LIMASSOL, LIMASOL or LEMESOS, is Cyprus' second largest city, its main port and fastest growing metropolis - the result is a clash of the old and the new that often surprises but sometimes disappoints. Limassol has the island's most important historical sites, its most notable old buildings and some of its ugliest suburbs.
Limassol may be second to Nicosia in size but it does have the country's main port, a huge military base nearby and a vigorous tourist industry. The landscape around the city port is of rolling hills that slowly rise from the coastal area to the Troodos Massif in the north, a tamed wilderness and the highest point on the island.
Many tourists on Cyprus holidays find Limassol a great base for exploring the rest of the island. There are plenty of opportunities to escape the main city tourist strip if you want to. To the south of the Akrotiri Peninsula is a large salt lake, colonized by flamingos, and huge beaches that stretch just as far as the eye can see.
To the west is the 15th century Kolossi Castle and, overlooking the bay is Ancient Kourion, one of the best archaeological sites to be found in the Mediterranean. To the east is the remains of the equally striking ancient kingdom of Amathous.
The British feel very much at home on Cyprus holidays - the result of many years of occupation, current sovereignty of the Akrotiri peninsular, and the presence of a large military base. And Limassol's string of all-in luxury hotels, lining the shore's tourist strip, offer the sort of package that will appeal to all-in-hotel holidaymaker.
Limassol beach
Limassol main street
Miles of sandy beach, high-rise hotels, bright lights and bars are the hallmarks of LIMASSOL or LEMESOS, Cyprus's second-biggest city and now a major port. Limassol is a lively resort, even more so in September during the wine festival and Limassol has become the island's centre for wine and spirits.
Much of the old city has disappeared, in earlier times through earthquake and invasion and post-1974 under ready-mix concrete. Following the fall of Famagusta to the Turks, Limassol became the best available port in south Cyprus. A tourist boom led to a major expansion and the city suburbs now extend for about 12km east along the coast.
Hurried, cheap and relatively unplanned development is conspicuous everywhere and the main tourist centre, in particular, can seem like a disfigured mish-mash of bars, restaurants, traffic and ugly neon.
But Limassol has some saving graces - the tiny old city centre is being revamped and gentrified while many restaurants and bars have extended their menus beyond the steak and chips that was the mainstay of the late 1990s.
This is still basically a package holiday tourist town for lovers of the cut-price luxuries usually offered at all-in holiday hotels - pools, pool rooms and cocktail bars.
Limassol Castle
Limassol wine press
Set in attractive gardens on the west side of the old city, the squat, square LIMASSOL CASTLE was built in the 14th century over the remains of an earlier Byzantine fortress.
Its dull outward appearance belies a rich history. Richard the Lionheart put Lemesos on the map when he arrived to rescue his sister and his fiancé, Berengaria of Navarre, who had been shipwrecked here.
Richard defeated the local ruler, Komninsos, married Berengaria in the castle chapel and promptly sold the island of Cyprus to the Knights Templar who held sway for 200 years until the Genoese, then the Saracens, took Limassol and the rest of the island in the 12th and 13th centuries.
Despite the rich history there's not a great deal to see inside the castle. There isn't even a decent view from the roof as the castle is not particularly high. In the gardens is an olive press said to date from the 7th century, though even that doesn't actually belong to the castle; it was found nearby.
You get a better appreciation of the castle in the Limassol Medieval Museum where there are plenty of interesting exhibits, many of them transferred from Nicosia when the northern half of the capital was overrun by Turks.
There are several room with thematic displays that include Ottoman pottery, suits of armour and weapons, religious artifacts and some tombstones. Museum Opens: Mon - Sat 9am - 5pm, Sun 10am-1pm, Entrance fee
Limassol gardens
LIMASSOL GARDENS are a two acre oasis of calm in the centre of the town with many tropical and sub-tropical plants to enjoy.
There are also plenty of benches beneath the shady trees and you can get refreshments at the restaurant.
Visitors can use the kiosk selling snacks and soft drinks and a children's playground is within easy reach. The park is also home to the annual wine festival when it is overrun by merrymaking Cypriots.
Limassol Folk Art Museum
Limassol has a couple of interesting museums worth a visit. Sited at the junction of Vyronos and Kaningos this is the ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM with a collection of ancient artifacts. There is some Mycenaean pottery and various domestic utensils dating from Neolithic times.
More interesting to the non-specialist visitor is the jewellery, glassware and oil lamps but little of real interest unless you are really into this sort of thing.
It's cheap to get in to the LIMASSOL FOLK ART MUSEUM and once inside, some might appreciate why. There is a less than exciting display of traditional costumes, some wood carvings, jewellery and several household utensils. The artefacts are housed in an old mansion at Agiou Andreou, not far from the city centre.
Archaeological Museum Opens: Mon - Sat 9am - 5pm, Sun 10am - 1pm, Entrance fee
Folk Art Museum Opens: Mon - Fri 8.30am - 1.30pm, 3pm - 5.30pm, Entrance fee
Limassol KEO Brewery
Limassol is the heartland of the Cyprus wine industry and visitors have a chance to tour the town's largest distillery at KEO BREWERY.
The plant is on Franklin Roosevelt just beyond the old port and there is plenty of parking outside. Alternatively catch a 19 or 30 bus from the town centre.
The free 30min tour starts at 10am and you get to see the beer and wine vats, the cellars and bottling plant and an interesting talk on making wine, beer, brandy and sherry. The tour ends with a tasting session.
Though you can often just turn up to join the tour it is probably best to book in the high summer as the tours are very popular. Brewery Tour Daily: 10am
Limassol Grand Mosque
Limassol Turkish Hammam
To get a real taste of the Turkish Cypriot culture, visit the GRAND MOSQUE or KEPIR MOSQUE, surrounded by huge palm trees in the old Turkish quarter.
Limassol had a mixed population of Greek and Turkish Cypriots and many returned to Limassol in the 1990s. This mosque was built in Ottoman times. Dress conservatively for a visit and leave your shoes outside.
There are no fixed visiting hours but avoid going at prayer times. For an even better taste of middle-eastern life you could do worse than visit the recently restored LIMASSOL HAMMAM bath house at Loutron, nearby on Genethliou.
It's not actually a tourist site but a working public baths in the old tradition and opens daily 2pm-10pm. Here you can get a steam bath or massage, just the ticket after walking the streets of Limassol.
Limasol waterpark
As a major tourist centre there is plenty in and around Limassol to entertain holidaymakers. One of the latest additions is the TIME ELEVATOR on Vasilissis. It is a virtual ride through a potted history of the island that adds roller coaster thrills to a suitably dumbed down commentary.
Other places place popular with families are the giant water theme parks. There are two in Limassol but the most convenient and popular is the WET 'N WILD water park set back from the tourist strip. There are the usual raft rides and wave pools.
Near Limassol is the huge FASOURI WATERMANIA, the biggest on Cyprus, with about 30 slides set on a 25 acre site.
Time Elevator Opens Daily: 9.30am - 10pm, Entrance fee
Wet 'n Wild Opens Daily: 10am - 6pm, Entrance fee
Fasouri Watermania Opens Daily: 10am - 6pm, Entrance fee
Governor's Beach Camping 2563 2878
Limassol Dassoudi beach
Limassol hotel beach
Governor's Beach
Limassol is not known for particularly good beaches but they are not bad with the sands long and flat and the best parts occupied by regimented lines of sun loungers. Much has been done to make the seafront area reasonably attractive with small parks and green spaces.
Limassol beaches are dominated by all-inclusive hotels, which results in massed ranks of sunbeds along with endless watersports and other beach diversions. If you don't enjoy the crowds or yearn for more than the hotel-pool-beach-pool-hotel walkabout, then you will need a car or bike. For the best sands in the Limassol area, visitors will need a car.
DASSOUDI is the main town beach of Limassol. It's a very long and flat beach of dark, coarse sand and pebbles that stretches about 3km to the east, usually backed by small, well kept parks with plenty of shade, paths and benches.
There are all the usual facilities you expect of a major tourist resort beach, changing rooms, snack bars, restaurants, car parks and lots of watersports.
The name GOVERNOR'S BEACH derives from a former British governor who spent much of his time sunning himself here, such were the onerous demands of high office. The beach is about 30km east of Limassol and well beyond the city tourist strip, but it is still popular enough to get a daily bus service.
The beach lies down some steps well off the main Nicosia/Limasol highway at the bottom of white cliffs, which are in sharp contrast to the dark sand below that gets very hot in high summer. It's a pleasant enough beach with a couple of restaurants and some small hotels. The outlook is spoiled by the presence of the huge Vasilikos power station some 3km towards Lemesos but it is easily enough ignored. There is a campsite here although most of the spaces seem to be filled with caravans rather than tents.
The waters are shallow so it's fine for children and there is an area of spectacular white rocks for those who like snorkeling. There are also many good walks on nature trails in the hills nearby. There are several attractive villages within a short drive including Pentakomo, the interesting and newly discovered Neolithic site at Mesovouni and the monastery of Aghios Georgios Alamanos where the nuns will sell you flowers and plants. There are several small sandy bays here with tavernas above.
Akrotiri road
Akrotiri coastline
The British have a large military base at Akrotiri, southwest of Limassol, thanks to a deal done when the island became independent in 1960. The new-born republic ceded 158sq km of territory on the Akrotiri peninsular and another large area at Dhekelia, west of Ayia Napa. The lands are called Sovereign Base Areas (SAB).
British ex pats occupy virtually the whole of the Akrotiri peninsular and housing layouts are reminiscent of home counties England - they even have cricket pitches. British squaddies use the local beaches and regular punch-ups with locals were notorious before a big clampdown on troop behaviour.
The southern end of the peninsular, near the military garrisons, is out of bounds to visitors but there are giant-sized antennae under which you can drive, though you are not allowed to stop.
Beaches are open to the public and Akrotiri village has a few pleasant tavernas. Villagers here have the dubious privilege of dual nationality. Other than that there are only salt flats, citrus plantations and the beaches.
Lady's Mile Beach
Kourion beach
Kourion beach
LADY'S MILE was named after the horse of a former governor (not the governor of Governor's Beach) who regularly rode his mare here. It is a 7km stretch of undeveloped flat sand that stretches down the east coast of the Akrotiri peninsular from Lemesos port to the RAF base. It is sandwiched between the sea and Akrotiri salt lake behind, a stopping off point for migratory birds and a winter home for thousands of flamingos. It is accessible to the public, though there are no buses.
The beach is made up of a series of parallel sand ridges. There is very little vegetation because the surface is so close the salt water-table so you get very little in the way of shade. The port end of the beach is mostly pebble, but the other end is fine sand with a shallow incline into the water, making it suitable for toddlers and weak swimmers. There are half a dozen restaurants spaced along its length. Normally peaceful, the quiet can be broken by the sound of screaming RAF jets from the nearby base.
Further to the south of Lady's Mille is BUTTON BEACH where small coastal sand dunes have grown and there is some low vegetation. It's an unspoiled area and popular with Cypriots. On the edge of the salt lake is the oddly named Holy Monastery of St Nicholas of the Cats, first built in 327.
It is and so named after the many cats that were bred there to rid the area of snakes. The snakes have mostly gone but there are still plenty of cats to be seen and just four nuns in residence. There is also, not surprisingly, now a cat sanctuary in nearby Akrotiri village.
The eastern side of the Akrotiri peninsular is mostly inaccessible cliffs until you reach the village of Episkopi and KOURION or CURIUM some 17km from Limassol. It's a long swathe of exposed sand and pebble within the British Sovereign Base Area. It is popular enough to get a daily bus service and three big beach tavernas provide facilities for visitors.
The southern end of the beach is unsafe for all but the strongest swimmers and prominent signs warn of the dangers but the northern end is good. Access is easy enough, with visitors driving unsightly 4X4s onto the sands. The main attraction of the area though is the spectacular archaeological site, one of the best and most visited on the island and many combine a walk around the ruins with a day on the sands. (see Limassol sights)
Avdimou beach
Melanda beach
Melanda beach
Pissouri Beach
Pissouri village
Petra tou Romiou
Heading west along the coast leads to several interesting sights. Drivers take the old B6 coast road or the A1 highway depending on their inclination and how quickly they want to reach the resorts. Some 16km west of Kourion beach is AVDIMOU. It is wide and sandy and more protected than Kourion and much safer for swimming, but there is little in the way shade. It is mostly a huge expanse of sand with some stone hugging the shoreline and too big to ever get crowded, though RAF squaddies favour the beach. The sea is shallow here and good for children. There is no bus service though, so a car is needed for a visit. The Kyrenis beach taverna opens in the summer with the usual basic menu.
Near to Avdimou and signposted from the main road is MELANDA BEACH, a small shelf of sand and pebble. It's biggest problem is the seaweed which heaps up on the shoreline at this rather exposed spot. A sandstone bluff at the western end offers some shelter and there is windsurfing and jet skis for the visiting squaddies to play around on. The beach is mostly shingle with some sand at the eastern end. The Melanda Beach restaurant provides facilities but it's mainly fish and chips for the troops.
The most popular beach along this stretch of coastline is PISSOURI BAY, 10km west of Avdimou and midway between Limassol and Pafos. Package tour companies have set up here but it is still a pleasant enough beach. There are two distinct communities. Pissouri village is about 3km up the steep hillside and a working village with a mix of farmers and British ex-pats. Several bars and tavernas now hold popular Cyprus nights and recently the village has added a new theatre.
The beach area is very much a tourist resort, with numbers swelling to more than 1,000 each summer. The centre of the beach is the busiest with a large array of sun-loungers serviced by a narrow paved walkway.
The beach sweeps around the bay for a kilometre in both directions, flanked by low rock cliffs on both sides. It's mainly shingle and pebbles in the middle with sand elsewhere. There are the usual water sports and tavernas.
Pissouri is a popular winter holiday location too with tavernas open for the new year. Holiday villages and apartments are springing up everywhere and the area is in danger of overdevelopment. At the moment though it is still a relatively tasteful resort.
Around 7km west of Pissouri is PETRA TOU ROMIOU (Rock of Romos) also known as APHRODITE BEACH, so called because Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty, supposedly emerged from the sea here - a claim also made by other resorts. The rock is a massive boulder sitting in the sea, though some visitors are confused by the larger fan-shaped rocks at the other end of the beach. The actual Petra tou Romiou is the one furthest west and about 1km from the car park.
The Greek folk hero Digenis Akritas is reputed to have kept marauding Saracens at bay by heaving the rocks into the sea and destroying the enemy's ships. Romios is another word for Greek so the name literally translates as Rock of the Greek.
Apart from looking at a rock there's not much to do, though many come for the spectacular sunsets, best viewed from a tourist pavilion built for the purpose and complete with gift shop.
There is a passable pebble beach here which splays out each side of the rock but it shelves very steeply and strong currents make it one for decent swimmers only. An underground tunnel leads to a cafe and car park across the road.
Kolossi Castle
Kolossi Castle gate
The medieval KOLOSSI CASTLE is a major tourist attraction and it lies about 10km west of Limassol on the edge of the village of the same name. It was the headquarters of the Knights Hospitallers and, despite changing hands any a number of times, the castle is mainly linked to the Hospitallers and to winemaking.
As a castle it's not particularly interesting, more a tower house than a proper fortification There is a rooftop walkway, but even this is in not particularly high and there's not much to see beyond the village.
The present building dates from the 14th century but it was probably built over an earlier structure by Louis de Magnac whose coat of arms can be found on one of the walls. Visitors enter over a drawbridge where there are some large chambers and a spiral staircase leading to the upper level and then to the roof.
The rooms are bare and empty so there's not much atmosphere to the place. There is a small museum and, to the east of the castle, a large, ancient and impressively vaulted warehouse that was once used to store and process sugar cane, an important local export in days gone by.
Open Daily: Jul - Aug 9am - 7.30pm, Sep - Jun 9am - 5pm
Kourion coastline
Kourion theatre
Kourion mosaics
Kourion beach
Hordes of visitors descend daily on the settlement built on a high bluff overlooking the sea. If you prefer not to see it crawling with camera-bedecked tourists it's best to come early morning or early evening.
For much of the day the Kourion is crawling with visitors and many day excursions combine a visit with the nearby Kolossi Castle and the sanctuary of Apollo Ylatis.
A prosperous settlement since 1400BC it was expanded under the Romans and became the centre of an Apollo cult. The site dominated by the magnificent 3,500-seater amphitheatre, built in 5th century AD, and now reconstructed and still in use for open-air music festivals.
The views of the sea, fields and hillside are magnificent. The apostle St Paul is said to have preached here. Nearby is the House of Eustolios which houses some remarkable and well preserved mosaics. Built on the ruins of an earlier palatial private residence, which was destroyed by earthquakes, the present house dates from 4th-7th century AD with more than 30 rooms.
An early Christian basilica also has mosaics as does the House of the Gladiators, so called because of the mosaic motifs of fighters in combat dress.
Kourion, like many other ancient Greek sites, has suffered invasion and earthquake. including a tremors in 365 that reduced much of the area to rubble. Reconstruction has also been haphazard with mismatched columns and other parts looking curiously new. Much of the treasures excavated here are have found there way to museums in the US and Germany.
Open Daily: Jul - Aug 8am - 7.30pm, Sep - Jun 7.30am - 5pm. Entrance free.
Temple remains
About 2km west of Kourion is Apollo Ylatis, the sister site of the ancient Kourion and well signposted off the main road. As Apollo was god of the woods you might expect a few more trees but there is precious little vegetation now and the scattered ruins can look a little forlorn.
The surviving remains are mainly Roman and the site was leveled in the massive earthquake that shook the island in 365. The main sanctuary has been partially restored and looks strangely odd as a result.
Visitors can make out a sports arena, some baths and priests' quarters. There was once a stadium here seating 6,000 spectators but there is little to be seen of it now.
Open Daily: May - Sep 9am - 7.30pm, Oct - Apr 9am - 5.30pm
Episkopi village
This quiet and unassuming village lies about 14km west of Limassol, in an ideal spot to explore this part of the coastline and the various archeological sites. It makes for a good alternative to those who prefer to give the hotel strip of Lemossos a wide berth.
It is a large village of about 4,000 people with a wide variety of tavernas, coffee shops and several minimarkets. It sits around a towering cliff bluff that dominated the landscape. The village has a good museum with lots of terracotta pottery from local archaeological sites that is well signposted off the main road.
Episkopi is about 15 minutes drive time from Limassol to the east and 40 minutes from Pafos tot he west. The beach at Kourion (Curium) is a five minute drive from the village.
Amathous ruins
Once one of the island's ancient kingdoms, AMATHOUS or AMATHUS is now a vast area of ruins that are hardly recognisable as an ancient city.
Scholars are unsure of its origins (some say 300BC) but it flourished until the 10th century. Archaeologists have uncovered an acropolis, temple, forum, harbour, basilica and two necropoles. The temple to Aphrodite dates to 100AD and recent excavations have unearthed city walls and gates.
Most of the important finds have been hauled off to museums around the world. Today, the site looks a desolate mess. Many of the original carved limestone blocks used in building were transported to Egypt or used by neighbouring villages to build homes. But once this was a wonder of the world and one of the reasons Cyprus was once known as Amathousia.
The Amathusia Festival is held each simmer in the spectacular location. A packed programme of cultural events introduces visitors and locals to traditional Cypriot dance and music typical of the region.
There's the wide range of hotels and apartments available in Limassol but almost all of them are spread along the 9km tourist strip and almost all cater mainly for package holiday bookings. There are a few independent small hotels however in the old town with the cheapest to be found to the east of the castle. Though many only have basic facilities they are still good value. More upmarket independent hotels can be found in the northeast of Limassol at the end of the tourist strip.
Limassol has a huge number of restaurants in Limassol and, like the hotels, are strictly divided between Cypriot and tourist. The main beachside tourist strip is jammed with burger and chip restaurants and cheep lager bars while the old town has more authentic Cypriot cuisine at more reasonable prices. Cypriot food is similar to Greek and Turkish meals.
Limassol boasts of being a city that never sleeps and, if the number of discos and clubs is anything to go by it can't be wide of the mark. Visitors can take a pick of watering holes with a different one every night, even on a month-long holiday. The same goes for the clubs, most of them noisy and lively and catering for the younger tourist crowd. There are the usual British style pubs for those missing home.
The city bus station is on Georgiou Gennadiou, near the municipal market, where there are buses to the port, to Kolossi and to the main tourist strip. The Cyprus Tourist office has a useful timetable. There are also daily buses from the castle to Kourion and to Governor's Beach. As for visiting local sights you are best hiring a car. Public services are few and infrequent.
There are daily inter-city bus services to Nicosia from the bus stop north of the castle and services to Larnaka from the old fishing harbour. Daily buses to Paphos leave from the Panikos kiosk on the main promenade and from the old fishing harbour. For details and prices visit the tourist office in the old harbour.
Service taxis are also common with regular runs to Nicosia, Larnaka and Pafos. your hotel will have the details and taxis will usually pick you up from the hotel on the way.
There is no shortage of banks and ATMs in both the city centre and along the tourist strip. Many people will accept English money if a small tip is thrown in.
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Limassol holiday accommodation is mostly found to the east of the Limassol and close to the beach. The resort is only 35 miles west of Larnaca Airport (LCA) and about the same (35 miles) east of Paphos Airport (PFO), where you can fly from most main UK airports and Limassol flights.
Larnaca International Airport is about 7km from the city and there are regular bus services from the airport to the town centre. Intercity buses operate from the town centre with up to 10 buses daily to Limassol. Several taxis firms run service to Limassol and car hire is available.
Paphos International Airport is 8 km southeast of Paphos and a four-lane road is planned to link the airport and Paphos resort. There are regular shuttles that leave soon after scheduled arrivals, and most charter flights have private minibuses. There are plenty of taxis outside the arrivals hall and several car rental companies have small fleets at the airport. A network of bus routes, operated by KEMEK, link Paphos to Limassol from the main bus station in Ano Paphos.
Limassol is the main seaport of Cyprus and several shipping lines operate regular services to Italy, Greece and Israel. The new harbour is to the south of the city with regular bus services (No.1) and taxi connections. There are regular ferry services from the UK - Southampton - Salerno(Italy) - Limassol and Ashod(Israel. Sailings from Greece were suspended in 2001 and it is doubtful the service will resume.
It is easy to get around in Limassol as it is a relatively small city. Limassol has four main roads crossing the city east to west. The most southern road runs parallel to the beach and moving north there is Makarios III Avenue, running through the city centre then the Spyros Kyprianou Avenue, also called Makedonias Avenue and finally the city's northern by-pass which takes traffic to Paphos and Nicosia. The by-pass has reduced Limassol city traffic to a minimum.
Limassol has only a moderate city bus service operated by EAL which runs from 7am to 7pm. Buses travel between all popular resorts but there is no Sunday service. Some companies run guided tours to the interior attractions such as the Troodos mountains.
Intercity buses stop at one of the three main bus stations. KEMEK buses have a terminal at the Enoseos and Eirinis Street, north of the castle, with services to Nicosia, Pafos and Polis. Kallenos buses stop at Araouzou and Hadjipavlou with services to Larnaca and Agia Napa. The third bus station on Andreas Themistokleou is mainly for urban services.
Limassol has a good taxi service and is also connect to major towns by a network of shared-taxi lines. Faster and more frequent than buses but twice as expensive. Shared-taxis have stands in Spyrou Araouzou Street and Thessaloniki Street. Service taxis don't operate after 6pm but popular routes operate to Paphos, Larnaca, Nicosia and Troodos.
There is plenty of car rental in Limassol but it's not particularly cheap. As well as the major international companies like Hertz, Budget and Avis there are also good local companies such as the Petsas Company and Andy Spyrou.
Cyclists are well catered for with several biking trails in the city and the countryside around. Cycles are easily available at rental agencies at modest rates. Limassol Cycle Club has expeditions and mountain biking for tourists and others. Trails for cyclists and walkers are well maintained and signposted.
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