A winter break in Cyprus

It’s 31st December 2021. I’m boarding a plane to Cyprus because I want to fly somewhere warm and sunny. Cyprus is to become the 72th country I will have visited. As so at least for a few hours I’m going to be in what is geographically Asia, otherwise 2021 was the first year since 2012 I only travelled in Europe.

Let’s look at some practical information such as transportation and accommodation first.

Transportation to Cyprus:

There are a lot of countries to fly to Cyprus from. I flew from Vienna, Austria because I was spending Christmas holiday in Slovakia.

Vienna – Paphos 36 EUR

Accommodation in Cyprus:

Accommodation isn’t very cheap for a single budget traveller. A cheap private room costs 25 euros per night. If there’s two of you it’s more economical.

I stayed in Paphos, Larnaca and Ayia Napa.

Paphos (a room booked through airbnb) 51 EUR /2 nights
Paphos (a private room and a dorm room) 25+16 EUR/2 nights
Larnaca (a room booked through booking) 73 EUR/3 nights
Ayia Napa (a room booked through booking) 51 EUR/2 nights
Total: 216 EUR

Paphos – a good place to stay if you want to visit the Akamas National Park
Larnaca – a good place to stay if you want to go to Nicosia, the capital city
Ayia Napa – a good place to stay if you would like to explore the beautiful coastline of Cyprus including the Cape Greco and chill on some of the island’s most beautiful beaches such as Nissi Beach, Konnos beach and Fig Tree beach.

Transportation in Cyprus:

City bus fare: 1,50
Paphos – Paphos airport
Paphos – Polis
Ayia Napa – Protaras

Interecity bus fares start at 4 euros
Paphos – Limassol 4 euros
Limassol – Larnaca 4 euros
Larnaca – Ayia Napa 4 euros
Ayia Napa – Nicosia 5 euros
Nicosia – Paphos 7 euros

More information on: Intercity buses

And what did I do and like in Cyprus?

On the third day I went hiking. I took a morning bus to Polis, a town in the north of Cyprus. I changed to another bus bound for the Baths of Aphrodite where I started the hike.

It was a short hike of 18 km to the Blue Lagoon and further to the Cape Akamas and back, with beautiful bays such as the Amphitheatre and Fontana Amorosa along the way.

As I missed a bus going back I decided to try hitching a ride to Polis and it worked out. And when the lady in the car said she thought I was a student, it made my day. It always does!

What I liked best about my trip was the sun and the sea. I love being in a warm place by the sea. And since I also had to work while being in Cyprus, on some days I only took short walks along the coast and chilled in cafés.

I’ve never been able to do work and travel the proper way. Like most young people do. It was too late when I decided to do it. And so I do work and travel the Alesh way. Age isn’t a limit!

A café at a beach is the best office in the world. There’s the sun, there’s the sea and there’s coffee. I wish I could live like that all winter. And I might!

While staying in Ayia Napa I went on another hike of 18 km along the coast of Cyprus. It was asolutely amazing! First I hiked to the Cape Greko, not the very tip, but to some viewpoints on a hill. I went on hiking to the Konnos beach where I had a cup of coffee after which I hiked to the Fig Tree Bay which was my favourite beach on the island.

The island certainly looks different in summer when Cyprus is packed with people on package holidays. Winter, on the flipside, is a good time to go to Cyprus to avoid the crowds. But the island is deserted and has this apocalyptic vibe. Often it was just me walking along the streets in some towns during the day. But I didn’t mind.

On the last day I went to Nicosia, the capital city of Cyprus. I was interested in seeing what the only divided capital city in the world looks like. The southern part of the city is in the Greek part of the island, the northern part of the city is in the Turkish part (the unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus). In between there’s the United Nations Buffer Zone, locally knowns as the Gree Line. It’s virtually no man’s land as the buildings are neglected and deserted.

Where am I going to go next? 4 February – off to Israel (provided that everything goes well). Stay tuned!