It’s easy to see why spring is a great time to take a viewing trip to Cyprus, and an even better time to live here once you’ve purchased your dream home: temperatures increase, nature awakens from its winter slumber and the island remains relatively sedate before the buzz of summer. Here’s a list of spring activities Cyprus style:
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Viewing property
Spring is a great time to view property in Cyprus because you will be avoiding peak times, when flights are most expensive, hotels and rented accommodation are booked up, tourist crowds make getting around more stressful and soaring temperatures can sap energy. Plus you will get a feel for what life is like on the island outside of the summer months.
Fight availability to and from Cyprus is good in spring and is set to improve even further.
Catching a flight
You’ve got to get here in the first place to enjoy spring on the island. Fight availability to and from Cyprus is good in spring and is set to improve even further. Jet2.com has announced increased weekly capacities from Birmingham to Larnaca and Papho, and a new service from Belfast to Paphos. While Ryanair has launched a new service between Dublin and Paphos. Budget airlines like Thomas Cook, Tui, easyJet, Cobalt and Cyprus Air also offer regular services throughout the spring.
Trekking
Cyprus offers up hundreds of kilometres of trekking through forests, up mountains and along the coastline. Spring in Cyrpus presents a colourful tableau of wildflowers in bloom, so what better way to experience the island in its full glory than by trekking through the Troödos Mountains among fragrant cedar and pine forests, through cherry and almond groves, past terraced vineyards and ancient monasteries.
Paphos Forest is equally charming at this time of year. A recommended route is the Chorteri nature trail close to the Stavros tis Psokas forest station , which winds through Calabrian pine and the endemic shrub Golden oak. Don’t forget your camera as you marvel at the views of the Stavros Valley and take a selfie with the Cyprus mouflon – AKA wild sheep.
Wine trail
It’s a little-known fact that Cyprus is one of the biggest island wine producers on the planet. So take the chance to visit one of the many boutique village wineries as you head into the rural heartland of the island.
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There’s a cluster of wineries dotted around the Troödos region, where you can sample the local produce and discover more about the history of the island’s wine making industry.
The Limassol Wine Festival takes place between late August and early September. It has been held annually since 1961 in Limassol’s municipal gardens, with visitors coming to enjoy folk music and dance events as they sip local wine.
You’ll be able to relax on the beach in a Cypriot spring.
Bird watching
Cyprus is a fantastic place for the patient past-time of bird watching, especially in the spring months when the air is abuzz with migrant birds returning to Europe. Swallows, swifts, storks and cuckoos are the most famous avian spring visitors to the island. This is also a great way to get out and discover the stunning Cypriot landscape. For more information on “twitching” in Cyprus visit the BirdLife Cyprus website.
Resort/city hopping
From Paphos on the southwest coast and Ayia Napa further east along the shoreline to Limassol and Larnaca in between, each coastal resort and city is unique and well worth a visit.
Paphos and the surrounding area is a perennial favourite with British property buyers who have formed an established expat community. Larnaca a little more traditionally Cypriot than some of its contemporaries. Limassol offers residents two contrasting sides: the historic core which comprises the old town and old fishermen’s harbour, which sits alongside a number of state-of-the-art residential and commercial developments that are transforming the local skyline. Ayia Napa is the largest tourist resort on the island, with a reputation for having a hedonistic nightlife.
Hitting the back roads
One of the best ways to see Cyprus in spring is to hire a car and hit the back roads into its rural heartland of the country to discover the many villages, historic sites and stunning landscapes that await.
One of the best ways to see Cyprus in spring is to hire a car and hit the back roads into its rural heartland.
Villages in the Troödos Mountains worth discovering include Troödos Village, Argos, Pedoulas, Fikardou and Kakopetria.
Paphos Forest certainly isn’t overrun with civilisation, helping it to maintain its rural charm. The few rustic settlements that are dotted in the mountains are worth a visit, such as Pano Panagia – also known as Panayia – Kampos, Tsakistra, Mylikouri and Gialia.
Festivals and annual holidays
The island really starts to spring back into life at this time of year. This is perfectly demonstrated the island’s springtime festivals, which include:
- The annual Cyprus Film Days International Festival, which screens films from contemporary world cinema, and hosts educational workshops, live music and other events.
- Greek In dependence Day on 25 March.
- Greek Cypriot National Holiday to celebrate independence from British rule.
- May Day ‘ Protomagia’ and Labour Day on 1 May, when a big parade is held and spring flower wreathes are hung outside the entrance doors to ward off evil.
- The Anthestiria Festival is a celebration of spring and flowers.
- The V International Paphos Children’s Festival.
- The annual Street Life festival held in Limassol old town in May.
- The Full Pint Homebrew Festival held in Nicosia in May.
- The Agros Rose Festival held in the village of Agros, in Pitsillia in the Troödos region.
Grab a bike
The island’s diminutive size – it’s less than 200 kilometres from Paphos in the west to Ayia Nappa in the far east – together with its diverse landscape of coast, forests and mountains make cycline a vey popular pastime. The Visit Cyprus website provides detail of a number of scenic routes around various parts of the island. One such route is the Athalassa National Forest Park 16 kilometre bicycle path. Located south of Nicosia, the picturesque route was created via an initiative from the Forestry Department.
Teeing off
Due to its lush landscapes and hours of sun, Cyprus is becoming one of Europe’s leading year-round golf destinations. Here you’ll be able work on you back swing on a number of internationally-acclaimed courses. Some of the most well-known courses include the PGA National Aphrodite Hills Golf club, Elea Estate golf Club, Minthis golf course and the Secret Valley course.
49 pristine Blue Flag beaches and 340 days of sunshine per year.
Scuba diving
The crystal clear waters that lap the coast of Cyprus are recognised by their coveted Blue Flag status. This combined with warm waters that range from 16-27°C almost all year round, present ideal conditions for scuba diving, which has grown considerably in popularity. From simple sandy-bottom dives for beginners, to more advanced wrecks dives, the island’s diving offers something for all abilities. Some of the best dive sites include the Akrotiri Peninsula, HMS Cricket, the Alexandra wreck, Devils Head, the White Star wreck, the Costandis artificial reef, Amathunta dive site and the Lady Thetis Vessel artificial reef.
The islands dive season, which runs from March to November, is one of the longest in the Mediterranean. For more information on PADI schools, visit the Cyprus section of the PADI website.
Beaches and sunshine
We couldn’t compile this springtime list without mentioning two of the island’s biggest draws: 49 pristine Blue Flag beaches and 340 days of sunshine per year.
