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The Island
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Cyprus is a
beautiful, magical and romantic island with a wonderful warm and
healthy climate. Great beaches ~ superb scenery ~ ancient history.
Fantastic choice of restaurants, bars and entertainment. The Cypriot
people are friendly, kind and lovable.
This
third largest island in the Mediterranean has a
classical history plus a climate that is the envy of the Mediterranean , with over 300 days of sunshine
a year making it a perfect location for lying on the clean, sandy
beaches or taking a dip in the clear blue sea.
Not only is it the warmth of the climate that attracts people, but
also the warmth of the locals. The Cypriots are renowned for
their friendly welcome and genuine hospitality. The island is
dominated the pine-covered Troodos mountains filled with tiny
villages, impressive Byzantine churches and an abundance of
historical sites. In contrast to the unspoilt landscape of the
mountains, in the coastal resorts and the nightlife is surprisingly
cosmopolitan.
Tracing its history back over 9000 years, has seen many civilizations
come and go. Also being the chosen island by the Greek mythical
Gods it is not surprising that Cyprus is full of
historical sites and legendary stories, to add yet another reason to
visit.
All
this combined with the high standard of service that Cyprus
offers ensures that visitors return to this beautiful island time and
time again.
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You
can always visit the Tourist Information Offices in Paphos for ideas
however here is a list to get you started. I haven't listed any of the
many ancient sites dotted around Paphos, there are just too many but I
would recommend a trip to the covered Mosaics towards the Paphos light
house.
Beaches
I'm
not that impressed with most of the beaches in Paphos. Coral Bay a few miles up the coast is
far nicer; it has a gently sloping protected sandy beach. If you
follow the road through Kissogerna to Coral Bay
it takes about 10 minutes. If you have 4WD and you like an empty beach
then why not take a trip up to Lara Bay
?
Eating
Out
This
unfortunately is one of my favourite activities. There are loads of
great restaurants in Kato Paphos - the tourist zone and I've included
several in the guest book at the villa.
Walking
The
countryside really looks best between March and early May when the place
is still green and all the flowers are out. If you take a drive into
the foot hills north of Paphos, it can feel more alpine than med early
in the year! By June however there will only be shades of yellow. If
you fancy going on an organized tour in the Paphos area I can
thoroughly recommend Exalt Excursions. http://www.windowoncyprus.com/adventur.htm
Bird
Watching
Paphos
is a great place for bird watching. We've seen hoopoes on the farmland
by the villa; nearby we've seen whole flocks of bee eaters at the right
time of year. Rollers are fairly common too.
If you are lucky you can see flamingos on the mud flats down at
Limassol. I must admit that the only time I saw them it took me 10
minutes to realize that the pink streak 2 km away in the heat haze was
moving. It then took a further 15 minutes of walking to get close
enough to see them clearly with binoculars! I found these web sites
which might be interesting to the serious bird watcher.
http://www.fatbirder.com/links_geo/europe/cyprus.html
http://www.birdlifecyprus.org/
http://www.camacdonald.com/birding/eucyprus.htm
When you are in Paphos you can call the pre-recorded Cyprus
Ornithological Birdline on 06 270 447 to find out the latest sightings.
Diving
There
are several dive schools around Paphos, but perhaps the oldest
(but alas not cheapest) is Cydive. They have a range of easy dive
sites with a mixture of modern and ancient wrecks, many less than
25 meters.
http://www.cydive.com/
Fishing
Fresh
water fishing is possible in most of the many reservoirs.
Golf
Paphos
is the new jewel in the crown for golfers seeking golf breaks in the
warmth of the eastern Mediterranean .
It offers golfers challenging world class championship courses, warm
hospitality and almost year round sunshine. There are three 18 hole
golf courses to choose from. Tsada Golf Club which is just 20 minutes
from Paphos town, 550 meters above sea level to ensure cool breezes
during the summer months. It plays to a par 72 and measures 6,060
meters. The Secret Valley Golf Club is 18 kilometres east of Paphos
lying within a scenic valley and offers panoramic views. It plays to a
par 72 and measures 6,120 meters (green fees £24-30).
The
Aphrodite Hills Golf Complex is a unique up-market experience. This
Award Winning Golf course is located near to the birthplace of
Aphrodite, only 2 mins from the main Limassol-Paphos highway. The
course is in a fantastic setting on 2 plateaux, 300m metres high. It
plays to a Par 71 and measures 6,665 metres.
Go-Karting
I've
seen signs to a couple of go-karting places in Paphos and Limassol but
I've not checked them out.
Skiing
Mount Troodos and Olympus occasionally receive very
heavy snow falls, usually in January or February and its possible to
hire ski equipment but the runs are not very extensive compared to the Alps !
Swimming
There
is a new water park in Paphos. Two friends told me that they had to
take their kids more than once because they liked it so much. It cost
£13 CY per adult and £7 CY for under 12's when I went in July 2003. I'm
told that the water park in Limassol is better but obviously much
further.
There is also the Andonis Baths, 2 miles up the road the hillside
village in Tala. Its really just a stream with a couple of small rock
ponds, however its great place to cool off in summer. It used to be
free but now it costs a couple of pounds to visit. If you are fit
enough its a 25 minute walk from the villa. Tala is a very desirable
residential area which is surrounded by orange groves. It has a
charming 'square' which has a selection of bars and tavernas. Due to
its elevated position it has cooler, less humid air during the hot
summer months. There are spectacular views of the coastline of Paphos.
Horse
Riding
There
are several places to go horse riding. In the summer months they start
early in the morning. The nearest that I know of is about 5 minutes
drive away, there are signs to it as you drive through Emba. It cost CY
£15 for a 1 hour ride, £25 for 2 hours in summer 2003.
Shopping
Local
Shopping is part and parcel of any holiday and the question is of what
to take home. Leather is very good value. The shoe shops stock
up-to-date styles at very reasonable prices. Handbags, suitcases and
jackets are a good bargain. Shoes and jackets, as well as men's suits
and shirts, can be made-to-measure within a week or so. Handicrafts
abound on every shopping street. A good spot to view them is the Cyprus
Handicraft Centre in Lefkosia, with retail shops in every town. Small
items of the distinctive, traditional pottery make good gifts and as
does Cyprus
copperware and filigree silver. Always popular is the beautiful
'Lefkaritika' or ' Lefkara Lace'. Folkweave, needle and crochet work,
woodwork and basketwork are a few more of the things visitors like to
take home with them, not to mention Cyprus
brandy which can be bought by the demijohn, Commandaria and even
Halloumi - the Cyprus
cheese.
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