DK Travel : Cyprus

Cyprus packs a remarkable array of sights and attractions into such a small space: museums and archaeological sites that span more than five millennia of history, throbbing beach resorts, medieval fortresses, age-old temples standing on empty hillsides, cool mountain forests and pretty valleys chequered with vineyards, grain fields and olive groves all complete the landscape. On an island where one can swim and ski all in the same day, this is truly a holiday paradise with something for everyone.

Lara Bay

This half-moon stretch to the north of Cape Lara is backed by high dunes and has fine white sand which attracts rare green and loggerhead turtles who lay their eggs here each summer (see Lara Bay).
Larnaka Archaeological Museum

Roman glassware, terracotta figurines from ancient sites in the district and painted earthenware, ranging from Neolithic to Roman times, are among the highlights here (see Larnaka Archaeological Museum).
Larnaka Archaeological Museum

Carved limestone column drums and capitals from ancient sites stand in the garden of the Archaeological Museum. Inside is one of the best introductions to the southeast’s fascinating archaeological sites, with its displays of Stone Age, Bronze Age and Roman discoveries brought here from Chirokitia, Kalavassos and many other local excavations (see Larnaka Archaeological Museum).
Larnaka Fort and District Medieval Museum

Huge rusting cannons stand guard over the waterfront from the battlements of Larnaka’s medieval fort, from which there are good views of the bay. Inside, the District Medieval Museum’s collection occupies a gallery on the first floor, with ferocious swords and daggers, medieval armour and flintlock muskets outshining an assortment of 12th- to 18th-century pottery and displays of Byzantine, Lusignan and Ottoman odds and ends. Occasionally in summer open-air theatrical performances are staged here.
Larnaka International Festival of Music, Theatre and Dance

Larnaka takes its place in the limelight when musicians, dancers and actors – many of them from Greece, Balkan and eastern European countries and the former Soviet Union – make the pilgrimage to what has become one of the island’s leading cultural events.
Larnaka Municipal Art Gallery

Five warehouses have been restored to host exhibitions by Cypriot and foreign artists.
Latsi

This tiny fishing haven served as the seaport of nearby Polis in bygone days, but is beginning to be discovered by holidaymakers, with a scattering of small hotels and tavernas on the harbour and along the sand.
Latsia

Plunging through rugged scenery, the Kakaristra Gorge at Latsia is this hillside village’s most important landmark. It can be explored alone, or with a local guide. Incongruously but entertainingly, the nearby Carlsberg Brewery (see Carslberg), just outside the village, is open for visits and houses the Photos Photiades Foundation’s natural history museum, an exotic glory-hole of stuffed, fossilized and pickled snakes, birds, mammals and marine creatures.
Lazarus Byzantine Museum, Larnaka

Inside the Church of St Lazarus is an oddly attractive exhibition of 18th- and 19th-century ecclesiastical silver, carved wooden doors and ships’ figureheads.
Le Café

Young, designer-clad Nicosians favour this colourful café. The noise of full-volume conversation – face to face or by mobile phone, sometimes simultaneously – drowns out the traffic.

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