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Contrasts of Cyprus Walking
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Contrasts of Cyprus Walking
8 Days Excluding Flights
8 Days from
£ 719 £ 809
Walking & Trekking
Activity Level
Easy & Moderate See our Activity Level Guidelines to check if this holiday is right for you.
Ways to Travel :
Self-Guided Holidays
Activity :
Walking & Trekking
Group Size :
6
Ages :
12+
Trip Code :
W07YA
Overview
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This self-guided multi-centre walking holiday combines the best walking in Cyprus – with routes in the Troodos Mountains and the Akamas Peninsula.

Start off the week in the Troodos Mountains and the stone-built village of Kakopetria, with its narrow, cobbled streets and the nearby 11th century painted church, Agios Nikolaos tis Stegis, one of ten that make up a UNESCO World Heritage Site of Painted Churches in the Troodos Region. Enjoy fabulous views across the Solea and Marathasa valleys to the sea as well as the northern slope of Mount Olympus – the highest point in Cyprus and home to both a long-range British radar installation and a ski resort in winter.

The next part of your trip heads towards the Northwest and Droushia with walks across the Laona Plateau with its picturesque stone-built villages. There’s also the possibility of visiting a local winery. Enjoy fabulous panoramic views as you head towards the coast at delightful Lara Beach and the dramatic Avakas Gorge Nature trail. As your luggage is transported to your final hotel, you’ll walk from Droushia to the Baths of Aphrodite cave, enjoying spectacular views of Cyprus’s Northwest coast with the whole of Chrysochous Bay laid out before you, from the northwest tip of the island at Cape Arnaoutis, all the way to Pomos village in the northeast. You’ll also walk stretches of the Smigies, Adonis and Aphrodite Trails with stunning views from the Moutti tis Sotiras peak and enjoy a walk along the North coast, visiting some of the best beaches and coves including Fontana Amoroza, the Blue Lagoon, Manolis Beach and more.

Highlights

  • Enjoy fantastic panoramas of the island from the Troodos Mountain trails, including views of Mount Olympus
  • A mix of walking in the mountains with traditional villages, stunning beaches and coastal walks
  • Visit UNESCO World Heritage churches, the Blue Lagoon and the Baths of Aphrodite cave
  • Some of the walks have longer or harder options, giving walkers a choice to do an average of 10km or 20km each day

Key Information

  • 7 nights in 3 star hotels, all rooms en suite
  • 5 or 6 days of walking - longer/shorter options most days
  • Luggage transfers
  • Walking transfers on days 4 and 5
  • GPS Navigation App

What's Included

  • All buffet breakfasts
  • All accommodation (see accommodation section)
  • Walking transfer on days 4 and 5
  • GPS Navigation App

What's Not Included

  • Travel insurance
  • Single accommodation (available on request - compulsory supplement)
  • Solo traveller supplement (where only one person is travelling on a departure date)
  • Visas or vaccinations
  • Travel to the start and from the end point

People, Places & Planet

We work hard to create trips which improve life for the people and places we visit and look after the planet we explore. Find out more about our sustainable travel ethos and practice here, and find out about the work of the Exodus Travels Foundation here.

Some sustainable travel highlights of this trip include:

People

How this trip helps improve life for local communities.

  • This trip brings income and opportunity to the destination community through the inclusion of locally-owned hotels, restaurants, transfer companies and places of local interest, as well as the emphasis on eating locally produced food and support of other local enterprise.
  • Exploration on foot highlights the combination of culture and natural heritage in the Troodos region of Cyprus. The local communities and villagers in these regions can play a role as the guardians of nature and the cultural heritage of Cyprus, which necessitates that they earn enough income to sustain their presence in this area.Some of the routes pass very near family-owned wineries (close to Omodos village as well as to Mandria village and Kato Platres village). The route also passes through a number of traditional villages, most notably Omodos, where many family-owned little shops are found, selling largely locally produced goods, including traditional food products, glass artefacts etc.
  • This trip helps bring income and opportunity to destination communities particularly during low and shoulder seasons, when traditionally tourism income would decrease.
  • The Laona Plateau (next to Akamas peninsula) experienced extensive emigration from the 1950’s, when many of the inhabitants migrated abroad for economic reasons. The villages managed to keep their architectural heritage and consist largely of traditional stone-built houses. There is a growing pressure in recent decades towards developing the coast of the Akamas peninsula (significant areas of coastal land belong to people coming from the Laona Plateau villages). Exploration on foot highlights the combination of culture and natural heritage in the Akamas region of Cyprus. The local communities and villagers in these regions can play a role as the guardians of nature and the cultural heritage of Cyprus, which necessitates that they earn enough income to sustain their presence in this area.Some of the routes pass very near family-owned wineries (close to Kathikas village). The route also passes through many stone-built villages, including Kretou Terra and Kathikas which has a good selection of Cyprus food tavernas. 
  • The provision of local information in customer documentation means our customers will be well informed about local traditions, and cultural and social sensitivities.

Places

How this trip helps protect and conserve local landscapes and nature.

  • Read about our commitment to nature protection and restoration here, including our rewilding commitment for every customer who travels.
  • By travelling independently or in a small group, you ‘tread lightly’ minimising your trip’s impact on local resources and the environment.
  • This trip visits the Troodos Forest National Park and the Akamas Peninsula National Park which help incentivise and fund continued conservation efforts. Some routes are on popular trails but most routes are on dirt tracks that don’t see many visitors.
  • Stretches of the route pass through vineyards and orchards that have been cultivated in Cyprus for thousands of years. The Troodos mountains and the Akamas peninsula are areas rich in biodiversity. Out of the 150 or so endemic plant species found in Cyprus, most are only found in the Akamas Peninsula or in the Troodos mountains. The Troodos mountains (especially Paphos Forest, but as time goes by also the forest further east) are home to the endemic Cyprus mouflon (a type of wild sheep). The trip itinerary stays off the beaten track in the Troodos mountains and Akamas peninsula areas with their small villages thus helping to minimise degradation caused by over-tourism. The Akamas coast is free from development and the stretch east of the Akamas north coast has, so far, escaped the construction of a big number of hotels or of many villas, that is typical of the tourist centres of the island.
  • We work with our partners on the ground to proactively eliminate or reduce waste.
  • Our trips adhere to ABTA’s industry-leading animal welfare guidelines to ensure the best possible practices with regard to working animals and wildlife viewing. Our animal welfare policy can be found here.

 Planet

How we seek to keep the carbon footprint of this trip low.

  • Read about our climate action here, including our carbon reduction and compensation commitments.
  • We seek to minimise the carbon footprint in the following ways:
    • Favouring smaller, locally-run accommodation and eco-hotels, versus big hotel chains which have a bigger impact on the surrounding environments.
    • The majority of accommodation and restaurants in the itinerary use locally-sourced food which has not been transported long distances.
    • Vegetarian options are available at the majority of accommodation and restaurants.
  • The local operator has been involved in designing and implementing a reforestation effort (on a 7.2 hectare family-owned plot, with mostly wild olives and hawthorn). They are planning to develop this into an agrotouristic/ecotouristic project where visitors would be able to cultivate a number of indigenous trees and explore the cultural and natural attractions in the area (in the Xeros Potamos Valley). The goal is for this venture to be a good example of the use of private rural land in Cyprus and abroad.

 Tips for sustainable travel on this trip

  • Leave no trace: We do all we can to ensure we leave no rubbish behind in the wild and beautiful places we visit; we ask that you do the same. If there are no recycling facilities in-country, we’d ask you to consider bringing recyclable materials home with you.
  • Plastic waste reduction: Please bring your own re-usable water bottle on this trip rather than buying single-use plastic bottles.