How to Spend 3 Days in Cyprus: The Ultimate 3 Day Itinerary

Are you wondering how to spend 3 days in Cyprus? This itinerary will show you how to visit Cyprus in 3 days, experiencing all of the standout natural attractions, historical sites and hiking trails. Certainly, if you want to seek the best natural wonders and historical attractions in Cyprus, this 3 day Cyprus itinerary will suit you perfectly.

Why Spend 3 Days in Cyprus?

First and foremost, Cyprus is a stunning destination with beautiful beaches, breathtaking mountain ranges and serene natural areas. On top of that, Cyprus has a fascinating history.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974. At that time, Turkey invaded the north. This was in response to a military coup on the island, supported by the Greek government. Consequently, Cyprus was effectively partitioned. The Turkish Cypriot government now occupies the northern 1/3. While the southern 2/3 is governed by a Greek Cypriot government. It’s only the Greek Cypriot-occupied land that’s internationally recognised as Cyprus (AKA the Republic of Cyprus). Effectively, Northern Cyprus is a country that for all intents and purposes doesn’t exist!

Of course, our goal isn’t to explain the entire political situation at any great length. From a tourism perspective though, only around 10% of tourists visit the north side. It’s without a doubt that the north side is safe to visit, and also very interesting to visit. But it can be a bit more tricky to plan and requires time to cross borders. That’s unless you can fly there directly from Turkey as no other countries fly directly to North Cyprus.

Considering my sister (Lauren) and I only had 3 days in Cyprus, we didn’t have time to explore both the south and north. So, we decided to just focus on exploring Cyprus during our 3 day trip. If you only have 3 days in Cyprus we recommend you do the same, as you likely won’t have time to explore the north.

So, you may be visiting Cyprus to explore breathtaking natural wonders, soak in its culture or learn more about its history. Either way, it’s possible to do all of these things in Cyprus in 3 days (perhaps, a long weekend in Cyprus!)

Are 3 Days Enough For Cyprus?

Yes, 3 days in Cyprus is enough time to explore its natural delights, experience its culture and visit its historical sites. Of course, if you have more than 3 days in Cyprus, that would be excellent. That way, you can explore more of the island. But, you may simply not have the time! Don’t worry, we think spending 3 days in Cyprus is more than adequate to experience the very best of the island.

How to Spend 3 Days in Cyprus

In this 3 day Cyprus itinerary, we’re going to break down how to spend your time exploring the island. Our recommended base for this three day trip is in or around Paphos. However, this itinerary could be adapted to those staying in Larnaca or elsewhere on the island. By using this 3 day itinerary, you’ll know exactly what to do and what to see in Cyprus. Indeed, using this guide should take the time and stress out of planning your trip.

Cyprus 3 Day Itinerary: Day 1

The first day of this 3 day Cyprus itinerary starts in Larnaca. You’ll need a full day to explore Larnaca and its surroundings. So, we recommend an early start.

Church of Saint Lazarus

The first stop is the Church of Saint Lazarus in the town of Larnaca. For convenience, it’s best to park in the town centre. There are various car parks to choose from that all seem to be a flat rate of €2.

The magnificent stone church was built in the late ninth century. The stonework of the church is mainly comprised of square limestone block, about one metre in thickness. It’s a remarkable example of Byzantine architecture which lies over the tomb of the saint. The church’s tall bell tower is easily noticeable in the town centre. Entry is free. So make sure you go inside.

As you enter the church, you’ll immediately notice that it’s quite extravagant. Intricate golden wood carvings line the walls. The interior structure is divided into three aisles with large double pillars. These pillars take the weight of the domes which form a central aisle. The aisles on either side bear a semi-cylindrical roof, intersected by cross-vaults. There’s also access to the small underground room of tombs. This room is more modest in appearance with the bare stonework on display with colourful portraits lining the tombs.

Larnaca Salt Lake

After checking out the town, you should head to the Larnaca Salt Lake. It took us around 25 minutes to walk there from the church. We value staying active even when travelling. So even though we had the car, we wanted to walk. Alternatively, though, you can certainly drive there to save time.

Albeit, the walk actually helped us to see a little more of the ancient town of Larnaca. We didn’t see any other specific monuments this way, but it was nice to just stroll the streets to get a sense of the people and their way of life. If you choose to walk, soon enough, you’ll leave the ancient ambience of the town and begin walking through the more regular neighbourhood. You’ll eventually arrive at a park by the lake filled with trees and several trails leading towards the lake.

Our Experience With the Flamingoes

Flamingoes can be spotted here at the lake during the winter months. However, they hang out far away from the lake’s edge. Well, they were when we showed up! You can walk on the dried salt lake to get a closer look. At the lake’s edge, the salt lake is firm and crusty. But soon enough you will start to sink. The hard-dried salt lake becomes soft and easily penetrable like quicksand!

So much for our plans to get closer to the flamingoes! I would have to wait until my trip to the Salts Flats in Uyuni to get up, close and personal with pink flamingoes.

If you wish to avoid the sinking experience, you can choose to just see the lake from an old wooden viewing platform. Admittedly without being able to clearly see the flamingoes, our visit here didn’t quite live up to the hype. Perhaps, we could have taken more time to walk around the dried lake in an attempt to get a better view of the flamingoes.

Because the flamingoes congregate here during winter, you may want to consider skipping this part of the itinerary if you visit Cyprus outside of this time. As without the flamingoes, the lake although interesting, is nothing extraordinary.

Agioi Anargyroi Trail

• Type: Out & Back
• Distance: 8km
• Time: 3 hours
• Accumulated elevation gain: 20m
• Difficulty: Easy
• Trailhead: Agioi Anargyroi

All trails in this guide are rated by the Cyprus Tourism Board.

Next on this 3 day Cyprus itinerary is the Agioi Anargyroi trail, which is a scenic trail along the coast. It starts at the chapel of Agioi Anargyroi and ends at the famous Ayia Napa sea caves. The trail is 8km return and takes around three hours.

You’ll find many variations of this trail online. Some of them start at Konnos Beach, which is the stretch of coast next to the chapel of Agioi Anargyroi. Some trails will add on the Cape Greco viewpoint to the hike as well which involves leaving the coastal path. This is actually a fair option, as you walk by this viewpoint as part of the coastal hike.

But with all of the different options available, we chose to do the more traditional coastal walk which meant sticking to the coastal path. You can always visit the Cape Greco viewpoint afterwards so you don’t miss out on the fantastic views of this coast. For information on parking for this hike, see Google Maps here.

Chapel of Agioi Anargyroi

Before you set off on your hike, check out the chapel of Agioi Anargyroi. It’s a classic Greek-style church with a vibrant blue roof and whitewashed walls. The views of the chapel in its coastal surroundings are stunning. You’ll then head towards the Cape Greco National Park. The contrast of the bright ocean blue with the barren and arid brown of the dried and scorched land is quite remarkable.

Highlights of the Trail

The next landmark along the coast is the Kamara tou Koraka natural bridge, otherwise known as the Arch of Korokas. This is the most impressive natural bridge in Cyprus. Views of the crystal clear water piercing through the opening of the bridge are spectacular. Afterwards, you’ll pass by beautiful turquoise-coloured waters. There is a brown wooden chair located at the foot of the water here. Sitting here with the rugged coastline weaving its way through the ocean makes for epic photography.

You’ll then continue the hike on a wide dirt trail towards the sea caves heading slightly away from the coast. Your settings will become more barren as you pass through areas of dried-out plants and shrubbery, and cliffy rock platforms. Before you know it though, you’ll be steered back towards the coast with the sea caves in your reach.

Thalassines Spilies (Ayia Napa Sea Caves)

Expect there to be a few more people at the spectacular Ayia Napa sea caves. After all, this is one of the main tourist spots in Cyprus. Most people will usually just park nearby and explore the caves without doing this hike. Needless to say, exploring the sea caves will likely be one of the highlights of your 3 days in Cyprus.

The caves extend 80 metres underground. But what you can see is only what has partially submerged. The caves can only be explored at low tide for safety reasons. So please read the tide times before visiting. Depending on when low tide is, you may want to change the order of this itinerary accordingly. This area is popular for snorkelling, diving, cliff jumping and swimming. For those doing it for the gram, have a friend use the caves as a border for your photo as you swim in the crystal-clear turquoise waters.

From the coastal path, accessing the sea caves is fairly straightforward. There’s an obvious pathway at the top, that allows you to wind down into the caves. There is a safe rock platform located next to the main cave window to place your belongings if you would like to go for a swim.

Cape Greco Viewpoint

After your dip in the ocean at the sea caves, make your way back to the car. The next stop on this 3 day Cyprus itinerary is the Cape Greco viewpoint, otherwise known as the Cavos viewpoint. There is a fairly large car park located at the lookout. After walking up a short hill of about 100 metres or so, you’ll arrive at the lookout.

It’s here that the Monument of Peace is located. Although the monument is nothing too extraordinary, the visit here is really all about the panoramic views of the Mediterranean Sea. It was quite an exhilarating experience, looking down at such an amazing coastline. Again, there is a conveniently positioned brown wooden chair at your disposal. On a hot day, hopefully, you’ll have an ocean breeze to relieve you of the heat.

This is apparently a nice place for sunset. But we decided to finish our day on a beach for sunset. Read below for more details!

Landa Beach

Because we visited in late November, the sun began to set around 4pm. No matter what season though, you should visit one of the many beaches for sunset. Nissi Beach is the most well-known beach in the area. To escape the tourist trail, head to Landa Beach instead. Well more specifically – there is a paved trail that links Landa Beach to Adams Beach. Along this trail, away from the actual beaches, is the best spot for sunset.

At this time of year, it was really quiet. Nissi Beach would likely have also been fairly quiet outside of peak season. But the trail connecting Landa and Adams Beach certainly felt more like a local spot. There are a few picnic benches and pagodas along there, so pick your spot for sunset! It was the perfect place to sit, relax, drink a beer and soak in the sunset.

After a busy day of sightseeing and hiking, watching a sunset is a great way to cap off your first day in Cyprus. But, don’t be having too many beers, as you’ll still want to be fresh for tomorrow’s longer and tougher hikes.

Cyprus 3 Day Itinerary: Day 2

The second day of your 3 day Cyprus itinerary starts with the extraordinary Aphrodite – Adonis Trail Loop. For sure, this is one of the best hiking routes in Cyprus.

Aphrodite – Adonis Trail Loop

• Type: Loop
• Distance: 8km
• Time: 3–4 hours
• Accumulated elevation gain: 300m
• Difficulty: Hard
• Trailhead: Baths of Aphrodite

An early start today will help you beat the heat and crowds on this unforgettable hiking trail in Cyprus. Arriving at around 8:30am meant there were only a handful of people on the trail.

Park your car at the Baths of Aphrodite. You can certainly begin the day by checking out the baths. However, we were keen to get started on the trail. So we left the Baths of Aphrodite to the end. Keep in mind that this hike, in particular, is fairly dusty. Consider wearing a gaiter to help cover your mouth from all the dust. Plus, it can be used to protect your neck from the sun!

Aphrodite Trail Details

From the large car park, the wide dirt trail following the coast begins to slowly ascend. Very soon, you’ll start to have incredible coastal views of the Akamas Peninsula.

Blue Lagoon can be spotted in the distance. It’s very hard to miss given its vivid and vibrant colour. It’s actually one of Cyprus’ main attractions. However, this trail doesn’t visit them specifically. It’s actually possible to combine the Blue Lagoon coastal trail with the Aphrodite trail. But, we didn’t have time. Otherwise, the Blue Lagoon can only be driven to in a 4×4 vehicle. Unfortunately, we only had a 2WD.

After continuing a slight ascent bending its way around the peninsula, you’ll eventually arrive at the toughest part of the trail. Essentially, this trail acutely zig-zags its way upwards and inland. The dirt trail narrows as you begin to surge upwards.

Keep an eye on the peninsula coastline, because as you begin to ascend the views get better and better. You’ll be able to make out more detail of the uniquely shaped peninsula, plus the rocky and shrubbery terrain inland of the coast.

Finally, you’ll reach the top of this tough climb to the main vantage point over the coast. You may even be lucky enough to see some mountain goats up there!

Adonis Trail Details

The trail then begins to head inland into the Paphos forest, where you’ll walk through thicker areas of trees and shrubbery. Soon enough, you’ll be led to a grassy area where there is a 500 year old oak tree. The tree provides a nice shaded area to enjoy a snack. Located here is also an archaeological site known as Pyrgos tis Rigainas (Queen’s Tower). The ruins of the tower exist here peacefully. There’s also a nearby water fountain of non-potable water.

Once you arrive here, you have two options. Both of which will make this trail a loop. One option is to follow the Adonis Trail, which continues inland into the forest area and eventually loops back to the Baths of Aphrodite.

The option that we chose was to head straight back towards the Baths of Aphrodite on the Aphrodite-Adonis track. This track is essentially shared by both loop trails. Because the coastal element of the peninsula is the highlight of this area, we chose to head back via the Aphrodite-Adonis track. It makes for a quicker return which is helpful with the busy day ahead!

The Aphrodite – Adonis trail acutely and directly heads back towards the coastline. You’ll begin to exit the forest-type surrounds. So, you’ll be left more exposed as you descend the unprotected and open rocky terrain.

Baths of Aphrodite

The path will lead you straight to the Baths of Aphrodite. According to Greek mythology, this is the place where Aphrodite would bathe. Aphrodite is the ancient goddess of love. Apparently, it’s the exact location where Adonis saw her, fell in love with her and became romantic.

With this site enriched by legends and myths of the past, it’s certainly worth the visit. After checking out the baths, we spoiled ourselves with a coffee at the Baths of Aphrodite Restaurant. We had beautiful ocean views from the restaurant which sits across the road from the car park.

Coral Bay

Honestly speaking, we had only heard of Coral Bay as it was situated close to our accommodation in Paphos. However, we can certainly recommend visiting. Because you’ll likely be heading back towards Paphos from the Baths of Aphrodite, it’ll make for the perfect stop to cool down after the hike.

The beach is on the smallish side. So, it has the potential to get overcrowded during the busier months. But it wasn’t too crowded when we visited in November. Plus, it’s a beach not usually on the radar of tourists so hopefully your visit there will be pleasantly quiet.

Expect a nice calming and soothing swim in the bay. Even in November, the water was nice and warm. Fantastic for a swim. The beach is surrounded by plants, forests and some tropical-type trees. Like many Mediterranean stretches of coast, there’s the option to pay for the luxury of a beach umbrella and chair. It would be a good idea in the warmer months but unnecessary otherwise. Besides, your stop here won’t be for too long, as there are more historical and natural attractions to see today!

Paphos Archaeological Park

It isn’t a visit tp Cyprus if you don’t see its historical sites. Give yourself 3–4 hours to immerse yourself in the Paphos Archaeological Park. There is a large car park at the historical site. Entrance is only around €4.50 and is open from 8:30am to 5pm.

Start your visit by watching the introductory video in the visitor centre found by the entrance. It provides a great perspective and information as to what you will see during your visit. By taking time to learn about the history of the place, your experience here will be amplified.

The park is filled with large ruins and villas of the Roman and Hellenistic periods. This dates back to 4th Century BC. Take your time to wander the ruins. The park itself is massive. So, it’ll take some time to see everything, but it’s worth it. Each set of ruins has its own character and charm.

Plus, there are wonderfully preserved mosaic floors. These were absolutely mind blowing. They are some of the most ancient mosaics in the world. Apparently, it’s only Syria that has older mosaics. Through refurbishments, many of the mosaic compositions have been preserved wonderfully. The vibrant colourful patterns that light up the floor tell tales of the past in an extraordinarily artistic way.

Some of the mosaics are better preserved than others. But, even the faded or older looking pieces still reverberate a high level of attention with their beauty and brilliance.

Petra tou Romiou (Aphrodite’s Rock)

Undoubtedly, Aphrodite’s Rock is one of those must-do things in Cyprus. To get to Aphrodite’s Rock, you’ll find there is a fairly spacious car park across the road. There’s a convenience store there also if you want to nip in for snacks or a drink. Once you’re ready, head across the road towards the impressive sea stacks. Expect this attraction to be busy at sunset. People are likely to be climbing the rock and spilling out onto the beach.

In regards to enjoying the moment, it makes sense to have the famous rock in clear sight with the gorgeous sunset in the background. So find yourself a rock from afar to provide this amazing view. Safely, we managed to find an elevated position which gave us a great view of the sunset. The partly cloudy sky was illuminated with a rich tapestry of colours ranging from yellow, orange and pink. With the sound of the ocean and gentle breeze, it’s truly an idyllic setting.

Legend has it that Aphrodite’s Rock was the birthplace of Aphrodite. Whether or not you’re one for myths, the rock is at least a very cool sea stack. Despite the attraction’s popularity and busyness, it’s definitely still worth checking out. It’s a great spot for photography also.

Cyprus 3 Day Itinerary: Day 3

The third and final day of your 3 days in Cyprus itinerary will start at the Tomb of the Kings.

Tomb of the Kings

You’ll find plenty of free parking at this site. It’s only around €2.50 to enter which was very cheap considering it’s a UNESCO World Heritage listed site. It’s open from 8:30am to 5pm. Similar to the Paphos Archaeological Park, you’ll be amazed by the sheer size of the place. It’s almost overwhelming when you enter as you consider the hours it will take to cover it all. It’s not quite as large and popular as the Paphos Archaeological Park, so there’s likely to be slightly fewer people.

The Highlights

To our knowledge, there are no truly outstanding sections or special tombs to check out. There are no hard and fast rules for the order of seeing the attractions here either. Essentially, there are many paths with ruins and tombs either side of you. Perhaps work out a rough system to cover all of the paths so you don’t miss anything. You’ll probably need 2–3 hours.

As you begin to move away from the site entrance, weaving in and out of the paths laid ahead, you’ll start to see the ocean. With the site overlooking the sea, there is a fantastic blend of historical significance and natural beauty. What a winning formula. It creates a stunning setting for you to explore the tombs and ruins. Some of which, are underground. You’ll have lots of fun, climbing down sets of stairs and rocky hills to access tombs positioned in unique positions.

Please note that no actual Kings are buried here. So the name is quite deceiving! However, there are burial sites of many Paphitis aristocrats and high officials up until the 3rd Century AD.

Avakas Gorge

• Type: Out & Back
• Distance: 11km
• Time: 3.5-4.5 hours
• Accumulated elevation gain: None
• Difficulty: Easy- Moderate
• Trailhead: Toxeftra Beach

The Avakas Gorge hike is the final hiking trail of the 3 day trip of Cyprus. What an amazing place it is! To get there, you will follow a fairly rough dirt road that heads in the direction of Lara Beach. However, you will not drive all the way to that beach. You’ll find a large car park before then, opposite Toxeftra Beach. Park there to begin the trail.

It’s worth mentioning that this road does lead to a smaller car park even closer to the gorge. But the road is quite bumpy so we didn’t drive any further because we only had a 2WD. However, we did see 2WDs parked there so driving on this road is probably fine. Overall, parking opposite Toxeftra Beach did make for a slightly longer hike. But it’s only an 11km out and back trail. Also, it’s a much larger car park than the one closer to the gorge.

But if you do choose to start from this other car park, here are the exact GPS directions.

Avakas Gorge Trail

Give yourself 3.5–4.5 hours to complete this trail. Although the trail is entirely flat, it does take time to negotiate sections of the river and gorge.

From the large car park opposite Toxeftra Beach, follow the path to the right that takes you through the valley’s forest to the gorge. Do not follow the steep path to the left. This would be following the road that takes you to the aforementioned smaller car park. Walking this route wouldn’t be as inspiring. It would just be hiking on a dirt road so take the scenic path instead!

You will soon enough bypass the smaller car park. It’s from this point on that there will be more people on the trail, which is unfortunate as the trail becomes thinner, feeling overcrowded at times.

Arriving at the Gorge

You’ll know that you’re close to the gorge as you begin to pass by stunning white sandstone formations. Literally, the cliff sides of this superbly white rock will blow your mind. Eventually, you’ll reach the narrowing of the gorge itself. With that, is the river stream that runs through it. So be careful when traversing the river stream inside the gorge. It can start to get very slippery. You’ll want to be wearing waterproof hiking boots with decent traction.

Exploring the gorge and its amazing colours is the best part of the trail. The uniquely lightly coloured rock makes for incredible natural beauty. Patterns on the walls of the gorge look like an artist has painted them stroke for stroke. In regards to photography, shooting the section of the gorge with a rock suspended in its grasp is a challenging but rewarding opportunity. Challenging because of the contrast of the brightness of the sky with the dimmer light of the gorge. Plus, there are plenty of people around to get in the way!

The initial sections of the gorge are by far the prettiest. But the further you go, the quieter it gets as a lot of people will just walk to the entrance of the gorge, head 50–100 metres inside and then turn back. You can actually continue to hike through the gorge all the way to the end if you wish. Once you reach the end of the gorge, you can reverse your steps back to Toxeftra Beach. It’s a great spot to cool off for a swim after the hike. And, that spells the end of this 3 day Cyprus itinerary!

3 Days in Cyprus: Recap

Cyprus is full of amazing places to experience and explore, which is possible to do in 3 days. All of the hiking trails described in this guide are vastly different, so you’ll enjoy unique experiences completing each trail. Plus, with all of the other natural and historical attractions on offer, Cyprus is a must-see destination. If you only have 3 days in Cyprus, certainly, this itinerary will help you see the highlights.

For sure, this guide will help explore the best things to see in Cyprus.

If You Have More Than 3 Days in Cyprus

So, what if you can manage more than a 3 day Cyprus itinerary? Those with another day should consider hiking in the Troodos Mountains. Be mindful that it’s 5–10°C cooler in the mountains so you may want to pack extra layers particularly if you venture out there early in the morning. You will find some small waterfalls in the mountains. The Artemis Loop Hike is the most popular trail there.

How to Get to Cyprus

You’ll find phenomenal flight deals to Cyprus all year round. From London, we paid only €26/person to fly to Paphos. We booked about three months in advance. Additionally, cheap deal flights to Larnaca in Cyprus also depart from London and/or the UK for a similar price. Please note that we visited in November. Accordingly, prices may have been cheaper as we went outside of peak season.

Getting Around Cyprus: Car Hire

Hire a car if you’re going to be exploring Cyprus in a relatively short amount of time. Particularly, if you only have 3 days in Cyprus, you’ll need a car to pack in all the best hiking, natural attractions and historical sites that it has to offer. The bus system in Cyprus isn’t too bad. But a car is very useful to get to the start of most of the trails. Plus, a car obviously allows greater freedom.

In addition, car hire in Cyprus is very cheap. We found an automatic car for three days for only €45.

To find out more about renting a car with Discover Cars, read our Discover Cars review and Discover Cars Insurance review.

Accommodation in Cyprus

Cyprus is a popular holiday destination so there are plenty of hotels, resorts and other nice places to stay. Personally, we stayed in Chloraka, which is a little seaside town near Paphos. We found Chloraka to be a good base to explore Cyprus. Most of the hiking, nature and attractions explored were relatively close by. Otherwise, the most popular areas to stay in Cyprus include Paphos, Larnaca, Limassol and Ayia Napa.

As mentioned, for convenience, it’s best to stay in or near Paphos to complete this 3 day Cyprus itinerary. Nevertheless, it’s possible to make this itinerary work, wherever you’re based in Cyprus. We recommend using Booking.com to find your perfect accommodation.

Where to Eat in Cyrpus

Given we love Greek cuisine, we decided to eat out for dinner on most nights. We can highly recommend eating at Pitta Express during your trip to Cyprus if you’re based in or near Paphos. They have all the Cypriot/Greek cuisine you could dream of.

The first night, we started small ordering just a gyros. The next night, we went all out! We had the two person meat platter which had the lot! After this meal, we both agreed that we had never eaten so much in our lives. For several hours, we nursed substantial food comas. Otherwise, we shopped at Lidl for our other meals and snacks.

During your 3 days in Cyprus, you should also try a Cypriot coffee. We thought the Cypriot coffee was delicious. But, bear in mind that a thick layer of coffee ground sits at the bottom. So, don’t drink the final sip as we did! It was a rather unpleasant sandy texture mouthfeel.

Gear Essentials For 3 Days in Cyprus

Here is some useful gear to have for your 3 day Cyprus itinerary.

To find out more about all of the gear that we use and recommend, read our guides about our favourite travel gear, camera gear and hiking gear. Otherwise, read our comprehensive travel packing checklist.

Thanks for reading this post detailing a 3 day Cyprus itinerary. Do have any questions about the best places to visit in Cyprus? Please leave us a comment below. After all, you don’t want to miss out on seeing the very best of Cyprus!