Ayia Napa sea caves near Cape Greko

Though Cyprus is famous for its beaches, there are not many areas in Cyprus where you would find the sea meeting the land at a beach. Most of the Cyprus coastline is rugged and in some places, there are massive cliffs (like the ones near Episkopi and beyond) and in others, there are small cliffs which are easily accessible for adventure seekers. There are two very popular "sea caves" in Cyprus, one at Ayia Napa and the other at Peyia.
The Ayia Napa sea caves is the more visited one because of its proximity to the party-town of Ayia Napa. These are located almost on the south-eastern end of Cyprus next to Cape Greko/Caveo Greko. They are easily accessible from Ayia Napa, Protaras or Paralimni. This is how you go to the sea caves:

• I assume that you know to reach Ayia Napa. Just look for Ayia Napa on the maps and drive over. Simple.
• Once in Ayia Napa, go towards the McD next to the Luna Park. You should be able to see the Mc D sign/Sling Shot towers in this Luna Park from quite a distance away. A reference to this McD would be a dead-end road by its side which is often used for parking and a mini-golf course right next to it (across this road).
  
• Proceed East on this road i.e. moving in the direction of McD from the luna Park.
• You will come to a T-Junction. You have to take a left here if you want to go the main clubbing area of Ayia Napa. But, we shall leave that for later and turn right at the T-Junction.
• This road will go towards the sea and end at a beach. Take a left at the roundabout and within 10/20 metres, the road will again turn left. take this left turn (taking the mini lane to the right would take you to the sea). This is like taking a very big U-Turn.
  
• Keep going on this road until the road curves right and comes to a round-about.
  
• On this round-about, go straight (third/last exit towards Cavo Greko).
• After some distance, you will come to a t-junction again. Follow the direction of Cavo Greko which in this case is towards the right , towards the sea.
• Keep going on this road, you should see a small sign saying "sea caves" pointing to the right. This is proper road which branches off to the right, but stays parallel to the main road for a distance. On this road, after some time, a small earthern road turns to the right. The road (not really a road) looks real bad, but is ok to drive on. Drive on straight towards the sea and you should see the sea caves on the right.

These caves are the result of millions of years of the sea pounding on the cliffs and making inroads into the walls of the cliff. You can climb down to sea level at the east end of the cliff and walk close to the walls and explore many of the caves which have formed. Some are them go in quite deep and you have to be sure-footed to explore them.

For those who are afraid of clambering over the rocks to climb down, there is an easier way, just jump off the cliffs into the water. This is a very popular activity here and is supposed to be pretty safe. The water is quite deep and crystal clear. So, as long as you have your orientations right, you can jump quite comfortably into the clear water avoiding the rocks.

This place is a great one for photography enthusiasts. You have numerous crevices with which you can explore your creative photography skills. Also, the sunset at this place is amazing. If you have the patience and the "foothold" to climb down and get into the caves, you can get some really nice pictures at sunset.

For the adventurous, once you climb down, you don't have to climb up the same way again. You can walk along with cliffs and climb up at the other end, though it is bit of a struggle at some places.

A few minute drive away from the sea caves is official south-easternmost point of Cyprus. You cannot go to that exact spot, as there are some military antenna installations there. But, you can go to the top of the hill right next to it for amazing views of the Ayia Napa coast. There is even a short nature walk from the top of the hill which takes you to further cliffs by the sea.

If you have time left after visiting the Ayia Napa sea caves, you can drive over to Konnoi bay, only a short distance away and maybe even walk to the cyclops cave. Other places of interest nearby: Protaras Aquarium (Ocean Aquarium), the Dancing Waters musical fountain in the Protaras tourist area.

Enjoy!

If you found the above post interesting, why don't you subscribe by email to receive updates. You will receive a mail whenever a new post is put up!

Cyclops Cave in Konnos Bay near Ayia Napa

Cyclops cave is a small cave which can be reached after a comfortable 1.5 km walk from Konnos bay. The cave has 3 to 4 "rooms" and you can find many stalactite formations in this cave. The walk to this cave is a steady walk without much ascent and even kids can be taken along for this walk.

There are numerous spots on this walk overlooking the sea which are ideal for a small picnic. You can also climb down to the sea at many sections of the walk. Also, the route to the cave follows the cliff walls closely and you will be able to see the effect of the wind on the cliff walls. There are interesting rock formations on the cliff walls which provide for a good photo opportunity.

Konnos bay is sometimes referred to as Konnoi bay on the maps. It is located to the east of Ayia Napa between Cape Greko (Cavo Greco) and Protaras. Konni Bay is a beautiful wind-swept bay which is almost like a secluded beach. You have to go down the slope from the main road through some hairpin bends to reach the beach. The setting of this beach is amazing.

Directions to Konnoi Bay/Cyclops cave:

• I assume that you know to reach Ayia Napa. Just look for Ayia Napa on the maps and drive over. Simple.
• Once in Ayia Napa, go towards the McD next to the Luna Park. You should be able to see the Mc D sign/Sling Shot towers in this Luna Park from quite a distance away. A reference to this McD would be a dead-end road by its side which is often used for parking and a mini-golf course right next to it (across this road).
  
• Proceed East on this road i.e. moving in the direction of McD from the luna Park.
• You will come to a T-Junction. You have to take a left here if you want to go the main clubbing area of Ayia Napa. But, we shall leave that for later and turn right at the T-Junction.
• This road will go towards the sea and end at a beach. Take a left at the roundabout and within 10/20 metres, the road will again turn left. take this left turn (taking the mini lane to the right would take you to the sea). This is like taking a very big U-Turn.
  
• Keep going on this road until the road curves right and comes to a round-about.
  
• On this round-about, go straight (third/last exit towards Cavo Greko).
• After some distance, you will come to a t-junction again. Follow the direction of Cavo Greko which in this case is towards the right , towards the sea.
• Keep going on this road, you should cross the Ayia Napa sea-caves sign (pointing to the right). Keep going and you should cross another exit towards cavo greko which is the one leading to the lookout point on top of the "obviously" visible hill on your right.
• The exit to Konnos Bay (on the right) is approximately 2kms from the exit to the Cave greko hill. Another landmark for Konnos Bay is the Grecian Park Hotel.
• Don't drive all the way down to the beach if you plan to go to the cave. Around half-way down, you will come to parking lot with a clear sign saying "Cyclops Cave 1.5 km" or something like that. (it has been more than 2 yrs, so i forgot what is said on the sign).

Hope that this information was useful and you found it to be a nice walk. If you have time left after visiting the cyclops caves, you can drive over to the Ayia Napa sea caves, only a short distance away. Other places of interest nearby: Protaras Aquarium (Ocean Aquarium), the Dancing Waters musical fountain in the Protaras tourist area.
Enjoy!

If you found the above post interesting, why don't you subscribe by email to receive updates. You will receive a mail whenever a new post is put up!

Undersea Walk in Protaras, Cyprus

For a person who is scared of 4 feet of water, this could easily rate as the most adventurous thing I have ever attempted. An Undersea walk sounds very frightening, but it is not. It is fun and the guides ensure that you enjoy each and every minute of the 25 minutes you spend underwater. I would give this 10 stars on a scale of 5 !! The only reason you can skip this is, if you are an accomplished scuba diver. Other than a scuba diver, i doubt that one can ever experience something similar.

This establishment is supposed to be the only one of its kind in Europe and it is there is two places in Cyprus, one in Protaras and another in Pafos. The only difference is that, for the one in Protaras, you are taken by a boat a little distance offshore and then lowered to the sea bottom using a ladder whereas in Paphos, you just walk from the shore. We chose the Protaras one for the extra 0.5 metre depth which you go there and also for some shopping in the Protaras tourist strip. Go near the McDonalds at the start of the tourist strip and then give a call to them to uide you.

The guide take photos and also videos of the group and also of individuals. You are taken around for a walk on the sea floor and spend a long time feeding the fishes. We also saw a fish which feeds on the smaller ones which resulted in the smaller ones being nervous and not feeding well (for some time) on the bread we offered. The first video below is that of Vidhya and me and the other one is that of the friends we went along with (on our dive). We split into two groups of four, as the maximum number on a particular walk/dive was only 6 and we were 8 of us. So, the braver 4 amongst us went on the first walk :-)

Some lessons learnt from our trip which might help you get the most out of your experience:

• The actual price is 28 CYP per person. If you are in a group of around 6, ask for a discount.
• The video which the guides take is amazing, but the photos are not that impressive because they take mugshots of you(see below) without much of a background, which could have been taken in the studio as well. So, inform them before that you want wide-angle shots with the full-you in the picture and also the background. They don't take photos when you are feeding the fishes (they say that the fishes get in the way and your faces are not shown), but request them to take such pictures. It is after-all a digital camera and you don't lose anything.

• There is a code where the guide shows a thumb-up sign and you return the sign if you are ok. He takes the photos when you go for a walk. When he does the thumbs-up sign then, no need to return the sign always. Otherwise, you will end up with 90% of your photos with you showing the thumbs-up sign!

• Take lot of water with you. Though it is ironical that you feel thirsty after spending 30 mins inside water, it is true. The establishment doesn't sell anything on the boat. It actually makes good business sense to sell water/drinks, i don't know why they aren't doing so.
• Don't forget to borrow the snorkeling kit and try snorkeling by the side of the boat (i.e. if you have split into more than one grp and have to wait on the boat). The other group tried this and according to them, the view is unparallelled.

Some more photos:

Some screen captures from the video:

The details:

• Call Christine/Rob on 99-563506 to make a booking. Better to book at least a couple of days in advance. Don't forget to mention that you found the details through "raja's website triptocyprus.com" :-)
• It costs 28 CYP per person. Ask for a discount if have a big group.
• The photos/videos on a CD cost 5 CYP per person. If you yourself have a camera with an underwater housing, it is the best!
• They are planning to operate in Protaras until end of October and they will reopen next year in April. The one in Paphos is expected to operate for a little longer into winter.

If you are interested in similar adventurous activities, you could try the submarine ride to Zenobia Shipwreck or the Dune Buggy Ride.

Technorati Tags: underwater sea walk snorkeling protaras cyprus larnaca

If you found the above post interesting, why don't you subscribe by email to receive updates. You will receive a mail whenever a new post is put up!