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Cape Greco National Forest Park Coastal Trails

The wild headland between Ayia Napa and Protaras: white cliffs, sea caves, a natural rock arch and a network of marked footpaths above water so clear you can count the fish from twenty metres up.

Where
Cape Greco
Time needed
Half day
Tickets
Free
Free entry
Yes
Coastal footpath along white cliffs and sea caves at Cape Greco with deep blue water below Coastal footpath along white cliffs and sea caves at Cape Greco with deep blue water below

What to expect at Cape Greco National Forest Park Coastal Trails

Cape Greco — Kavo Gkreko — is the rocky headland that closes the eastern corner of Cyprus, a national forest park of low juniper, wild thyme and pale limestone occupying the ground between Ayia Napa and Protaras. It matters because almost every other stretch of this coast has been built on and this one has not: the park protects several square kilometres of cliff, scrub and sea, and the whole of it is threaded with waymarked nature trails, cycle routes and dirt tracks. The headline features are natural. Deep sea caves undercut the cliffs on the Ayia Napa side, the Kamara tou Koraka rock arch spans a small inlet on the eastern shore, and the water below is a startling clear blue thanks to the white rock and the absence of rivers. The little whitewashed chapel of Agioi Anargyroi stands alone above the cliffs.

You explore it on foot along a handful of connecting paths. The Aphrodite trail loops through the juniper scrub on the high ground, passing viewpoints and interpretation boards about the endemic plants; the Kavo Greko trail runs closer to the cliff edge; and short spurs drop toward the chapel, the arch and the small sea caves at Cyclops. On the western side, above the sea caves, a broad rock platform draws cliff jumpers and photographers all afternoon. Konnos Bay, a sheltered horseshoe of sand and turquoise water, sits at the Protaras end of the park and is reachable by a steep road or a footpath from above. Along the way you get long views back to Ayia Napa, out to the open sea and, on clear days, a sense of just how far the water visibility extends.

Plan it as a half day and combine walking with swimming. A good structure is to park at Konnos Bay, walk the cliff paths out to the chapel and the arch, come back over the high ground on the Aphrodite trail and finish with a swim at Konnos. There is little shade anywhere, so morning or late afternoon are the only sensible times in summer, and you should carry water — the kiosks are seasonal and thinly spread. Boat trips from Ayia Napa harbour visit the caves from the sea, which is the other, easier way to see them. Do not follow the crowd off the cliffs at the sea caves: the jumps are unsupervised, the depth varies and there have been serious injuries.

Getting there is easy by local bus or car. OSEA lines 101 and 102 run the loop between Ayia Napa and Protaras along the Cape Greco road throughout the day in summer, stopping at the Konnos Bay junction and near the park entrances; the standard Cyprus urban fare is €1.50 a single, with a day ticket around €5, and the ride from either resort takes ten to fifteen minutes. By car the cape is about eight kilometres from Ayia Napa square and six from Protaras, and there are free car parks at Konnos, at the sea caves and near the chapel, none of them large. Larnaca Airport is roughly 50 kilometres west, about 45 minutes by motorway and the Ayia Napa exits. Cycling from either resort is popular and takes twenty to thirty minutes.

Everything in the park is free: the trails, the viewpoints, the chapel, the parking and the beaches. Costs come from the extras. Sunbeds and umbrellas at Konnos Bay in season are around €2.50 to €3 each. A cruise from Ayia Napa harbour past the sea caves and along the cape typically costs in the region of €20 to €35 for a half-day trip, more for a day cruise with lunch, and glass-bottom boats are at the cheaper end. Bike hire in Ayia Napa or Protaras runs about €10 to €15 a day, quad and buggy rental considerably more. Kiosks at Konnos sell drinks and snacks at holiday prices — expect €3 to €5 for a cold drink. Bringing your own water and food costs nothing extra and is what locals do.

The best months are April, May, October and November: warm enough to swim, cool enough to walk, and the scrub is either flowering or fragrant. Spring brings orchids and a green tinge to the headland that vanishes by June. July and August are hot and exposed — walk before 09:00 or after 17:00 and treat the middle of the day as beach time only. Sunrise from the eastern side of the cape is the most striking hour of all and the reason the cape appears in so many photographs. Winter is windy but clear, and the paths are empty. Weekends in season bring quad bikes, tour buggies and boat parties; midweek mornings are peaceful. Nothing closes, but strong winds occasionally make the cliff edges unpleasant and swimming at Konnos rough.

It suits walkers, cyclists, photographers and swimmers, and children handle the main paths easily provided you keep them well back from unfenced cliff edges — which is the honest safety point here, since much of the coastline has no barrier at all. Wheelchair users can reach several viewpoints and the chapel area by car and manage short level stretches, but the trails themselves are rough, stony and not accessible. Teenagers gravitate to the cliff platform and the boat trips. Anyone with an hour to spare can drive to the chapel, look at the view and leave satisfied. It is a bad rainy-day plan, and a poor choice at midday in August with small children.

Nearby, Konnos Bay is inside the park and Protaras with Fig Tree Bay is ten minutes north by road or bus. Ayia Napa is fifteen minutes west, where the harbour, the monastery in the square and the sculpture park on the coast road above the cape are all worth an hour. The Ayia Napa sea caves and Cavo Greco viewpoints link along the coastal footpath, which continues all the way to Nissi Beach for strong walkers — a serious two-hour-plus stretch each way. The Ayia Thekla and Makronissos beaches are further west. A common day from a sea-view hotel in either resort: cape trails at first light, Konnos swim, lunch in Protaras, boat trip back along the caves in the afternoon.

The honest caveats: Cape Greco is a protected park with a resort on either side, and on August afternoons it can feel like it. Quad bikes and buggy convoys use the dirt tracks and the noise carries; boat parties anchor below the cliffs with music. The famous rock arch is smaller than the photographs imply and parts of the coast's natural bridges have collapsed over the years, so some viewpoints are fenced and some are simply gone. The cliff jumping at the sea caves is genuinely dangerous and unsupervised. Shade is almost non-existent and there is no drinking water on the trails. Parking areas are small and full by mid-morning at weekends. Come early, bring water, and it is one of the finest walks in Cyprus.

Plan your visit TicketsFree Free entryYes Time neededHalf day WhereCape Greco Opening hours Park and trails open 24 hours, year round Best walked 07:00-10:00 or 17:00-sunset in summer Boat and cruise operators to the caves run roughly April-October Hotels near Cape Greco National Forest Park Coastal Trails

Questions about Cape Greco National Forest Park Coastal Trails

How much does Cape Greco cost?

Nothing. It is a national forest park with open access, no entrance fee, no permit and free car parks at Konnos Bay, the sea caves and near the chapel. Costs are optional: sunbeds at Konnos are about €2.50 to €3 each, a cold drink from a kiosk €3 to €5, bike hire in the resorts €10 to €15 a day. Boat trips from Ayia Napa harbour along the caves and the cape generally run €20 to €35 for a half day.

Are there free times to visit the park?

The park has no gates, no tickets and no closing time, so every hour is open access all year round. The most rewarding unpaid hours are sunrise on the eastern cliffs, when the light is extraordinary and you may have the arch to yourself, and the last hour before dark on the Ayia Napa side. Midday in July and August is technically open but genuinely unpleasant on the exposed trails, with no shade and no water points anywhere.

How long do the Cape Greco trails take?

Half a day covers it properly: two to three hours of walking on the linked Aphrodite and Kavo Greko trails and the cliff spurs, plus a swim at Konnos Bay and time at the viewpoints. A quick visit by car to the chapel, the arch viewpoint and the sea caves platform takes about an hour. Strong walkers who follow the coastal path the whole way from Ayia Napa to Protaras should allow four to five hours one way with stops.

Is Cape Greco ever closed?

The park itself never closes and the trails are walkable in every month. Individual viewpoints are fenced off from time to time where cliff edges have become unstable, and some natural arches along this coast have partially collapsed over the years. Boat trips to the caves operate seasonally, roughly April to October, and are cancelled in strong winds. Konnos Bay beach services run in the same season. In high winds the cliff edges and the swimming at Konnos can both be uncomfortable.

Do I need to book anything?

No booking is needed for the park, the trails, the parking or the beaches. Boat cruises from Ayia Napa harbour past the sea caves should be booked a day ahead in July and August, at roughly €20 to €35 for a half-day trip, and sunset cruises fill fastest. Quad, buggy and bike hire in Ayia Napa and Protaras is usually walk-up but scarcer at weekends. Nothing inside the park itself can be reserved.

What is the nearest bus stop to Cape Greco?

OSEA lines 101 and 102, which loop between Ayia Napa and Protaras, run along the Cape Greco road and stop at the Konnos Bay junction and near the park entrances; the ride is ten to fifteen minutes from either resort. A single is €1.50 and a day ticket around €5, which makes a one-way walk with a bus back the easiest plan. Drivers use the free car parks at Konnos, the sea caves and the chapel, all small and full by mid-morning at weekends.

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