Sure, Paphos has a number of Unesco World Heritage Sites, the Troodos Mountains only an hour away, excellent hotels, spas and fine restaurants. But there’s no disguising the fact that Paphos’ star attraction is its 50km (31 miles) of coast.
The region’s characteristic golden sands line warm, clean and crystal-clear waters along the coast of Cyprus that are perfect for swimming and snorkelling. If you’re after more than just sun-lounging, pretty much every conceivable watersport activity in existence is on offer here, including pedalos, windsurfing, parasailing, jet skiing and waterskiing.
There are a staggering 27 beaches open to the public in Paphos. Twelve of them have achieved Blue Flag status for water quality and safety. Here’s our pick of the best.
Coral Bay
By far Paphos’ most popular, and almost certainly its best, the easily accessible horseshoe-shaped bay has excellent facilities, sun bed and umbrella hire and lifeguards making it ideal for families. Waterskiing, windsurfing and other water sports are available year round in its Blue Flag waters.
Pissouri Beach
This Blue-Flag beach is split in two – a sandy end popular with families and a pebbly end which is used as a base for water sports including waterskiing, windsurfing and paragliding. Pissouri has excellent facilities including changing rooms and toilets, and is backed by several bars, tavernas and excellent restaurants.
Faros Beach
Named after the lighthouse that overlooks it, this Blue-Flag beach stays less crowded largely because of the patchy shingle that is mixed with its sand. An antidote to the hustle and bustle of Paphos’ busier beaches, Faros is a quiet local beach with a bar, sun loungers, toilets, changing rooms and volleyball.
Lara Bay
Around 16km (10 miles) north of Paphos is the spectacular and relatively untouched Lara Bay, known also as Turtle Beach for the Green and Loggerhead turtle conservation project taking place here. Well off the beaten track, the unpaved roads leading to it are best accessed by jeep.
Written by insider city guide series Hg2 | A Hedonist’s guide to…
(Image: somiz)
