A walking holiday on Cyprus

I have been on six inntravel holidays before and hope to go on many more. But this was the first I was a bit disappointed by. The core problem I think is that it simply doesn't appear to be possible to get 'off the beaten track' in Cyprus - which is what I have loved about all my previous Inntravel holidays. Even though we were in what were supposed to be two of the most remote areas of the island, wherever we went we still encountered a lot of dispiriting low-grade touristic tat - the island is dominated by the English presence, so that you often feel you are in Blackpool-on-sea - except when you are seeing signs for fake apartments designed to sell EU citizenship to Russians. Only on the final walk on the goatsherd trail did we really feel we had the Inntravel experience of getting away from things. We chose this holiday for the Roman mosaics in Paphos and in hope of early April sunshine. For some customers the fact that you can speak English everywhere may be an advantage, but I think if you do choose to retain this holiday option some franker account of the reality of Cyprus and the accommodation on offer may be necessary. We still had a great time together, despite the bad weather.

We very much enjoyed our stay in Cyprus, particularly the walks, which were varied, had spectacular views, and were just the right level of challenge for us. The route descriptions were really clear and accurate. We were lucky to have arrived just after some fairly wet weather, and the flowers, especially orchids, were in full bloom and spectacular. Mid-March seems a really good time to go - we had lovely warm weather - and there weren't many other people about. Perfect! We enjoyed our stay in Tavros Apartments too: very welcoming and friendly, well-equipped and comfortable. The pool looked tempting - but not quite enough for us to risk it, though. We had very good meals in Neo Chorio ("Kouppas"), Latsi ("Molos" - on the harbour front) and Argaka, just north of Polis ("The Half Way House"). 

The local maps for the Nature trails are particularly interesting with plant names.

Again we had a lovely holiday and everything worked well. However we felt that Inntravel were offering this holiday too early in the season. There were no taverna's open in the villages on the walks as suggested (we didn’t expect them to be open), we asked at Lofou if some would be open and they advised us that this was the case but none were! Even the cafe in Lofou was closed. When arriving at the Travros Hotel Apartments we were told only 1 taverna in the village was open and unless we booked we would be turned away! We found nearly everywhere that the menu was very limited as the season had just started and numbers were few, this was understandable but disappointing. We loved Cyprus and indeed were surprised by what it had to offer, yet the above points mentioned did detract from it being a great holiday.

Lofou has actually more to offer than the notes suggest. There are two other tavernas, a bar and a shop. More emphasis on the delights of the Pafos mosaics - they were fabulous.

My third holiday with Inntravel and again they came up trumps. I hadn't really wanted the responsibility of a car but the driving was really easy and worth any effort for finding the gem of the delightful, welcoming, family-run Lofou Taverna which offered true authentic rural hospitality in the most peaceful of settings. Nothing seemed to be too much trouble, every request treated with spontaneous willingness. I would strongly recommend the local wines from the taverna wine list and the pomegranate juice was just amazing. Lovely unspoiled countryside and almost deserted roads. Favourite walk: Puziari and Kaledonia Trails - the latter section very pretty although a bit busier.

Neo Chorio was busier overall, particularly the coastal path with 4-wheel drive access rather spoiling it although the tracks inland were very quiet. For eating, beyond Tavros' excellent breakfasts, I would recommend the welcoming Stone Castle taverna in the village (accompanied by an entertaining street-show by the local cat and dog population) and Nicandros by the marina in Latchi for seafood. You won't go hungry.   

Really enjoyed our first trip to Cyprus and very impressed with Inntravel service and would recommend to friends.

We both really enjoyed our first time in Cyprus, travelled here the beginning of April which was an ideal time as it wasn't too hot to walk in - 23 degrees.  We enjoyed the Pouziari and Kaledonia Trail the most - especially the first bit of this through the pine trees. Also worth doing the driving tour through the Marathasa Valley - beautiful scenery.  

We found March was a lovely time for our first visit to Cyprus. Clear blue skies,and wonderful views during the day. We knew at this time of year we would be trading balmy evenings and a full range of facilities for tranquillity and comfortable temperatures for those uphill hikes!

Fantastic walks in beautiful countryside, but you make your choices.  In late season it is a pleasant temperature for walking during the day and there are few people out on the trails, but many of the tavernas are shut for winter and it gets very cold after dusk.

We thoroughly enjoyed our walks from both locations and consider November to be a suitable month to have a walking holiday in Cyprus.

An excellent well-organised holiday with accurate, almost step-by-step directions for both walking and driving.  It took us well away from the standard tourist areas and enabled us to see some stunning countryside. Staying in an Agrovino gave a real taste of Cyprus and its people. A holiday that we really enjoyed and will remember.

Excellent hospitality at local taverna in Neo Chorio. Good restaurant at harbour in Latchi named Molos.

This was our fifth Inntravel holiday and we were not disappointed. It is clear that Inntravel must invest some time and effort into selecting the locations and accomodation as they are always first class, the hosts always friendly and welcoming and the food to a good standard. There is also usually some contrast between the locations and walks which makes for a more interesting holiday. The walking instructions were well written and accurate and we enjoyed all of the walks. We were well impressed with Cyprus and would certainly consider returning at some point. 

Like everyone else, we enjoyed very much the Kaledonia trail and the leaf fall and deciduous colours were lovely.

The winery at Ayia Mavri Kolani should be stamped on your itinerary as a must do. Lovely family, lovely wine and open on a Sunday!!!!

LEMESOs is hardly mentioned but we think it is a must do trip. The marina is fabulous and the beach promenade is worth the walk. Not exactly byzantine architecture, but great for a people-watching, but a  break from the  abandoned terraces and churches if that’s what melts your butter.

Travel to New Chorio. Lots of options. We chose the Paphos route and, in fact, travelled up the Akamas trail in our hire car. That was our choice, but it might be worth mentioning that it is not a recommended route and should only really be attempted in a 4 x4. We survived but it was scary/fun.  Turtle beach was lovely. This trip was very much off road and not for the faint hearted.

At Neo Chroizo, we feel you need to mention that Polis is only two minutes down the road from Latchi with a broad choice of eating places. More importantly, there is a fresh bakery where one can stock up on picnic eats.

Overall we had a very nice time. The weather was great, but Cyprus is still hurting from the banckruptcy and we heard this a lot. That didn't impair our enjoyment and if some of our ratings are a bit harsh, we are only being honest.  There is lots of accommodation in Cyprus and I think Inntravel could do well to offer some alternatives for those who might want something a little more luxurious. Having said that, I also think that the holiday offers much more of a glimpse of the real Cyprus than a week in Coral bay does. Unfortunately, there is not much one can do about the parched lnadscape which  was unable to provide much variation. However, the sunny days will make the UK winter a little more tolerable.