North Cyprus

[JustLizzie]

Enjoyed our first trip to Turkey this year, thought about trying North Cyprus next - any recommendations/tips?

[jno]

Kyrenia is a lovely place. As you've probably been told, you can't go there direct, you have to fly via Turkey so it's quite a long trip

[patsyann]

Some tour operators are now landing in Larnaca and taking you by coach to the North but still a long journey.Having said that Northern Cyprus is lovely especially Kyrenia.We stayed up the hill in Bellapais Monastery Village hotel and it was so peaceful.We thought it was worth the stop over in Turkey..The plane landed and soon took off again.

[Lil O'lady]

The north of Cyprus has beautiful coasts - as others have said, Kyrenia and bellapais are beautiful. owever rampant over-development is rapidly spoiling it. Near Kyrenia is is quite difficult to get to a beach that is not owned by a resort hotel or privately owned, and military bases cover many coastal areas and you are simply not allowed to stop your car.

The 'beautiful clear seas' are actually quite grim in parts as raw sewage is piped straight in, and as with many eastern med areas there is absolutely no public awareness that chucking your rubbish down just anywhere is a bad idea.
Many archaeological sites have been damaged under Turkish occupation, for example by bulldozing paths through them. Kyrenia castle and sites such as the Roman tomb remains in Kyrenia , Soli in the west of the island and Salamis near Famagusta have been badly affected by this. I loved the place but it made me feel very sad to think that it was going to pot so quickly.

[Mike Kent]

I agree with the other writers, Northern Cyprus is wonderful -Kyrenia is a magical place. Most people speak English and are very welcoming. They accept sterling as the Turkish Lire is practically worthless. Go in May when all the flowers are out in the country side. Hire a car of course. Look up the "Cyprus Paradise" website. Smoking is encouraged -even on the airlines. Alcohol freely available. If you fly from Stansted it is just a touch down in Turkey for passenger interchange. Don't worry about luggage. we had people getting on planes with refrigerators!!

[Narolines]

Well, when you say the Turkish lira is practically worthless, it's currently standing at 40p. That may be worthless to you, but at just over 2 to the pound not many, I suspect, would agree with you. Northern Cyprus is indeed a beautiful place, but if you visit please remember you are supporting an illegal regime, invaded by an alien nation withy a VERY poor human rights record, held since 1974 by military force, and recognised by no country in the world aprt from Turkey. Also you remember you are treading on EU soil held under force of arms by a non-EU nation. You will find a very strong military presence wherever you go; I trust you will give some thought to the thousands of Cypriots of Greek origin who were forced to flee their homes and lands.

No, I am not a Cypriot (although I do live here), and I do not claim that the blame for the division of the island is one-sided; indeed, the Greek side AND the so-called guarantor nations (the UK included) were at least equally culpable. Neither do I subscribe to the view that the north should be boycotted - I cross over for a visit several times a year. All I'm saying is, though you may have an enjoyable holiday there, it is not a paradise and it is a miltarily-occupied territory with no international status.