The oldest city in Cyprus - Larnace / Cyprus

The oldest city in Cyprus - Larnace

Larnaca has a reasonable claim to being the oldest city in Cyprus, with evidence of habitation up to 6000 years ago.

Modern Larnaca, like other Cypriot coastal towns, is divided into an older city center and a wide sprawl of hotels and restaurants along the beach.

Larnaca is a thin ribbon of a town and you can walk around most of it. The seaside Larnaca Promenade (Phinikoudes) is particularly pleasant for a stroll in the evening.

By law, taxis should charge by the meter, but many cabbies will refuse to use it. Metered fares should be 65 cent; to get in plus 22 cent/km, night surchages apply after midnight.

What do do in Larnaca?
For divers the main reason to come to Larnaca is the wreck of the Zenobia , a ro-ro ferry that sunk in 1980 on her maiden voyage only a few hundred meters from the harbor due to a fault in the ballast computer. Fully laded with trucks and their cargo, the ship now lies on its side at a depth of 42 meters, with the top of the wreck at 18m and thus easily accessible even to PADI Advanced Open Water divers. If your flight comes in right, you can even see the shadow of the wreck as you land at Larnaca airport!

Try not to starve
Often, eating in Larnaca can be quite expensive. However, if you're travelling on a budget, there are a few bargains to be had. Possibly the cheapest way is by grabbing a hotdog at the 'Enjoy... Finikoudes' kiosk on, you guessed it, Phinikoudes Avenue. Hotdogs are just €1 and are rather enjoyable. If you prefer to sit down for a meal, try Ocean Basket (also on Phinikoudes Avenue) where a huge, tasty serving of Fish and Chips will set you back just €5.95, which is comparable to (if not less than) the price of a meal at the likes of Phinikoudes' McDonalds or KFC, which are also useful places for eating on a budget, even if they do lack that local touch.

The beaches of Larnaca are littered with identikit seafood restaurants catering to tourists. The easiest way to find a good place is to simply walk along until you find a restaurant packed not with tourists, but with Cypriots!

And don't forget about drinking a lot
In the city centre an area just off the main promenade called "Laiki Yeitonia" fulfils the need for most Bars and Small scale Nightclubs. Club Deep is the most popular of these, along with Times.

Driving about 15-20 minutes away from the City Centre to the East in the direction of Ayia Napa is the Larnaca-Dhekelia Road. This is the main 'strip' for high quality hotels, nightclubs, bars, etc, and is where most British Tourists can be found.