Kyrenia Castle & Shipwreck Museum
Girne Kalesi
A seaside castle with Byzantine origins and Venetian fortifications. Its museum displays the Kyrenia Shipwreck, an ancient vessel from about 300 BC and one of the world’s oldest merchant ships.
Kyrenia Castle guards the eastern side of the old harbour. It was built by the Byzantines in the 7th century and later remodelled by the Lusignan dynasty and the Venetians, which gave it the thick bastion walls seen today. The castle’s shipwreck museum is its main highlight. It displays an ancient Greek merchant ship discovered in nearby waters in 1965, which sank around the end of the 4th century BC. The ship’s hull planks, two-handled amphorae and almonds have all survived. The castle also contains a Byzantine chapel and displays of a medieval dungeon, and you can climb the walls to look out over the harbour. An admission fee applies; check the current price on site. In summer, the castle stays open until evening.
Opening hours
About 9:00–19:00 (closes earlier in winter)
Nearby sights
- Kyrenia Harbour
- Archangel Michael Icon Museum
- Bellapais Abbey
- St. Hilarion Castle
- Hazreti Ömer Tomb
- Karmi (Karaman) Village
- Escape Beach
- Buffavento Castle