Cyprus was such a fun beach destination for our family! Besides plenty of lazy beach time, we rented the boat for the two days and drove it along the coastline, dropping into various lagoons and snorkeled. It was a dream come true! Our 6 year old son happily quickly figured out how to snorkel quickly and loved swimming around the lagoons (life vest on!) looking at fish. We did this vacation in mid-September, after the crush of summer season was over, but while it was still warm about 30C. I want to go back immediately!
Where we went
We flew into Larnaca, rented a car and drove to our holiday apartment in Latchi on the northwest tip. I didn’t love the drive, about an hour on freeway and an hour on winding roads. But once we were there, it was fantastic. We stayed mainly around Latchi, renting our speed boat and exploring the Akamas peninsula by sea.
Speed Boats & Snorkeling
Our favorite days in Cyprus were when we rented a speed boat and explored various lagoons along the nature reserve coastline. We could drop anchor whenever we want and snorkel around. We have to go back and do this again!
In Cyprus, they don’t require a boating license to rent the boat, unlike other euro holiday destinations. However, you should have experience driving boats, which my husband has. We sped the boat up the coast about an hour and checked out various coves with a straightforward map they provided.
The “Blue Lagoon” was the best spot. We anchored the boat and jumped off to snorkel. I’ve dreamed of doing this but thought with kids, we’d still have to wait for a very long time. But our 10 year old was already a strong enough swimmer to do it. Our 6 year old figured out the snorkel faster than I expected and with a life-vest, he could snorkel all over this lagoon. I was so happy! The fish were small and few but for the boys who hadn’t had much experience underwater, everything was exciting.
The boys’ favorite part was probably the inner tube dragged behind the boat. They got to ride it all up and down the coast, as much as they liked. What a treat. I loved watching their grinning faces bounce around on the waves.
Wave Beach at Coral Bay
We loved swimming in the warm water by our apartment. But the kids wanted some action and the north coast was rather calm. So we drove to Coral Bay on the west coast, where they usually get waves, enough to justify surf rentals on the beach. This beach was very built up, with cafes, umbrella service, and rentals. There were water ski speed boats and jet skis leaving from the beach as well. We rented chairs and an umbrella for the day for about 10 euros. The water was very shallow, nice for our kids, with small waves that day. We also saw tour boats stopping along the cliffs at the edge of the beach where people were snorkeling. This beach had more a summer feel compared to our quiet beach in Latchi.
The coastline near this beach is really beautiful with cliff formations tumbling into the sea. We just wandered on local roads trying to stick to the coast as much as possible and occasionally we got views like this.
Lounging & Snorkeling at Tkakkas Bay
This tiny pebble beach was a surprise favorite. The kids just put on their snorkels and spent hours wading around looking at stuff. I didn’t have to manage them too closely because it was so shallow.
We rented a couple chairs and an umbrella and settled in for a long day in the sun. My husband and I took turns watching the kids so the other could nap and read. So nice!
It doesn’t look very fun in such shallow water but he loved it!
National Park
We were really hoping to explore the wild terrain of the Akamas peninsula, a national park. But the roads are dirt and so rutted, that to explore this area, you really need a 4×4. We only drove in a few km and we were really worried about our rental car. Right at the entrance, there are a couple of beach areas with limited services and the roads are better in this part. But any further and you’re asking for trouble.
Our holiday apartment
We rented a 2Br apartment in this small complex on the beach, The Olympians Latchi Beach Villas, which was quite affordable off-season. It had air conditioning, which we didn’t really need in September, but important for summer. Bugs were a problem outside and we had to keep crumbs under control so we didn’t get overrun by ants and doors/windows closed for other bugs.
It had a small pool, which our kids used night and day.
We loved that our apt was right on the beach, where the kids could easily play in the mornings and evenings and watch the sunset while swimming.
The sand was a little rocky, not great for sand castles. But we managed a drip castle.
We could walk on a beach boardwalk all the way to town (white in the distance) with restaurants and shops.
Yummy Eats
We mostly ate at our apartment. All week we were shopping at little convenience store markets, then the last day found the big normal grocery store, with lots of interesting food. I was so disappointed. So here’s the address: Papantoniou Supermarket Polis 8, Mariou 25, Poli Crysochous, Cyprus. We had driven by it several times but it looks like an empty warehouse from the side.
My husband had seen some good reviews for a little restaurant on the hill, Pavlaras Tavern, and it was great! They do a meat and fish meze, which was so much food (for only 20euros/pp), we couldn’t possibly eat half of it. They just kept bringing plate after plate after plate of yummy mysterious stuff. My favorite was the octopus in a tomato cream sauce (center pic below). It was so tender and flavorful. I want to learn to cook that. No address so here is the GPS: 35°01’49.3″N 32°22’10.3″E
Water Slide Park
To please the kids, we agreed to a day at the Fasouri Watermania Waterpark near Limassol on the south side of the island, about a 90 minute drive from Latchi. It was a great water park but the best part was that it was practically empty in September. We didn’t have to wait in any lines and the boys could stay on certain attractions over and over again without standing back in line. No pics allowed in the park, so here is one from their website. The boys’ favorite part was a bouncy bubble that had a waterfall on top. You could climb up it with a rope, then bounce around and slide down it.
Coastal Drive
After a lazy morning on our beach, we took a little drive along the northern coast toward the Turkish side of the island. It’s a well-protected border and the two sides don’t really like each other. The closer we got, the more insistent the road signs were that we turn around. So we just stopped for lunch and admired the view near Pomos beach. Our lunch was not great, so I will name the restaurant here.
