Some tourists come to Paphos and, happily, do little more than loiter by the pool, topping up their tan and only occasionally moving in search of a cocktail. If you’d prefer to do more, however, then you’re in luck. The immediate area is a treasure trove of ancient sites, including elaborate tombs and cave-cut monasteries, while legends Aphrodite and Adonis abound. Climb into the Troodos Mountains to make halloumi, taste wines and buy beautiful embroidery; or head north to encounter turtles, shipwrecks and the Blue Lagoon. The town itself has plenty of tempting spas and a range of watersports, while families are handily close to beaches or a rangy waterpark, and winter visitors can even do a spot of skiing.
Main photo: the Blue Lagoon (Alamy)
1. Admire Kato Pafos Archaeological Park
Next to Paphos’s buzzy harbour is something quite different: a sprawling, sun-scorched tract overflowing with ancient remains. Also known as the Paphos Archaeological Park, this was once the ancient city of Nea Pafos (New Paphos), built here in the 4th century BC. The former capital of Cyprus, its headline acts are the remains of four elaborate Roman villas — the houses of Dionysos, Theseus, Aion and Orpheus — which contain intricate mosaic floors depicting scenes from Greek mythology. The semi-circular Odeon theatre also merits inspection, while sea views and a lighthouse add additional visual oomph.
2. Enter the Tombs of the Kings
Part of the same Unesco-listed location (but entered separately, at a small additional cost) is Tafoi ton Vasileon: a necropolis better known as the Tombs of the Kings. Its name is misleading, as no kings were buried here; rather, it was likely to have been local nobles and high-ranking officials. Splendidly cut into the Mediterranean-facing rock from the 4th century BC to 300 AD, each cool, subterranean chamber is impressive, especially those featuring frescoed walls or Doric columns. Some simply mimic the occupant’s prior living quarters.
3. Drive to Kouklia
This village is the last component of Paphos’s three-part entry as a Unesco world heritage site, serving as the capital of ancient Palaepaphos (Old Paphos) until King Nicocles moved operations to Nea Pafos, ten miles west, in the third century AD. Kouklia remained a key location due to its Sanctuary of Aphrodite, an open-air temple around which ancient Cyprus’s worship of the Greek love and fertility goddess revolved. That site’s limited remains can today be toured, with some pieces such as a stone said to depict Aphrodite displayed in the adjacent Museum of Kouklia. Audio guides are available online.
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4. Visit Aphrodite’s Rock
Considered the birthplace of Aphrodite, this nearby sea stack (aka Petra tou Romiou) is one of several abutting the old coastal road to Limassol. Amusingly, there’s no consensus on which specific rock is the actual one: perhaps it’s the large one dividing the pretty pebbly shore and a smaller, darker one slightly out to sea. The slab is said to have been part of Uranus’s testicles, thrown there after he was mutilated by his son, Cronus, while laps of it are said to yield pregnancy, eternal youth or eternal love. Get there by taxi, bus or on a bouncy, guided ATV tour.
5. Pause at St Paul’s Column
After daring to preach Christianity on Cyprus in 45 AD, the apostle was allegedly tied to this unassuming white marble pillar before receiving a punishment of 39 lashes. Close to Kato Pafos Archaeological Park, the column is part of a ruined site where mighty, seven-aisled Panagia Chrysopolitissa Basilica once reigned as Cyprus’s largest church. Steps away is its modern successor, the striking Greek Orthodox place of worship Agia Kyriaki Chrysopolitissa — complete with more handsome mosaics and often used for weddings.
6. Explore the Akamas Peninsula
Roughly 15 miles north of Paphos, paved roads give way to rutted tracks and wilder environs. This is the start of the wild Akamas Peninsula, which concludes in a protected, forested headland and can only be toured in 4x4s. As well as swimming stops on wild beaches, all-day tours will visit the ultra-narrow Avakas Gorge, the Baths of Aphrodite — a slightly feeble grotto where the goddess is said to have met lover Adonis — and Lara Bay, whose sensational, undeveloped beach is a vital breeding station for green and loggerhead turtles.
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7. Wallow in the Adonis Baths
Adonis and Aphrodite clearly liked wild swimming; it was in this lovely, leafy pool — close to Paphos and formed over millennia by the wispy waterfall that enters one side — where they would regularly meet, according to myth. Lore also says that they had children here and that Adonis died in his lover’s arms having been stabbed by a man disguised as a wild boar. Beside statues of them both, a dubious sign recommends hirtherto-infertile women to touch Adonis’s “appendage” in order to soon conceive.
8. Travel around the Troodos Mountains
Looming above Paphos, the inland Troodos Mountains make for a spectacular day out. This tour passes through a few traditional, sleepy villages before crossing pine-forested peaks to the Kykkos Monastery: a Byzantine construction whose interior dazzles with gold icons and more fabulous frescoes. After a picnic lunch, you’ll return via the small, wine-making town of Omodos. Limited free tastings are usually available, or there’s another, newer monastery to gasp at.
9. Spend a day wine-tasting
Cypriot tipples have little global profile, yet some excellent blends are produced using the local xynisteri and mavro grapes in league with global mainstays such as chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon and shiraz. The island is also responsible for commandaria, a moreish, amber-hued dessert wine. Full-day tours include tours and tastings of three distinct vineyards, plus lunch and stops at a monastery and a viewpoint, with the option of private versions tailored to your palate.
10. Make and taste halloumi
Given Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status to ensure it can only be made here using traditional techniques, halloumi is arguably Cyprus’s most successful export. On a day tour from Paphos, travel into the Troodos Mountains and learn how to make the cheese (and ricotta-like anari, which is commonly produced simultaneously) with a farmer. A brunch starring grilled slices of you-know-what follows — expect it to be heaps better than anything sold in supermarkets back home — before some monastery-set wine-tasting and time in the coastal village of Geroskipou, from where a variety of Turkish Delight hails.
11. Eat at Oniro
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If you like a distinctive view with your lunch or dinner, you’ll love Oniro by the Sea. There are actually two wonderful backdrops here: in one direction are several caves cut into sugar-white limestone cliffs while out to sea is the listing Edro III, a Sierra Leone-registered cargo ship that wrecked on rocks in 2011. Sunset, which falls behind the latter’s silhouette, is especially memorable. Matching those vistas, an inventive menu spans halloumi-laden pizzas, mango cheesecakes and porchetta bao buns.
12. Splash about in a waterpark
Just outside Paphos, the outdoor Aphrodite Waterpark is perfect for a family outing. There are a variety of twisting, plunging high-speed chutes for thrill-seekers — one using giant dinghies so that everyone can ride together — as well as a wave pool, bouncy balloons and the extremely gentle lazy river. A water play area is also included, and the site features a food court so you can spend all day there. Book an advance ticket and you can skip any queues.
13. Bathe in the Blue Lagoon
This gorgeous Akamas Peninsula bay is known for its warm, transparent water and sandy bottom — making it ideal for swimming or snorkelling. The easiest means of access is on a boat trip from the town of Latchi, but doing this tends to mean you’ll encounter crowds in summer. Though alcoholic drinks are usually included, you’ll only get to stay for a few hours. Other options for day trips involve driving in by 4×4 to access one of the two slender beaches, or hiring a boat yourself and arriving early to beat the masses. The latter is best.
14. Cross Nicosia’s dividing line
In Cyprus’s biggest city Nicosia, a dividing Green Line separates out the de facto Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, a state recognised only by Turkey. You can criss-cross this peculiar, UN-overseen buffer zone, or inspect the capital’s large, lovely Büyük Han caravanserai (roadside inn), during an island-wide taxi tour. This could also stop at the beach resort of Larnaca, pause to taste wines in Troodos Mountains and visit Aphrodite’s Rock.
15. Buy lace in Lefkara
Ninety minutes by car from Paphos, the winsome mountain village of Lefkara has not one but two niches to accompany a spectacular location. In a world where the word “artisan” is bandied about far too liberally, it’s appropriate here. First, Lefkara is a universally agreed home to the island’s most beautiful silverwork, from filigree to still-used Byzantine designs. You’ll also find some of Cyprus’s hand-worked lace embroidery — a kind called lefkaritika that features the Uneso world heritage list and is usually made by groups of women sitting and working alfresco.
16. Ski at the Troodos Ski Resort
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On the flanks of Mount Olympus, the island’s highest peak at almost 2,000 metres, sits the Cyprus Ski Federation & Club. Initially operated by the British Army, who had built it after the Second World War, the resort tends to be hit-and-miss as snow rarely lasts too long. When there is powder, however, you’ll find some decent runs (mostly easy or intermediate) through tree-dotted pistes. A single chairlift and three other lifts do the hard work. The journey from Paphos takes about 75 minutes.
17. Try out parasailing
Everything from stand-up paddleboarding to Seabobs — motorised scooters with which you can dive underwater or whizz along the surface — is available from a kiosk beside Paphos Harbour. The most popular activity is parasailing, which is done out beyond the sea wall. That could be because it provides thrills but zero effort: you sit back and, courtesy of a boat ahead and a balloon behind, are lifted up five to ten metres in the air. Single, double or triple rides are available.
18. Bask on a beach
The 600-metre Coral Bay is the most famous shore near Paphos. But there’s smoother sand and (slightly) thinner crowds at the similarly named next cove north, Corallia Beach. Below a hotel of the same name but wholly public (despite the website’s claim, beaches in Cyprus cannot be private), it has lots of sunbeds for low-cost rental, and there’s an air-conditioned bar at one end. A reef splits the shore into three parts, one of which enables little ones to go rockpooling and clear and gentle water gradually shelves to make things safe for families.
19. Amble around Paphos Harbour
There’s no more pleasant stroll in Paphos than following the boardwalk all the way around its harbour. Start at the upmarket Almyra and Annabelle hotels, and curve past a series of waterfront bars all the way to enchanting Paphos Castle, which was first erected by the Byzantines to guard their port and later amended by the Venetians. Today, it holds occasional art exhibitions and some historical instruction, although most visitors simply pay a paltry entry free, climb to the battlements and enjoy the sweeping views.
20. Get a waterfront massage
Check in to a top-notch wellness haven at five-star Annabelle’s Ouranos Wellbeing Spa for the ultimate pampering session. A heated indoor pool looks through large glass windows over harbour and bay, while four treatment rooms (one for couples) offers massages, mani-pedis, facials, waxing, collagen treatments and more using such brands as Ilapothecary or OSEA. There’s also a sauna and steam room and the calm vibe creates a spacious, relaxing sanctuary.
21. Admire Agios Neophytos Monastery
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You’ll have grasped by now that the Paphos area isn’t short of historic sites, and especially not monasteries. Among the latter, Agios Neophytos is most impactful. It was founded by a 12th-century monk called Neophytos, who fled into the Troodos foothills above Paphos after being punished by asceticism. He impressively excavated a natural cave to form a living cell, a small chapel and a tomb. Complete with frescoes painted by subsequent inhabitants, the monastery is still active; a basilica-style church, added outside four centuries later, houses its simple museum.
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