Cyprus?

[RoadDonk82]

Anyone with experience cycling in Cyprus?
We are considering going there for a while. The mountains very close to the shore look very tempting. On the other hand I see may people online saying that drivers are crazy and it's very dangerous to cycle there. How is it in your experience? What would be the best base? We are thinking about Paphos as the first destination.

Are early spring months good time to go? We would like to avoid extreme heat or big crowds (the fewer cars on the roads the better).

[lukaszzsch]

I’ve been to Cyprus in March 2022 for cycling camp. We stayed at Limassol and were riding every day to the mountains. Unfortunately that year was absolutely nightmare regarding to the weather, temperatures were exceptionally low, in the mountains there was a lot of snow and we were forced not to climb on Olympus.
Although I have Wery good memories and none of opinions about craziness of local drivers I would agree.
The quality of roads was quite acceptable(I’m Polish so nothing special there).
Generally I would return and even consider it to reach missing Olympus.

If you interested I have a bunch of interesting routes from mentioned camp.

[CR987]

I can tell you without doubt Cyprus is INCREDIBLE for cycling. You can get on your TT bike and ride for 60km without interruption along the coast or you can head inland and start climbing. The cars are incredibly courteous, cycling is fairly low key there so car drivers don't have the hatred that they do in other countries.
They have a network of highways which link up all the cities and towns which leaves all the *old roads" completely empty for cyclists. The roads are in fantastic condition which is the complete opposite of the rubbish I found in Como last year.
I was there in April and it was 30 degrees celcius and I'm going again in 2 weeks.
It will snow up in the mountains (2000m elevation) in winter.
It's a terrific destination for cycling, ultra safe concerning road traffic but also with crime. You can safely leave your bike outside a coffee shop and nobody will touch it. I have left my backpack, bicycle and laptop on the beach while I went to grab a sandwich, no worries.

[RoadDonk82]

The quality of roads was quite acceptable(I’m Polish so nothing special there).
Generally I would return and even consider it to reach missing Olympus.

If you interested I have a bunch of interesting routes from mentioned camp.

Hi there, I am Polish as well! I would be interested in the routes. I will also PM you so maybe we can keep in touch and exchange experiences.

I can tell you without doubt Cyprus is INCREDIBLE for cycling. You can get on your TT bike and ride for 60km without interruption along the coast or you can head inland and start climbing. The cars are incredibly courteous, cycling is fairly low key there so car drivers don't have the hatred that they do in other countries.
They have a network of highways which link up all the cities and towns which leaves all the *old roads" completely empty for cyclists. The roads are in fantastic condition which is the complete opposite of the rubbish I found in Como last year.
I was there in April and it was 30 degrees celcius and I'm going again in 2 weeks.

Wow that sounds terrific! What part of the coast do you mean? Would Paphos be a good base (looking at Strava it seems there are many mountain roads from there).

[CR987]

I stay in Larnaca which has a 60km route up to Stavrovouni Monastery or 105km loop up to Lefkara and Stavrovouni on the way back. Fantastic routes, two great climbs and lots of lumps along the way. Also, completely empty roads.

From my base I cam do an uninterrupted TT along the coast to Limassol. There and back is 120km but you can turn round whenever you want.

I also ride up to Mt Olympus 125km all the way up or 60km along the coast to Limassol and then 65km straight up to 2000 metres. I normally ride one way, spend the day up there and come down the next day. Again, off the main road and through the villages the roads are completely EMPTY but lots of shops along the way where you can top up with water and lots of coffee stops. Cyprus survives on coffee!
Paphos would be a great base but I haven't ridden on that side of the island

[CR987]

Anyone can feel free to DM me and I will send you Strava routes

[RoadDonk82]

Anyone can feel free to DM me and I will send you Strava routes

Thank you for your answer. We are thinking about going to the west of the island first. I will make sure to pm you if we are around Larnaca.

[diecast]

I visited Paphos 5 years ago. I don't know if it's changed since then but I think it's a decent option for cycling if you're looking for an alternative to the usual Mallorca, Tenerife, Gran Canaria etc. and you want to extend the northern European season with some better weather.

As a cycling destination it's nowhere near as developed as those places. Whilst there were a few cyclists about when I was there, it was nothing remotely like the large numbers you in the Spanish islands. However there were a couple of bike hire shops. It might be worth checking out their websites for routes.

Cycling through the built up areas north of Paphos was a bit stressful, and the coast roads were reasonably busy but once inland and in the mountains the traffic was almost non-existent and drivers considerate. For the most part the road surfaces were very good, but of course like anywhere, if you look for it you can find potholes or gravel.

I went in early March. It was very cold up Olympus (people were skiing) but ok everywhere else, mostly short sleeves. I also remember a good ride to a place called Stavros tis Psokas. I only did an out-and-back from Paphos via Kathikas and Skoulli, but you could do a loop. I remember the road being extremely quiet and after Skoulli, there was a scenic climb through pine forests and I didn't see a single person.

Paphos itself was quiet due to being out of season. I don't think the nightlife gets going there until Easter, which can be a good or a bad thing depending on your point of view. My impression was that most of the other tourists there at that time of year were of retirement age. The food was good and the locals were friendly and welcoming.