Larnaca & Ayia Napa

The gateway to Cyprus's southeast coast, with pink flamingos on the Salt Lake, while Ayia Napa's Nissi Beach and the sea cliffs of Cape Greco make up the island's most beautiful coastline.

The Larnaca & Ayia Napa destination covers the southeast coast of Cyprus, from the city of Larnaca in the west to Ayia Napa, Protaras and Cape Greco in the east, about 40 km apart. Larnaca is Cyprus's main air hub; its old town centres on the Church of Saint Lazarus, the palm-lined Finikoudes promenade and the medieval fort. In winter flocks of flamingos gather on the Salt Lake, and the Zenobia wreck offshore is a world-class dive site; within 40 km to the west are the Neolithic site of Choirokoitia, the lace village of Lefkara and a hilltop monastery. Ayia Napa is the island's resort with the clearest water, with white-sand shallows at Nissi Beach and Fig Tree Bay; Cape Greco National Forest Park has sea cliffs and rock arches, and the bar street buzzes on summer nights. From here you can also cross to the north to visit the old town of Famagusta and Varosha. Climate: May–Oct is beach season, with Jul–Aug often above 35°C; Nov–Mar is mild and rainy, good for flamingos and cultural sightseeing. Getting there: Larnaca Airport is about 15 minutes from the city, and intercity buses connect Ayia Napa, Nicosia and Limassol; the coastal sights are spread out, so renting a car is recommended (driving is on the left). Allow 3–5 days: 1–2 in Larnaca and 2–3 in Ayia Napa. Note: dress modestly in churches; crossing to the north requires your passport and separate rental-car insurance; the cliffs at Cape Greco have no railings, so assess the risks yourself before cliff-jumping.

Top sights

• Church of Saint Lazarus – A ninth-century Byzantine stone church built over the traditional tomb of Lazarus. Its gilded iconostasis is a landmark of Larnaca.
• Hala Sultan Tekke – An Ottoman mosque on the west shore of the salt lake, surrounded by palm trees. It honours Umm Haram, the foster mother of the Prophet Muha…
• Zenobia Wreck – A Swedish roll-on/roll-off ferry that sank in 1980, 172 metres long and counted among the world's top ten wreck dives.
• Nissi Beach – Ayia Napa's most famous white-sand beach, with emerald-green water and a shallow sandbar you can wade across to a small island.
• Cape Greco National Forest Park – A limestone headland at the southeastern tip of Cyprus, with sea caves, natural arches and clear water, the island's most beautiful coastli…
• Fig Tree Bay – Protaras' best-known beach, with shallow, fine sand, crystal-clear water and a small island you can swim out to.
• Finikoudes Promenade – A palm-lined seafront promenade in Larnaca, with a sandy beach on one side and cafés and restaurants on the other.
• Larnaca Medieval Castle – A small castle at the southern end of the seafront guarding the harbour, rebuilt in the Ottoman period and now a medieval museum.
• Larnaca Salt Lake – A seasonal salt lake beside the airport, where thousands of flamingos spend the winter and a footpath runs around the shore.
• Kamares Aqueduct – A stone arched aqueduct built in 1747 by an Ottoman governor, with dozens of arches stretching across the western edge of town.
• Ancient Kition – The excavated site of ancient Kition, the predecessor of Larnaca, with Bronze Age temples and Phoenician cyclopean walls.
• Pierides Museum – Cyprus's oldest private museum, displaying artefacts from the island's Neolithic to medieval periods in chronological order.
• Mackenzie Beach – A popular beach beside the airport runway, lined with bars and restaurants, and a favourite with young people in Larnaca.
• Panagia Angeloktisti – An 11th-century Byzantine church in the village of Kiti, whose apse holds a rare 6th-century mosaic of the Virgin and Child.
• Choirokoitia – A Neolithic village site around 9,000 years old, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with reconstructed round houses at the entrance.
• Pano Lefkara – A stone village at the foot of the Troodos Mountains, home to the handmade lace known as Lefkara lace, a UNESCO intangible heritage item, s…
• Stavrovouni Monastery – A monastery perched on a hilltop 688 metres up, said to have been founded by Saint Helena and home to a fragment of the True Cross.
• Camel Park Mazotos – A family farm park in the southwest of Larnaca, where you can ride camels, feed animals, and enjoy a pool and restaurant.
• Ayia Napa Sea Caves – A string of sea caves and rock arches along the east coast of Ayia Napa, visible from boat trips or from clifftop paths.
• Ayia Napa Monastery – A 16th-century monastery from the Venetian period, surrounded by nightclubs yet still peaceful, and the origin of the town's name.
• Ayia Napa Harbour – A fishing harbour at the southern end of Ayia Napa town, lined with seafood restaurants, where boat trips and pirate ships depart.
• Ayia Napa Sculpture Park – An open-air sculpture park on a clifftop by the sea, with about 200 contemporary sculptures facing the water, open free all day.
• Konnos Bay – A small bay between Cape Greco and Protaras, surrounded by pine trees with very clear water, ideal for snorkelling.
• Profitis Elias Church, Protaras – A small white church on a rocky hilltop in Protaras, where the summit offers views over the coast and Fig Tree Bay.
• Thalassa Municipal Museum of the Sea – A sea-themed museum in Ayia Napa whose highlight is a reconstructed 4th-century BC Kyrenia ship.
• Makronissos Beach & Tombs – A string of small sandy coves on the western edge of Ayia Napa, next to a rocky slope with rock-cut tombs from the Hellenistic to Roman per…
• WaterWorld Waterpark Ayia Napa – A large water park themed on ancient Greek myths, with a wide range of slides, and one of Cyprus's most popular parks.
• Potamos Liopetri – A hidden fishing harbour at a river mouth, where small fishing boats are moored among the reeds and the fish tavernas serve fresh seafood.
• Famagusta Old Town – A walled old town on the east coast of northern Cyprus, reached across the dividing line, with Venetian walls, Othello's Castle and a mosqu…
• Varosha – A seaside 'ghost town' south of Famagusta, closed since 1974, with parts of its streets reopened to visitors on foot or by bike from 2020.

Where to eat

• Militzis Tavern – A traditional tavern on Larnaca's seafront, run for decades, known for its clay-oven lamb kleftiko and ofto.
• Zephyros Seafood Restaurant – An old-school fish taverna beside the fishing harbor and Mackenzie Beach, known for generous fish meze and popular sea-…
• Vassos Psarolimano Seafood Taverna – A long-established fish taverna by the Ayia Napa harbor, founded in 1962 by a fisherman, where diners can choose the da…
• 1900 Art Café – An art-filled tavern in a century-old house in the old town, with a bar downstairs and a restaurant upstairs, serving h…
• Stamna Taverna – A family taverna in Ayia Napa's oldest house, with a generous spread of more than 20 meze dishes at fair prices.
• Hungry Horse Taverna – An affordable family taverna behind the main street that cooks a few home-style stews fresh each morning until they sel…

Itineraries

• Classic Cyprus Loop: West to East – Enter via Paphos and exit via Larnaca, connecting mosaic ruins, the Blue Lagoon, Troodos mountain villages, and Nicosia.
• Southern Cyprus Panoramic Slow Loop – From Akamas in the west to Cape Greco in the east, with two nights in the mountains and a relaxed stay in Nicosia.
• Northern Cyprus Coast & Karpas Peninsula – Explore the north side of the Green Line, visiting Kyrenia's ancient harbor, mountaintop castles, and the remote coast…