There are many places to visit and things to do in Larnaca (also written as Larnaka), the coastal city on the souther part of Cyprus and its third largest city after Nicosia and Limassol.
I had 24 hours in Larnaca in December and explored many beautiful places. This post will cover my experience and will be helpful for the visitors who are planning a trip to Cyprus in-sha-Allah.
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How to Arrive at Larnaca, Cyprus via Qatar Airways?
Since we are living in Middle East (Salalah, Oman), we started our journey for Cyprus from Salalah with a connecting flight at Doha. The airline was Qatar Airways and it is one of the best options to fly with.
Larnaca Airport
Larnaca International Airport is the largest and one of the two international airports in Republic of Cyprus; the other one is Paphos International Airport. The distance between these two airports is more than a hundred kilometers by road.
Ercan International Airport, which is mentioned at many places as the third airport in Cyprus, is at the Turkish administrated part of the island and is not recommended for arrival or departure in case you want to visit the southern part. There is a border between the northern and southern part and a passport is required to travel from one part to the another.
Best Way to Explore Larnaca
There is a public bus system in Larnaca but Rent a Car is the best option to explore Larnaca on your own if you have 24 hours in Larnaca. In this way you can visit the best places in the city, without wasting time.
Renting a Car in Larnaca
We rented out a small car in Cyprus via Budget Rent a Car. Since it was off season, the price for a week’s renting was merely 54 Euros. The booking was done via the website of the rental company.
When we went to the counter to collect the car keys, the sales man there wanted to sell us various insurance options and the upgraded car models. Insurance, although it wasn’t comprehensive, but was still ample to cover with excess. They tried to inject a lot of fear for the tires and windows damages. However, we just proceeded with the actual booking.
The total cost of the fuel was around 60 Euros for the entire week. We traveled to various cities in Cyprus including Aiya Napa, Larnaca, Limassol, Paphos, Troodos and Nicosia.
Recommended Place for Accommodation in Larnaca
I personally stayed in a quiet neighbourhood in Larnaca, a little away from the touristic spots. Since I had a car, there wasn’t any issue for me to move to the accommodation and to / from touristic place.
I stayed in Kasapis Apartments, which was a clean and nice studio flat for the stay overnight. You can Book Kasapis Apartments on Booking.com.
From this apartment it was convenient to go to Larnaca International Airport or to the other cities in Cyprus. The apartment had ample parking place, so I was not worried about parking my vehicle.
Check the list of hotels and apartments on Booking.com for a comfortable stay in Larnaca.
Places to Visit in Larnaca in 24 Hours
For 24 hours in Larnaca, there are some good activities and things to do. Since I am a Muslim and I am not into clubbing and partying, Al Hamd-o-lilah, this post will not cover anything about this.
My full day plan of discovering Larnaca will focus on places that are the most popular or must see in the city.
Hala Sultan Tekke Mosque
Hala Sultan Tekke (also known as Mosque of Umm Haram) is an Islamic worship place at the bank of Salt Lake in Larnaca, Cyprus built during the Ottoman period. This mosque in Larnaca is built around the tomb of Umm Haram, who was a companion of Prophet Mohammed PBUH.
As this is a place for worship, there is a certain dress code to visit it. Check more details about Hala Sultan Tekke and the Dress code in this post.
Larnaca Salt Lake Trail
There are many points for viewing the Salk Lake. However, its advisable to park your car in the public parking and then walk and explore the place via Larnaca Salt Lake Hiking Trail.
During the walk on the trail you can see the migrating birds, especially Pink Filamangos, for which Salt Lake is famous for. However, the birds can be at a distance from you and you need a binoculars or a camera with good sense to have a closer look. In December, the lake water is lesser and the land of the lake is muddy and can act as quick sand, if you try to go near the birds.
You can walk along Larnaca Salt Lake Trail from the parking to Patticheio Park, and all the way to Kamares Aqueduct. Since we didn’t have much time, we went to all these spots driving the car and not by walking.
Patticheio Park
Patticheio Park is a very nice place for walk. Since I visited in December it was nice time to walk even in day time, but if you are visiting in Summer, its better to walk in the evening. A walk here is really “a walk to remember”.
Park has lots of green trees. On one side of the park, you can find Salt Lake View Point. We didn’t walk to that point as we were short of time. Check: Google Map Location for Patticheio
Kamares Aqueduct (Καμάρες)
Kamares Aqueduct (also known as Abu Bekir Aqueduct Larnaca) is a Roman aqueduct, which is a channel used to transport fresh water from one place to another (usually from the source to the populated area). At that time, this mode of transport for water was an engineering marvel. Check: Google Map Location for the Aqueduct
This is a photo stop, and wouldn’t take more than 5 to 10 minutes. Because of safety, one shouldn’t walk on the top of the aqueduct. There is a signboard nearby, mentioning that there is a falling risk and a fall can result in severe injury or even death.
There are lots of Orange Trees, almost in the garden of all the houses near the aqueduct. During the drive you can notice that too. In December, the oranges were hanging from the trees throughout Larnaca.
Drive on Mackenzie Beach
For me the best part was to see the low flying air planes. Since Makenzie Beach is just next to the airport, this is the spot to see the plane over the beach, which is just about to land.
Larnaca Fort
Larnaca Fort or Medieval Castle of Larnaka is a historical landmark overlooking the sea.
The castle is located at the walking distance from the other touristic site, which are mentioned below in details like Djami Kebir Mosque, Oil Turkish Quarter, Church of Saint Lazarus, Larnaca Pier, Finikoudes Promenade, Larnaca Marnia and Europe Square (Check Google Map Location of Medieval Castle)
The Grand Mosque Larnaca
This beautiful mosque is right next to The Medieval Castle on Eski Tsiarsi Street. (Google Map Location: https://goo.gl/maps/jjQx3VdZZUWrJrkz6) and is called The Grand Mosque Larnaca in English, Jami Kebir in Turkish, Al Masjid Al Kabeer in Arabic.
Djami Kebir Mosque is at ideal location and if you plan a visit to this area either at Zuhr or Asr time, you can pray Qsr and combine both prayers. That’s what I did. Alhumdulilah
The upper floor of the mosque offers stunning view of the castle and the sea through the balcony. Read More about The Grand Mosque of Larnaca here
Old Turkish Quarter (Skala)
Old Turkish Quarter, is a very atmospheric quarter. Wandering through the narrow streets between small houses, each of which has its own story, is highly recommended activity to do in Larnaca. (Check Google Map Location of Old Turkish Quarter: https://goo.gl/maps/qkjwxhUWhcK2U7ne7)
You can walk on these narrow streets till Church of Saint Lazarus (Google Map Location: https://goo.gl/maps/1GXtbKyJj6HuFU3D7). During the walk, you will find a lot of souvenir shops nearby, specially on the way from the church to Larnaca Pier via Pavlou Valsamaki Street.
Larnaca Pier
Larnaca Pier, a raised wooden platform built from the shore of Finikoudes out over sea water, is at a walking distance from the fort and the castle square. (Check Google Map Location of Larnaca Pier)
The pier is a place to stroll, sit on the bench, read a book, or see the awesome view of Larnaca city and the sea.
At the end of the pier, locks are hanged by the visitors on the railings.
Finikoudes Promenade
Walk from the fort to Marina is a great one, where on the right side, the beautiful Finikoudes beach is present and on the left side there are lots of restaurants.
Maqam Al-Sultan Restaurant (Google map Location: https://goo.gl/maps/Xd5ETuzmQvQVvVTt6) is a Lebanese restaurant and one of the Halal restaurants in Larnaca, located on the promenade. However, this halal certification is not mentioned any where, so do your due diligence before eating there. We didn’t eat there, anyways. Allah knows the best.
Larnaca Marina
Larnaca Marina has lots of yacht, most of which were berth in winter. (Check Google Map Location of Larnaca Marina)
Armenian Genocide Memorial Larnaca
Just at the entrance of the marina, you can see Armenian Genocide Memorial monument (Check Location of Armenian Genocide Memorial Site).
This monument marks the spot where Armenian Refugees fleeing prosecution during the genocides of 1915 first landed in Cyprus. It represent the gratitude of the Armenian nation towards the people of Cyprus for their assistance and generosity to those refugees and stands in the memory of countless victims of the Armenian genocide.
Europe Square Larnaca
Like Fort Square, Europe Square is also nearby and located besides Larnaca Municipal Art Gallery (Google Map Location: https://goo.gl/maps/BNL5QFA6YjsGCg6q6)
Round Up
The above guide is an ultimate way to spend 24 hours in Larnaca. These places are nearby each other and in a block of two.
The first block comprises of Hala Sultan Tekke, Salt Lake, Park and Aqueduct, as mentioned above. The other block has the other places on the above list.