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What are the best things to do in Cyprus? Swim at Nissi or Fig Tree Bay, see the Roman mosaics in Paphos, drive up into the Troodos villages and have a long lunch in a village taverna.
Cyprus packs more into a small island than most visitors expect. Beaches and ruins are the obvious answers, and the mountains, the wine villages and the food are where the trip actually gets interesting. Here is everything worth doing, organised by what you feel like.
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Cyprus Things to Do at a Glance
- Best beach: Nissi in Ayia Napa, or Fig Tree Bay in Protaras.
- Best history: the Kato Paphos Archaeological Park and Kourion.
- Best day out: the Troodos villages, with a village lunch.
- Best walk: the Aphrodite Trail on the Akamas.
- Best food: a full meze in a village taverna.
- Best time to go: April, May, October and November.
Cyprus is the third largest island in the Mediterranean and still small enough that you can cross it in a morning. Paphos to Ayia Napa is roughly two and a half hours on the motorway, and from almost anywhere on the south coast you can be in the mountains within an hour. That is what makes it work as a holiday: you can swim in the morning, be in a pine forest at lunch and eat dinner in a stone village, without changing hotel.
Where Are the Best Beaches?
The east coast has the best beaches, without much argument. Fig Tree Bay and Konnos in Protaras, Nissi and Makronissos in Ayia Napa. Coral Bay is the west coast equivalent.
Nissi is the postcard one, with shallow, clear water and a small islet you can wade out towards, and it is crowded in July and August for exactly that reason. Konnos is smaller, sits in a rocky cove in the Cape Greco area and is calmer in the morning. Cape Greco itself is worth a stop for the sea caves and the clifftop paths, which are far quieter than the beaches either side of it.
For empty coastline, head for the Akamas peninsula in the northwest, where protected status has kept development out entirely. Lara Bay, on the western edge of the peninsula, is one of the main nesting beaches for sea turtles in the Mediterranean, and the nesting season runs through the summer. Our guide to the best beaches in Cyprus covers them.
If you would rather be on the water than beside it, the east coast resorts run the usual range of watersports, and boat trips leave from Latchi in the northwest for the Blue Lagoon and the Akamas coastline. You can compare boat trips and water activities on Klook or try Viator, and availability changes by season, so check your dates. Our guide to Ayia Napa and Protaras covers what is there beyond the party reputation.
This year I have swum at Lady’s Mile, Limassol, St Raphael, Ayia Napa, Protaras, Fig Tree Bay and Turtle Bay, so the beach advice here comes from time in the water as well as research. On the Limassol side, the promenade, known as the Molos, is incredible and one of the best free things to do in the city.
What Is the Best History to See?
The Kato Paphos Archaeological Park holds Roman mosaics among the finest in the eastern Mediterranean. Kourion has a Greco Roman theatre cut into the hillside above the sea, and the Tombs of the Kings are carved directly into rock. Choirokoitia, near Larnaca, is a Neolithic settlement from around 7000 BC and puts the rest in perspective. Our guides to Cyprus ancient sites and the monasteries of Cyprus cover what you are looking at.
Paphos is the easiest place to do this properly. The archaeological park, the Tombs of the Kings and the harbour fort sit close together, so a single day covers most of it. Kourion is best late in the afternoon, when the stone turns warm and the coach parties have gone, and the Sanctuary of Apollo Hylates is a short drive away.
Cyprus also carries a more recent layer, from the Venetian walls around Nicosia to the Ottoman era mosques and the British built courthouses in the towns. Our short history of Cyprus puts the sequence in order, which makes every site make more sense. Attraction tickets for the main sites are listed on Tiqets.
Inside the Kato Paphos park are four Roman villas with mosaic floors, the houses of Dionysos, Theseus, Aion and Orpheus, along with the Asklepieion, the Odeon, the Agora, the Saranta Kolones castle and the ruins of the Limeniotissa basilica. As of 2026 entry is €4.50, with the Tombs of the Kings an additional €2.50. The park is open daily from 8:30 to 19:30 between 16 April and 15 September and from 8:30 to 17:00 for the rest of the year, and it closes on Christmas Day, New Year’s Day and Greek Orthodox Easter Sunday.
Choirokoitia sits about 32km from Larnaca beside the Nicosia to Limassol motorway. Entry is €2.50 as of 2026, and five reconstructed round houses show how the Neolithic dwellings were built. The hillside is steep, so the site is not wheelchair accessible, although the reconstructed houses can be visited. If you plan several paid sites, the Department of Antiquities sells cards at €8.50 for one day, €17 for three days and €25 for seven.
Why Visit the Troodos Mountains?
The Troodos are the part most visitors skip and the part that changes their opinion of the island. Pine forest at 1,900m, stone villages, Byzantine painted churches and snow in February. Omodos, Lofou, Kakopetria and Kalopanayiotis are the villages worth the drive, covered in our guide to the best Troodos villages.
The painted churches are the other reason to go. Ten Byzantine churches in the mountains are on the UNESCO list, among them Asinou and Agios Nikolaos tis Stegis near Kakopetria, and they hold frescoes that have survived for centuries in small, plain, steep roofed buildings. Many are open only on set hours or by asking a keyholder in the nearest village, so build in time.
Mount Olympus, the highest point on the island at just under 2,000m, has a small ski area that runs when the snow is good, usually between January and March. Kykkos Monastery is the best known of the mountain monasteries and the most visited. Our guide to Cyprus in winter covers the snow season, and the coolest places in Cyprus covers the same hills as summer relief.
The mountain roads are easiest with your own car, and taxis do not roam the villages, so for a village lunch with a drink arrange your return journey in advance.
As reported in 2025, the ten painted churches open Tuesday to Sunday on set hours and are closed on Mondays, on Christmas, during Easter Holy Week and on 15 August. The Kykkos museum charges €5 as of 2026 and is open daily from 10:00 to 16:00 from November to May and from 10:00 to 18:00 from June to October. Hours can change, so check before you drive up.
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Where Are the Best Walks?
The Aphrodite Trail on the Akamas, Avakas Gorge for something dramatic and short, the Caledonia Falls for shade in summer, and the Madari ridge for the best view on the island. Our guide to hiking in Cyprus has ten trails with distances and difficulty.
Cyprus is part of the E4 European long distance path, and the Troodos has a dense network of marked nature trails, most of them short and well signed. The seasons matter more than the routes. Spring and autumn are ideal, winter is quiet and green, and summer walking needs a dawn start. Our winter walk up Mount Papoutsa is a good example of what the mountains give you outside July and August.
For a sense of scale, the Aphrodite Trail is a loop of about 7.7km that takes around three hours from Aphrodite’s Baths, with a climb of nearly 400m. The Avakas Gorge is about 3km long with walls up to 30m high, and the out and back walk takes around two and a half hours, although the water makes it difficult after heavy rain. Caledonia Falls is about 3km and takes between one and two and a half hours.
Carry more water than you expect, wear shoes with ankle support and stay on the trail. Shops are scarce, cliff edges are often not fenced and the blunt nosed viper is active in summer, although it is rarely seen.
What Should You Eat?
Food is the strongest reason to come, and the one least advertised. Start with a full meze, then work through sheftalia, afelia, kleftiko and the pulse dishes visitors never order.
A meze is not a starter. It is a meal of fifteen to thirty small dishes that arrives in waves, usually ending with grilled meat and sweets, and it is designed to take the whole evening. Order it for the table rather than ordering individually, and pace yourself, because the early dips and salads are not the main event.
Eat in villages when you can. The best tavernas in the Troodos and the villages around Nicosia and Larnaca serve food that the resort strips rarely match, at lower prices and with real wood fires in winter.
Our ranked guide to the best restaurants in Cyprus covers where to book, and our guide to Cypriot dishes covers what to order. For a broader look at what locals eat day to day, see the Cypriot diet.
Where Should You Eat in Each City?
Each city guide has its own where to eat section, and our ranked list covers the whole island.
- Limassol: the densest restaurant scene on the island. See our Limassol guide.
- Nicosia: traditional tavernas and the capital’s best modern kitchens. See our Nicosia guide.
- Paphos: harbour dining and village tavernas nearby. See our Paphos guide.
- Larnaca: seafront cafes and fish. See our Larnaca guide.
- Ayia Napa and Protaras: beyond the bars. See our Ayia Napa and Protaras guide.
For one list across all of them, see the best restaurants in Cyprus.
Is Cyprus Wine Worth Trying?
Yes. The island has five thousand years of production and indigenous grapes almost nobody outside Cyprus has tried. The wine routes run through the southern Troodos, and September is harvest.
The two grapes to know are Xynisteri, a crisp white, and Maratheftiko, a dark red that is difficult to grow and rewards the effort. Commandaria, the sweet dessert wine from the villages on the southern slopes, is often described as one of the oldest named wines still made anywhere. Omodos is the best known wine village and a good place to start, and the small family wineries around it are far more interesting than the large producers.
Our guides to Cyprus wine and traditional Cypriot drinks cover what to drink and where to go.
Where Can You See Wildlife?
Turtles nest at Lara Bay in summer, thousands of flamingos arrive at the salt lakes in winter, mouflon live in the Paphos Forest and wild orchids bloom in spring. The Larnaca salt lake is the easiest of these, because it sits beside the airport road and the town.
Flamingos arrive in the cooler months, usually from late autumn, and the lake is also a stop for a long list of migrating birds. Spring brings wildflowers and orchids to the hills, and the island sits on a major bird migration route in both spring and autumn. Our guide to Cyprus wildlife covers what is visible when.
The Larnaca lake has a walking path of about 4km, and it is free. Keep your distance from the flamingos, use binoculars rather than walking towards them, and do not wade into the lake or fly a drone. At Lara Bay the nesting beaches have strict rules in summer, including no sunbeds or tents and no driving on the sand.
Which City Should You Visit?
Nicosia for history and the divided capital, Limassol for food, Paphos for archaeology, Larnaca for the salt lake and the Zenobia wreck offshore.
Nicosia rewards a half day on foot inside the Venetian walls, where the old town mixes cafes, craft shops and the buffer zone that cuts through the middle. Limassol has the old town and the castle at one end and the marina and the new towers at the other, and the best restaurant density on the island. Larnaca has the palm lined Finikoudes promenade, an easy town beach and the Zenobia, a ferry that sank in 1980 and now lies on the seabed offshore as one of the most famous wreck dives in the world. Read our guides to Nicosia, Limassol, Paphos and Larnaca.
I spend weekdays in Nicosia and weekends in Limassol, so the capital and the coast are the two sides of Cyprus I know best day to day.
The Zenobia capsized on its maiden voyage on 7 June 1980. The ship is 172m long and rests on its port side at 42m, with its shallowest point at 18m, and the dive is listed at Advanced Open Water level. It lies about 3.7km offshore in Larnaca Bay and is reached by boat.
What Is There for Culture?
Lefkara, in the hills above Larnaca, is known for its handmade lace and silverwork, a craft recognised by UNESCO, and it is a pleasant half day with a village lunch. The Cyprus Museum in Nicosia holds the best archaeological collection on the island, and it makes more sense to visit it before you see the sites. If you are here at the right time of year, the village festivals and the Easter celebrations are a better window into Cyprus than any museum. Our guide to Cyprus festivals and events through the year covers when they fall.
Is Cyprus Good With Children?
Yes, it is one of the easier family destinations in Europe. The beaches are shallow and safe, the resorts are set up for children, the food suits fussy eaters, and the water parks around Ayia Napa, Limassol and Paphos fill the hottest days. Turtles, boat trips and the sea caves at Cape Greco work well for older children. Our guide to visiting Cyprus with children covers the practical side.
What If You Want to Do Nothing?
That is a legitimate plan here, and arguably the right one. A three hour village lunch, an afternoon on an empty beach, a coffee that lasts two hours. Our guide to finding tranquility in Cyprus covers the case for it.
How Do You Build Your Days?
Pick one area per day rather than crossing the island, because distances look short on the map and the mountain roads are slow.
- A Paphos day: the archaeological park, the Tombs of the Kings and the harbour fort, which sit close together.
- A Troodos day: Lofou in the morning, Omodos for lunch and a winery, then back to the coast before dark.
- An east coast day: Cape Greco caves and clifftop paths, then Konnos, Fig Tree Bay or Nissi for the swim.
- A Larnaca day: the salt lake path, Choirokoitia and Lefkara.
What Mistakes Do Visitors Make?
- Planning sights on a Monday: Fikardou, Hamam Omerye and the Troodos painted churches are closed.
- Arriving late in winter: the main state run sites close at 17:00 from 16 September to 15 April.
- Crossing the island every day: Paphos to Ayia Napa is roughly two and a half hours each way.
- Leaving boat trips until you arrive: July and August fill up, so book ahead.
- Forgetting the return journey from a village lunch: arrange a driver or a taxi in advance.
When Is the Best Time to Go?
April, May, October and November are the best months for doing things, because the sea is warm enough for swimming and the weather is mild enough for walking and sightseeing. July and August are hot, with inland temperatures well into the high thirties, and they suit the beach and the mountains better than the archaeological sites. Winter is mild on the coast and cold and sometimes snowy in the mountains, and it is the quiet season for the best food. Our weather by month guide goes through the year.
Where Should You Stay?
Paphos suits ancient sites, Limassol suits restaurants and a central position, Larnaca is the easy base near the airport, and Ayia Napa and Protaras are best for beaches. Our full guide to where to stay in Cyprus compares the regions, and the city guides above each have their own hotel section.
Hotels across Cyprus
How Do You Get Around and Plan It?
A week covers the coast and some of the interior. Our seven day Cyprus itinerary puts it into a route.
Hire a car, because almost nothing on this page is reachable without one. Book early for summer and compare suppliers on DiscoverCars. Larnaca airport is 40 to 60 minutes from Nicosia and Limassol, and Paphos airport is 15 to 20 minutes from Paphos. The official regulated taxi tariff from Larnaca Airport is 54.52 euro by day and 63.86 euro at night to Limassol centre, 42.26 euro and 49.58 euro to Nissi in Ayia Napa, and 93.94 euro and 109.76 euro to Paphos Airport. There is no official figure for Nicosia, so agree the price before you set off. Our guide to getting around Cyprus covers driving here, so keep left and expect an unhurried pace on the road. If money is a factor, our guide to Cyprus on a budget shows where the savings are.
Want the best rental rates? Book early with DiscoverCars and compare Localrent before you pay.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is Cyprus Best Known For?
Beaches and archaeology publicly. The food and mountain villages are what people remember.
How Many Days Do You Need?
A week covers the main sights. Ten days lets you include the Troodos and the Akamas properly.
What Is the One Thing Not to Miss?
A long lunch in a Troodos village. It is the thing visitors most often skip and most often mention afterwards.
Is There Anything to Do in Winter?
Plenty, from walking and archaeology to flamingos, snow in the mountains and the best food season.
Do You Need a Car in Cyprus?
For anything beyond a single resort, yes. Public transport is limited outside the towns, and the mountain villages are not reachable without a car or a tour.
How Much Is a Taxi From Larnaca Airport?
The official tariff is 54.52 euro by day to Limassol centre, 42.26 euro to Ayia Napa Nissi and 93.94 euro to Paphos Airport. Larnaca airport is about 45 to 60 minutes from Limassol and 40 to 50 minutes from Nicosia.
Where Can You Book Tours and Tickets in Cyprus?
In advance online. Boat trips, day tours and attraction tickets are listed on booking sites, and booking ahead is wise in July and August.
Where Is the Best Place to Eat in Cyprus?
It depends on the city, and our ranked guide to the best restaurants in Cyprus covers Limassol, Nicosia, Paphos and the mountains.
What Is the Best Area to Stay for Sightseeing?
Paphos suits ancient sites and Limassol suits restaurants and a central position. Larnaca is the easy base near the airport, and Ayia Napa and Protaras are best for beaches.
Is Cyprus Good for Families?
Very. Shallow beaches, child friendly resorts and a long season make it one of the easier family destinations in the Mediterranean.
How Much Do the Main Sights Cost?
As of 2026 the Kato Paphos Archaeological Park is €4.50, the Tombs of the Kings an additional €2.50, Choirokoitia €2.50 and the Kykkos museum €5. Fees can change, so check before you go.
Which Days Are Sights Closed?
The Troodos painted churches, Fikardou and Hamam Omerye are closed on Mondays. The main state run sites also close on Christmas Day, New Year’s Day and Greek Orthodox Easter Sunday.
What Are the Opening Hours of the Paphos Archaeological Park?
Daily from 8:30 to 19:30 between 16 April and 15 September, and from 8:30 to 17:00 for the rest of the year. Hours can change without notice.
How Hard Is the Aphrodite Trail?
It is a loop of about 7.7km taking around three hours, with a climb of nearly 400m. It is harder than most Cyprus walks, so start early and carry plenty of water.
Can You Dive the Zenobia Wreck?
Yes, if you are qualified to Advanced Open Water level. The wreck lies on its side at 42m, with its shallowest point at 18m, and it is reached by boat from Larnaca.
Final Thoughts
Cyprus rewards moving around. The beaches are good, and the beaches are not the point. An hour inland there are mountains, villages, wine and food that most people staying on the coast never find.