Sunsets in Cyprus
One of my favourite European destinations, not just for sunsets but for many other reasons is Cyprus. My love for the island started in my early 20's when it was the mecca for "girls holidays" and I made my friends holiday there consecutively for four years solid. Those days are long gone now (thankfully) but as I grew I remained in love with the island but just migrated to different parts.
In my late 20's, now holidaying as a couple, we moved to the west side of the island and started to stay in the fabulous Aphrodite Hills resort. This is where I first experienced a Cypriot sunset. I became so obsessed with the sunset that I would plan every evening’s entertainment around it. We either had to remain in our west facing apartment until darkness or dine at a restaurant with a west facing outdoor space!
Luckily with a couple of restaurants within Aphrodite Hills and more choice along the coast in Paphos, we never missed a sunset.
We continued to holiday there, even when the children arrived, (we just upgraded to a Villa!) However I started to feel I was missing something bigger and better just around the corner. So this year I decided to stay "around that corner" and holiday further west near the Akamas Peninsula.
The Akamas is situated at the northwest extremity of the island and is mostly inaccessible but for the Lara beach area in the south which is home to the Lara Bay Turtle conservation station. Due to its remoteness, the area is home to an extraordinary range of wildlife, the most well know being the green and loggerhead turtle who lay their eggs on the peninsulas beaches.
To fully explore the area you either need to hire a 4x4, book on a jeep safari or if you're feeling brave tackle the roads on a quad bike! Either way it is a great day out.
A further drive over to the north brings you to Polis and Latchi. It's about an hour’s drive from Paphos so it's worth making a day of it. Latchi is home to the 5* Anassa Hotel, the Baths of Aphrodite and a great selection of fish restaurants around the harbour. The beaches near hear are mainly pebble so make for good snorkelling or for the more adventurous, diving and sailing.
Back to the sunsets.......
Our villa was situated in a very small village called Agios Gerogios, 15 minutes’ drive from Coral bay, 30 minutes’ from Paphos harbour. Having only two restaurants in the village we did venture out further down the coast towards the more tourist areas but discovered a quiet area en route called Sea Caves.
This is where I found my sunset paradise. At Oniro by the Sea, a great little prefab café bar with a very interesting view of a 1966 shipwrecked cargo freighter. It's a vista that divides opinion but I personally love the juxtaposition of the rusting wreck next to the beauty of the waves crashing into the caves. It has a really chilled vibe with soft music, good food, great service and fantastic cocktails. But the piece de resistance is the sunset!
It didn't stop there. A few nights later and a little further along the Sea Caves road we discovered, by accident, a rather unassuming place called Sea Caves Lounge Bar. (I say accident, our six year old twin daughters spotted a playground with trampoline and demanded we take a look!) It was a little rough around the edges and certainly not as polished and "cool" as Oniro but it did have a certain charm and a cracking sea view. It turned out to serve great food at great prices and better still provided the best sunset I'd seen all holiday. A result for everyone!
I'm now in search of the best sunsets a little further afield so expect blogs on Queensland, Key West and the Grand Canyon!