have a car out there.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Thanks

pinkcandyflossprincess

SP123 wrote: »

Can you fill a week or two easily enough in Cyprus? Is there lots to see and do? We're not beach people and are not into pubs and clubs, but we do like sightseeing and exploring and will have a car out there.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Thanks

i spent two weeks in paphos and think it would take a year to see all of the sites!

paphos town itself is a treasure, you walk down one street , find an ancient site, then turn the corner and something else is there!
we did (with 3 little ones aged 3years, 4years, and 8 months)
..tomb of the kings
aphrodites temple
aphrodites birthplace
the mosaics..paphos harbour
appollos temple
curium?
then places such as omodos village in the trodos mountains, palouri, polis and latchi. st george (lovely little harbour just past coral bay)

that was only a small part of cyprus!!!!!!it took us 14 days on and off in the car so no you wont get bored;)
enjoy wish i was ther now tbh
x

Saint_Chris

Yeah, there is loads to do

like pinkcandyflossprincess said all of the above

then you could drive to the east of the island and see ayia napa and the surrounding area. Only takes 2 hours to get there

Pssst

Sorry but i went to Cyprus only once and stayed near Paphos near the Tomb of the Kings. It ranked amongst one of the worst holidays i have ever had.

My review can be read here under the heading "Costa Del Paphos"

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g190384-r10043766-Paphos.html

tirednewdad

I have to agree with the last poster. I also hate holidays where you lye in 1 place for the whole time.

Paphos= football top wearing brits abroad.

Ayia napa is attractive, but we saw all of Cyprus in 7 days.
Nicosia (sp) is eeriee with the bullet covered wall from the war. Tomb of teh kings is a fake/ plastic style holiday park.

I think Cyprus is good for Sun bathing and relaxing, but not much else.

Pssst

To add to my previous postings,the bits i liked were the drive south past Afrodites rock toward Akrotiri,also nicosia is interesting and the Troodos mountains. I wont be going again though. It was difficult finding a decent meal and the place is one big ripoff. Pahos is like blackpool with sun.

Mands

SP123 wrote: »

Can you fill a week or two easily enough in Cyprus? Is there lots to see and do? We're not beach people and are not into pubs and clubs, but we do like sightseeing and exploring and will have a car out there.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Thanks

Oh yes, it's possible to find plenty to do for a week or two. Suggestions, and some links, below.

Historical

Curium
- once you've seen the traditional sights walk to the far (away from the entrance) end. If the weather is right you may see the paragliders launching from the top and flying down to the beach far, far below.

Tomb of the Kings
- if you are at the western end of the island then it'd be a shame to miss this. The tombs, dating back to 4th century BC, are carved out of the solid rocks. Go early or late, out of the main heat of the day.

Off the beaten track

Stavrovouni Monastery
- drive to the top of the mountain and admire the views south towards the coast. Males are welcome to tour the monastery, females are considered too much of a temptation and are therefore banned :-) On the way back down pull off into the parking area by the yellow and black shrine next to the road. Get out of the car and walk towards the edge. Be baffled as you try and work out just why the monks need a helipad!

Akamas peninsula
- if you have any interest in nature, geology, fantastic views or getting away from the crowds then consider a drive up to the Akamas peninsular.

Troodos
- drive right to the very top for fantastic views across the island. Then drive a little way back down and park up near the ski hut. Superb walks through the ski area and in spring you should see beautiful wild flowers.

Wine tasting
- most of the wineries are happy to receive visitors for wine tasting, there is no obligation to buy but of course they'll be happy if a bottle or two heads back to a hotel or even the UK. Tsiakkas winery is just off the road back down from Troodos and Platres and the owner, Costas, is particularly friendly.


Traditional

Lefkara village
- home of lace and silver makers for a thousand years, the village is a popular place for visitors. Da Vinci took a piece of lace from the village for use in an alter cloth for Milan cathedral. Try not to run over the women working the lace; they position their chairs on the street outside their shops but move them from one side of the road to the other to catch the best of the sun, or the shade, depending on the time of year.


In the north

Salamis
- if you have any interest in historical matters this is the one thing not to miss. Drive up to Salamis, buy a ticket and tour the site. When you're done and now hot and sweaty and in need of refreshing grab your beach towel, sea shoes and snorkels and walk along the beach. Go beyond the sunbeds and keep walking. It's about a 10 minute walk but you'll know the spot when you get there.

Now, wade out to sea. It's not deep, about three feet or so. Can you see where the water is breaking just ahead? That's the old harbour walls of what used to be the capital of the island more than 1000 years ago. Any those stones under your feet ... well, that probably be broken pottery or ruins of the ancient city. It's hard to think of another site in Europe where the archeological elements and antiquities are so open and accessible.

Wear the shoes to protect your feet, use the face mask to see what's there. Remember not to take anything away :-)

Northern Nicosia
- walk through the recently re-opened Ledra St crossing, make sure to have lunch in the Han, the historic Great Inn.

St Hilarion
- be prepared for a long trek up to the top. Allegedly where a king once murdered his duplicitous guards by pushing them out of a tower room. The castle was supposedly Walt Disney's inspiration for the fairy tale castle in Snow White. Remember to look to the left just before you drive up to the entrance - the flat area was once a jousting arena

And finally, if you can borrow a GPS then there's masses of Geocaching on the island which would take you to even more off-the-beaten-track locations;

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/nearest.aspx?lat=35.126413&lng=33.429859&dist=25

What's Geocaching?
Geocaching (pronounced geo-cashing) is a worldwide game of hiding and seeking treasure. A geocacher can place a geocache in the world, pinpoint its location using GPS technology and then share the geocache's existence and location online. Anyone with a GPS unit can then try to locate the geocache.

Shout if anything I've said isn't clear, or if you want more information.
Mands


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kourion
http://www.paragliding-cyprus.com/curium.htm
http://www.placesonline.com/europe/cyprus/paphos/tomb_of_the_king.asp
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akamas
http://kypros.org/Sxetikos/Monastiria/StavrovouniE-1.htm
http://www.swaypage.com/tsiakkas/
http://www.lefkara.org.cy/
http://www.cypnet.co.uk/ncyprus/city/famagusta/salamis/index.html
http://www.pbase.com/omeryagiz/great_inn
http://www.cyprus44.com/kyrenia/st-hilarion-castle.asp

pinkcandyflossprincess

tomb of the kings is an actual archaelogical site of tombs
i think you mean tomb of the kings road

poppy_f1

if u have the cash then most tour operators offer a day trip to egypt as well

SP123_3

Thanks everyone that's really helpful.

Sounds like a week will be sufficient for Cyprus itself. We'll be staying with friends who live out there who've suggested doing a trip to Jordan so we might spend a few days doing that in the middle if we go for two weeks.