Asimina Suites - Paphos - Cyprus

The seat pitch was really good, allowing plenty of leg room from the seat in front, but the plane also seemed to be clean, bright and spacious with some nice mood lighting.

Around Bristol airport and whilst sat on the plane, it was evident that Jet 2 owned the majority of their ground-handling operations as opposed to other airlines who were reliant on 3rd party suppliers and operators, certainly a benefit when you remember the array of airport strikes post-pandemic.

We flew with Jet 2 from Bristol to Paphos, a flight that took nearly 5 hours, flying past Greece to land in Cyprus, north of Cairo, south of part of Turkey and just short of Syria and the Middle East.

We arrived in the evening and our private transfer was waiting to whisk us away, 20 minutes to our hotel in Paphos.

We were staying at Asimina Suites, which is the premium 5 star offering from Constantinou Bros, who also own Pioneer Beach, Athena Royal Beach and Athena Beach hotels.

The check-in process was very efficient and relaxed and conducted in a lounge not far from Reception.

We were served with some fizz and lovely canapes, whilst we were welcomed, formalities taken care of, and the resort and restaurant options were explained to us.

Asimina Suites, as the name suggests, is an all-suite resort and we were lucky to have a One Bedroom Sea View and Sea-Facing suite.

The Suite was lovely and very well appointed, with a large, comfortable lounge, gorgeous bedroom, and an enormous bathroom with a separate bath and walk-in shower and a vast array of complimentary toiletries.

We were happy to see a welcome fruit platter and a bottle of red wine, which we polished off on our nice balcony under a full moon.

Downstairs they do have a little shop, which stocks this house wine and Keo, the local beer, so if you are planning on relaxing in your suite or on your balcony, the little shop offers these products at very low prices, much cheaper than the menu.

The breakfast on offer at Asimina Suites is unbelievable, there is so much choice and the quality is very high. You really need good willpower here, as it is very easy to over-indulge.

For the evening, the hotel has a couple of A La Carte’ restaurants and a Buffet restaurant, but I would definitely recommend booking these before your arrival as they do get booked up well in advance. If the hotel restaurants are full, it is not the end of the world, as it is possible to stroll along the promenade to Paphos harbour where there are numerous restaurants, with many specialising in Seafood.

The walk along the promenade is very easy as it is flat and well lit. Asimina Suites is almost at the end of the promenade, next to Pioneer Beach, so you do get to compare Asimina to the other resorts. Asimina Suites does compare very favourably and the higher quality beach and garden furniture is noticeable.

Along the promenade there are a few beach club/bar establishments if you need refreshments during the walk, which takes about 45 minutes from Asimina Suites to the harbour.

At the harbour, as well as the restaurants, there are shops and bars as well and it does seem to come alive in the evening.

There are some old boats in the harbour and some that offer trips such as fishing and sightseeing and a yellow semi-submarine, which clearly doesn’t go completely underwater.

Here you will also find the old Harbour Castle which was originally a Byzantine Fort built to protect the harbour, but has restored and rebuilt several times since.

There a small entrance fee here, but when you get to the top it does offer some nice views of the surrounding area.

For those that are interested in culture, there is a lot to see in Paphos.

Just a short stroll from the Harbour Castle is the Archaeological Site of Nea Paphos, which is still under excavation.

There is a little museum here and a video explaining the significance of the site, which includes the Paphos Mosaics, the House of Dionysus and the Forty Columns Fortress.

It should also not be forgotten that Paphos is the birthplace of Aphrodite!

There is also the Old Town which is up the hill above the harbour.

This is also well worth a visit and has an array of traditional shops as well as those selling more modern souvenirs as well as cafés and restaurants.

We did walk from the Old Town down to the Harbour, which took a bit longer than I envisaged, but was still ok, but there is also a good bus network locally and the taxis are not expensive.

If you are planning to explore further than Paphos, then of course, car hire is a good option and it is good to know that they do drive on the correct side of the road!

We went in October and experienced blazing sunshine and 30 degree temperatures so the good weather does extend well into the autumn.

To be fair, Cyprus is popular in the winter as well and indeed, Constantinou Bros do offer tremendous bowling facilities in their 4 hotels and have held World Championships there.

A lot of bowling clubs do take groups out there to play other teams, but if you are not keen on bowling, they have a lot of facilities and instructors for dancing.

Paphos and Cyprus in general is a great destination for couples of all ages and families and I would certainly go back, and hopefully back to Asimina Suites.