My Cyprus Holiday Highlights

After five days in Cyprus I’m back in London – a little tanner, a little blonder, and a lot more well rested. At the start of last week I got a touch of the stomach flu and the few days before the flight were touch and go. However, once I arrived I started feeling instantly better and I wanted to share with you my Cyprus holiday highlights. The main reason I chose Cyprus and Ayia Napa specifically was because I wanted somewhere in Europe that was still warm in mid October, plus, somewhere that had good scuba diving.  Thus, when I saw the Zenobia wreck and that the weather was in the 80s (30 Celsius) I booked the trip. But because I’m nothing if not competitive, I did my PADI Advanced Open Water Certification in only 2 days, leaving me three to explore.

My first day I slept in and then walked the two miles from my hotel in the center of Ayia Napa to the famed Nissi Beach. Cynically, I thought “well, I’ve to a lot of beaches, this one can’t be that special”. And then I was proven wrong. It’s rated one of the top 10 beaches in Europe and I can see why – the water is crustal clear, the sand is soft, there is a ton of room to wade / swim, there are hardly any waves, and even mid day you can get a chair for 3 euro. I read a book cover to cover and took a break to check out the island in the middle which turned into an unplanned drone photoshoot.  #wheninRome

The second day I had booked a boat tour to see the famous coast line as i didn’t know how much I would see when scuba diving (which was a good call as meaty all of our dives were land entry. The tour was aptly named “Discovery Sightseeing Boat Trip from Ayia Napa” And while it Booked on for a four hour tour with the hotel pickup it was more like five but we had plenty to see! leaving from the Ayia Napa Harbour on a round trip journey that included Konnos Bay, Blue Lagoon, the Sea Caves, Green Bay, and the Agioi Anargyroi Chapel. I’m glad I read the reviews and bought some snorkel gear the night before at the supermarket as there were three swim stops and I would’ve been sad without it! After the boat I checked out the Ayia Napa Statue Park on the way to sunset over Lovers Bridge, truly gorgeous! 

Friday and Saturday were what I came to Cyprus  for – scuba diving. Five dives over two days is a lot, especially as part of a course, but the hysterical but mostly silent instructor Thomas made it a blast making sure I got the most out of every five – from photos with the statues at Green Bay, to exploring caves, and two great dives at the Zenobia wreck. As I was doing my PADI advanced open water certification I didn’t take my underwater camera (you can see past diving here) but here are a few land shots and ones from the instructors go-pro which help bring these Cyprus holiday highlights to life. (And after the fourth dive, the one where I blew through my air because I was so excited about the wreck, he still told me I was “more than qualified”)

(You can shop this cute blue suit and the rest of the look here)

And for my last day I decided to see a bit more and went on an ATV adventure around Ayia Napa.  This adventure was supposed to be a planned affair but when I showed up they handed me back my payment in cash as I was the only person who had signed up.  Thus, I rented a bike at a different shop and when on a self guided tour of East Cyprus – driving to Cape Greco and hiking to the top, seeing the famous hidden Agioi Saranta Cave Church, and stopping by Fig Tree Bay.  After returning the bike I went back to my hotel and read for a bit by the pool before it was time to go to the airport. All in, a great trip

Which of these Cyprus holiday highlights do you want to see more of?