CYPRUS TOUR FROM ANTALYA 2 NIGHTS / 3 DAYS

With 320 days of sunshine per year, the Island of CYPRUS is to be enjoyed from early in Spring until late in Autumn, like taking a necessary and beneficial sip of vitamins.

Outside of mass tourism, the northern part of the island, also known as Turkish Cyprus (Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus)

It will be in small groups, with a guide speaking your language, that you will discover our magnificent island.

Unfortunately, it is not yet possible for tourists to cross from northern Cyprus to the southern (or "Greek") part of Cyprus. May be later ! While we wait for the policies to evolve, let's visit the beautiful northern (or "Turkish") part of the island!

DAY 1 : ANTALYA - CYPRUS 

*** Visit to Famagusta - Closed Varosha ghost city - Visit Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque - Namık Kemal Dungeon - Famagusta City Wall ***

Our plane will depart after the early morning meeting at the Antalya Airport International Terminal and the necessary ticket transactions.

After our morning breakfast in Cyprus.

VISIT TO FAMAGUSTA

Famagusta is a city found in eastern Cyprus. This city acts as a harbour and is quite deep into the land. Therefore it is the harbour of choice for many ships visiting Cyprus. This city is home to some memorable landmarks: the church of St George of the Greeks, the St. Barnabas Monastery and Lala Mustafa Pasha mosque. The walled city within Famagusta is one of the many architectural miracles of this place that is a sight to behold and is one of the best places to visit in Cyprus.  

CLOSED VAROSHA GHOST CITY

Varosha is not a city in its own right, but an abandoned neighborhood in the southern part of the Cypriot city of Famagusta.

In the early 1970s, Famagusta was a popular seaside destination in Cyprus, nicknamed the "Cypriot Saint-Tropez".

The resort has been able to offer its guests great beaches, a variety of shopping and entertainment venues, a wide choice of restaurants and luxury hotels attracting even famous tourists like Elizabeth Taylor and Brigitte Bardot.

If the waters that border it are still crystal clear, the city has become a ghost, for 46 years, no soul has lived there and the vegetation has regained its rights.

Ghost town for 46 years after the division of the island of Cyprus, the seaside city of Varosha was reopened in October 2020.

VISIT TO LALA MUSTAFA PASHA MOSQUE

While the intensity of the fighting knocked the higher parts off the building, it is still recognisable as the former Lusignans' St Nicholas's Cathedral. It was built between 1298 and 1326 in finest French Gothic style. 

The inside, devoid of all decoration, conserves its original majesty. Opposite the building, an esplanade occupies the site of the Venetian governors' palace, a few arcades of which have survived.

NAMIK KEMAL DUNGEON

A historical building in Famagusta, it is known for being the temporary abode of the influential Turkish writer Namik Kemal.

Known as the Shakespeare of Turkish literature, Kemal spent 38 months of his life in this building, between 1873 and 1876.

Seen as a potential revolutionary and a threat, Kemal was sent into exile by the Sultan Abdulaziz on 9 April 1873 soon after the first performance of his play ‘Vatan yahut Silistre’ (Fatherland or Silistria) a drama centred on the Siege of Silistria, at Gedik Pasha Theatre in Constantinople, modern day Istanbul. The play was considered dangerous by the Ottoman government as it promoted nationalism and liberalism.

When Abdulaziz was dethroned, Namik Kemal was pardoned by Murad V and returned to Constantinople on 29 June 1876. Namik Kemal had penned his plays ‘Gulnihal’ and ‘Akif Bey’ in the Famagusta dungeon. Restoration of the dungeon in the nineties has allowed its use as a museum, which holds many of his belongings and documents relating to the late distinguished writer.

The same dungeon was also reportedly used by the British authorities during the First World War.

FAMAGUSTA WALLED CITY

The walls of the old town, Famagusta

The old town of Famagusta is encircled by the historic walls, which are massive and average 60 feet high and 30 feet thick and date back to medieval times. The walls remain intact to this day, well preserved.

The city walls built by the Lusignans were very high but thin.

After the Venetians captured the island of the Lusignans, they brought in specialists from Venice to fortify the walls against artillery fire, especially to protect themselves from the Ottomans.

After our visits, we move to the hotel.

Free Time and Overnight at the hotel. 

DAY 2 : CYPRUS

*** Güzelyurt Archeology Museum - Cengiz Topel Monument - Karaoğlanoğlu Martyrdom - Landing Monument - Open Air Vehicle Museum - Blue Mansion - Panoramic Lefke tour ***

After having coffee and breakfast at your hotel, we move on to our bus with our guide.

We are moving towards Güzelyurt, our first stop.

GÜZELYURT ARCHEOLOGY MUSEUM

The museum of nature and archaeology is situated next to St Mamas monastery. The building was originally the palace of the Bishop of Morphou, and up to 1974 housed town offices. It was opened as a museum in 1979 after restoration.

The ground floor displays a collection of stuffed animals native to Cyprus. The upper floors of the museum houses the archaeology section with displays from the Neolithic and bronze ages. In the second and third rooms there is a display of finds from the Tumba Tou Skuru settlement.

Outside, items from the Classical, Hellenistic and Roman periods are on exhibition .

CENGIZ TOPEL MONUMENT

Towards the end of 1963, the Greek Cypriots started on systematic ethnic cleansing of Turkish Cypriots. Over the following months 103 villages were evacuated and the villagers moved into enclaves. 

In August of 1964, the Cypriot National Guard started action against the Turkish Cypriot enclave of Erenkoy (Kokkina) on the northwest coast. 

This was among the last port areas under Turkish Cypriot control, and the operation was considered necessary by both Cyprus and Greece, as they believed that the Turkish Cypriot militia were landing supplies and weapons from Turkey.

The action started on the 6th August 1964 by both land and sea, and was carried out by thousands of professionally trained soldiers under the command of retired Greek General Grivas. 

The defenders, which mainly consisted of 500 university students, managed to hold their positions till the 8th August, when the Turkish Air Force intervened. 

During this operation an F-100 Super Sabre piloted by Captain Cengiz Topel was shot down near Denizli. Capt Topel ejected safely and was captured by Greek Cypriot villagers and taken to the British Hospital.

He was removed from there by representatives of the Greek Cypriot National Guard and taken to their headquarters at Kyko Monastery where he was tortured and murdered.

An autopsy of his body showed that there he was heavily tortured and eventually murdered, his corpse shot at several times.

His body was returned on the 12th August, and he was buried on the 15th August, he was laid to rest at the Edirnekapı Martyr’s Cemetery in Istanbul.

KARAOĞLANOĞLU MARTYRDOM

When the Ottoman Empire took control in 1461 of what we now call Greece, the Greeks preserved their culture through the Orthodox Church.

When the Ottomans arrived in Cyprus in 1571, they freed the Orthodox Church from centuries of Latin control. Over the years, the Greek influence and the control exercised by the Orthodox Church gradually strengthened, so much so that there was ultimately little difference between religious and political activities.

In 1832, after a long and bitter war, Greece obtained its independence from the Ottomans.

In December 1963, systematic violence against Turkish Cypriots broke out, and this was to continue for several years, and gradually separated the island into Greek and Turkish communal areas.

In 1974, a Greek-sponsored coup overthrew Archbishop Makarios with the intention of forcing Enosis onto the island.

To avoid this, on the orders of the late Prime Minister Bülent Ecevit, Turkey invoked its right to intervene under the Treaty of Guarantee and launched on July 20, 1974 what is known as the first peace operation.

"We are actually going to the island for peace, not for war, and not just for the Turkish Cypriots, but also for the Greek Cypriots," Mr Ecevit told reporters at the time.

The operation came five days after a coup organized by the Greek junta saw EOKA terrorist Nicos Sampson installed as the island's leader. Dozens of Greek Cypriots have been killed by fellow Greeks during the violence.

Sampson would later say in an interview with a Greek newspaper, printed in 1981, that if Turkey had not intervened "I would not only have proclaimed Enosis, I would have wiped out the Turks in Cyprus".

A ceasefire was agreed at 4 p.m. on July 22, 1974, leaving the Turkish army in control of an expanse of land including the main road between Kyrenia and Nicosia.

However, attacks against the Turkish Cypriot population continued and the precarious situation of its own troops prompted Turkey to launch the second phase of its operation in August of the same year, eventually extending the Turkish Cypriot refuge to the borders. current.

These peace operations confirmed an island already divided into Greek Cyprus and Turkish Cyprus, and it declared its independence on November 15, 1983 as the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

The memorable Karaoglanoglu Memorial was built in memory of the soldiers who gave their lives in the 1974 peace operations and is named after the regiment's commander, Colonel Halil İbrahim Karaoğlanoğlu, one of the first officers to die in the first hours of the operation.

LANDING MONUMENT

As part of this plan, Turkish Cypriots were gradually displaced from their villages in placed in enclaves. In December of 1963, systematic violence against Turkish Cypriots erupted, and this was to continue for several years, and separated the island into Greek and Turkish areas.

In 1974, a Greek sponsored coup overthrows Archbishop Makarios with the intention of forcing enosis onto the island.

As one of the guarantor powers, Turkey intervened to prevent this. This confirmed an already divided island into Greek Cyprus and Turkish Cyprus.

The museum is in two parts. The open air portion consists of a display of vehicles and arms left by the fleeing Greek soldiers, while indoors there is a display of photographs of the military action and uniforms of some of the participants.

Close to the museum is a small military graveyard holding the remains of some of the casualties, including that of Col Karaoglanoglu, the most senior officer to be killed in the operation, and whose name was given to the nearby village in his memory.

A short distance from the museum is a large monument at the actual point of the landings.

OPEN AIR VEHICLE MUSEUM

BLUE MANSION

Mavi Köşk, or “The Blue House,” is like stepping back in time. Built it 1957 in the middle of nowhere near the coast of Northern Cyprus, the retro-chic villa is still furnished as it was in the 1970s when the owner is rumored to have escaped capture by fleeing through a hidden tunnel behind his bed.

Now a museum, Mavi Köşk feels more like snooping around in someone’s home. Though its history is a blurry mix of myth and truth, it’s believed the house was built by a Paulo Paolides, a Greek Cypriot who was rumored to work for the Italian mafia smuggling guns into Cyprus, and the decor is a glimpse into the glamorous if eccentric lifestyle of the supposed mobster. 

As the name suggests, there is a clear blue theme throughout the multicolor home, with bright blue furniture, carpets, walls, and entire blue rooms. 

The house is full of perfectly kitsch features, such as the sunken blue “milk pool” in the living area and the iguana skin-covered drinks cabinet.

Upstairs, you can visit the balcony where Paolides would supposedly throw an apple during parties and invite whoever caught the fruit to spend the evening with him. 

You can also take in the spectacular view, which stretches as far as the coast of Turkey on a clear day.

Paolides lived in the Blue House until 1974 when he fled during the Turkish invasion. The Turkish army took control of the residence, which was later opened to the public as a museum. 

You must wear blue overshoes when visiting the Blue House, and these are provided. It is also inside a military zone, so passports will need to be left at the entrance and are returned to you when you leave. Don't forget to take your passport with you. 

WE WILL HAVE A PANORAMIC TOUR OF LEFKE

After our trip, we take our places in the vehicles to return to our hotel.

Free Time and Overnight at the hotel.

DAY 3 : CYPRUS - ANTALYA

*** St. Hilarion Castle - Visit Bellapais Monastery - Kyrenia Castle - Barbarism Museum - Green Line border - Great Khan - Selimiye Mosque ***

We leave our hotel after breakfast in the morning.

On our route :

ST. HILARION CASTLE

VISIT BELLAPAIS MONASTERY

The tranquil and beautiful village of Bellapais stands in the Kyrenia mountain range, some four miles from North Cyprus' coast. With breathtaking views, tiny streets and ancient buildings around every corner, the village has changed little since it was immortalized by Lawrence Durrell in the 1950s.

The Abbey of Bellapais has drawn visitors to the island of Cyprus since medieval times when the abbey was built. From the pilgrims who trod the ancient paths in search of a miracle through to the holiday makers of today, the abbey has never been short of visitors.

Founded in the early 13thC by the Augustinian friars, evicted from the city of Jerusalem, after it fell to Saladin, the first church was established under Aimery Lusignan (ruled 1194-1205). The ecclesiastical building we see now has undergone many changes and been called by different names. It has been “Our blessed Lady Mary of the Mountains”, “L’Abbaye Blanche”, (The White Abbey, so named after the White Canons from the order of St. Norbert), “Abbaye de la Paix” from which came the Venetian corruption of “Bellapaise” that has changed little in the 21stC.

GIRNE CASTLE

If the grand fortifications of Kyrenia Castle could talk, they could sure tell some tales. The castle was first built by the Byzantines – possibly over the remains of an earlier Roman fort – and every era of conquerors from Richard the Lionheart to the Ottomans has added its own touch to the castle's bulk.

BARBARISM MUSEUM

Set in the house where the family of Dr Nihat İlhan was murdered during 1963's intercommunal attacks, this museum is a gruesome reminder of the brutal and violent years following the island's independence. As well as harrowing exhibits about the family's murder, there are similarly confronting photo displays of Turkish Cypriots murdered in the villages of Agios Sozomenos and Agios Vasilios. 

In the early 1960s there was effectively ethnic  cleansing of the Turkish Cypriots who were "encouraged" to move  into their own areas. Sporadic violence by one faction against another was rife, but came to a head over Christmas 1963.

On the 24th December, Greek Cypriot irregulars forcibly entered the house of Dr Ilhan, who was a Major in the Turkish army, and was on duty that night. The Doctor's wife, three children and a neighbour were killed by machine gun fire, and 6 neighbours were seriously injured. The house remains almost as it was found that Christmas.

This is by far the most disturbing museum on the island. The inside of the bathroom where the murders took place was left intact, with captions explaining that the spots on the walls are the actual blood of the four victims. In the other rooms are photographs of other victims of ethnic violence over the years. 

GREEN LINE BORDER

After 1974, most of Cyprus’s Greek and Turkish Cypriots have lived separately in northern and southern regions of the island that are currently divided by a UN-controlled Buffer Zone.

The Buffer Zone - also called ‘the Green Line’ - extends approximately 180 km across the island. In some parts of old Nicosia it is only a few meters wide, while in other areas it is a few kilometers wide. Its northern and southern limits are the lines where the belligerents stood following the ceasefire of 16 August 1974, as recorded by UNFICYP.

In the eastern part of the island, the Buffer Zone is interrupted by the British Sovereign Base Area of Dhekelia, where the UN does not operate. Another area the UN does not control is Varosha, the former resort town near Famagusta, now under the control of the Turkish military.

In line with UNFICYP’s mandate to work toward a return to normal conditions, many parts of the Buffer Zone are farmed and/or inhabited. There are several villages or special areas (called Civil Use Areas) within the Buffer Zone, where more than 10,000 people live and/or work. Civilians may enter these areas freely. Elsewhere in the buffer zone, civilian movement or activity requires specific authorization from UNFICYP. Located in the eastern region of the Buffer Zone, Pyla is the only village where Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots live side-by-side.

Other areas are largely untouched by human activity. Remnants of old villages, shops and other reminders of lives once lived are scattered throughout the Buffer Zone. 

The Buffer Zone has remained a haven for flora and fauna, thriving on the near absence of hunters and most other human interference.

GREAT KHAN

Built in 1572 by Muzaffer Pasha, the first Ottoman Governor of Cyprus, the inn is one of the largest inns in Cyprus. 

Consisting of 68 rectangular rooms that are similar to each other, with a small mosque in the middle, Büyük Han is in the structure of the Ottoman era bazaar business center in Anatolia. It was first used as a prison and later as a shelter for the poor under the UK.

Today, Büyük Han, which hosts shops selling all kinds of antiques, handicrafts and other art products unique to Cyprus, which attracts the attention of visitors, is also used as a tourist information center.

In the inn, where small shows and cultural activities are also held, there is an authentic Turkish coffee and a restaurant serving exclusive and fresh examples of local cuisine.

SELIMIYE MOSQUE

Selimiye Mosque historically known as Cathedral of Saint Sophia, is a former Roman Catholic cathedral converted into a mosque.

The largest surviving historical building in Nicosia, sources claim it “may have been the largest church built in the Eastern Mediterranean in the millennium between the rise of Islam and the late Ottoman period.”

The name of the cathedral derives from Ayia Sophia, meaning “Holy Wisdom” in Greek. The dedication of the cathedral to the Holy Wisdom is a remnant from the Byzantine cathedral, which occupied the same place.

It is not certain when the construction of the cathedral began, it may have gradually replaced its Greek predecessor or may have been built alongside it. 

The date cited for the laying of the foundation stone is 1209 during the reign of the Lusignan King Henry I and building lasted over 100 years. 

Only by the end of the 13th century had the side aisles and part of the middle aisles been completed.

The first imam of the mosque was Moravizade Ahmet Efendi, who hailed from the Morea province of the Ottoman Empire. 

All imams maintained the tradition of climbing the stairs to the minbar before Friday sermons while leaning on a sword used during the conquest of Nicosia.

We will have free time for shopping after visiting

After all these trips, we take our places in the vehicle to reach Ercan Airport to return to Antalya.

Included

* Hotel pick up-drop off

* Hotel with half board (Only breakfast at the hotel is included )

* Guidance

Excluded 

* All meals and drinks are not included.Only breakfast at the hotel is included

* Special expenses

Important information

Please note that all times are approximate and subject to change.

The Guide may make corrections and adaptations in the course of the tour program according to the conditions and situations of the planned places of visits

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