Ancient Castles, Cathedrals, and Historic Buildings
Your tour guide will pick you up from your accommodation.
At St. Nicholas' Cathedral, you will find the fig tree that was planted at the start of the cathedral's construction in 1298 and still grows today. Northern Cyprus has some of the best Crusader castles in the Mediterranean. St. Hilarion Castle was taken by Richard the Lionheart on his way to the Third Crusade. Some say it inspired Disney's Sleeping Beauty castle, with its jumble of defensive walls and towers.
Perhaps the finest of all castles, and not such a steep climb, is Kantara Castle, situated on the neck of that distinctive narrow finger of land, the Karpas Peninsula.
Bellapais is the perfect short trip from Kyrenia and is not too far from the northern resorts.
The village's marvel is the 13th-century Bellapais Abbey, teetering above a sheer 100 ft drop. You enter one of the most beautiful Gothic buildings in the region along a promenade of palms through a fortified gateway. British author Lawrence Durrell lived in this pretty little village of narrow streets, boutique hotels, and restaurants. He renamed the tree on the main square as 'The Tree of Idleness', settling his characters in its shade in his novel 'Bitter Lemons of Cyprus'. Today, there are two candidates to be the official Idle Tree.
The monastery of the White Cardinals and the impregnable Kyrenia fortress are among the stops you will make during the drive through Famagusta and Kyrenia.
Your tour guide will drop you off at your accommodation.
