From Ayia Napa to Cape Greco… or is it Mars?

Ever since coming to Cyprus I have realised that I absolutely adore going on long walks that would ordinarily be punishing for any ordinary human being. After finding a friend who is equally as enthusiastic, we’ve embarked on a few lengthy hikes together, and one of our more recently ones was when we decided to walk from Ayia Napa, Cyprus’ tourist paradise that’s dead past August, to Cape Greco, the peninsula to the west of the city. There is a convenient path made of stone that starts at the end of Glyki Nero Beach that starts winding its way towards the cape, and this is the one that we took. Don’t worry if you find you need to go for a tinkle along the way – just a bit along the path are some public toilets and changing rooms for a smaller beach nearby. This was incredibly relieving for me as even though I’d gone in the Costa we’d visited before we departed, it wasn’t enough to process my gigantic fruit cooler. Whoops.

This path is incredibly scenic, especially on sunny clear days, which is luckily the majority of Cyprus’ weather. Why else would you be here? Small, dainty flowers sway in the wind in shades of cream and lavender, and the sound of the sea right beside you is incredibly peaceful. After making half the trek you’ll be faced with the beautiful sea caves, a glorious natural rock formation with crystal blue waters, and the hill in the distance housing the monument of peace looms over you as you draw ever closer. It’s a nice, calming walk that is relatively easy as there is no real change in elevation.

But eventually you’ll notice that the path starts to peter out. Instead of being made of neatly, meticulously placed stone, it starts to become a dirt trail. And then it slowly disappears entirely, and you are left in a sea of rocks next to the coast that honestly looks like an alien planet. Me and my friend were joking that we had suddenly found ourselves on Mars! I took a peculiar looking stone back home from this part of the walk, as I’m wont to collect rocks as a way to remind myself of happy memories.

If you’re feeling up to it you can scale the small hill. It gives an amazing view of the surrounding area and isn’t a challenge to climb. The monument of peace isn’t that exciting in all honesty, but it’s just a nice little extra something.

If you don’t fancy walking back, there’s a handy bus stop near Louis’ sandwich bar. When approaching from the south, the bus stop on the right hand side is the one you want. Look out for bus 102!

If you’re going to Ayia Napa later on in the year like we did, make sure pay a visit to the beaches. They’re completely deserted and you get all of it to yourself! Me and my friend personally went to Makronissos beach just before the sun set and we watched the lights of the city and the moon in the dark. We even took a plunge into the sea. Call us insane, but the temperature is still bearable in November!