7-day study tour to Northern Cyprus with a small group

Morning city tour in Girne with the most beautiful harbour in Cyprus, protected by a fort from Byzantine and early Roman times. The museum inside exhibits a 2,300-year-old shipwreck and its cargo. In the afternoon, drive to Bellapais Monastery Abbey, the former Prussian monastery from the 13th century is one of the most beautiful Gothic buildings in the Levant.

Overnight stay and dinner at the Vuni Palace Hotel****

Friday drive along the Fünffinger Mountains to the fishing village of Boğaz. After a short break, continue to Sipahi to visit the floor mosaics of the church of Agios Trias, dating from the 6th century. Continue to Dipkarpaz, where Greek and Turkish Cypriots live together as neighbours. The Agios Philon church (4th century) was once the episcopal church of Karpasia. At the eastern tip is St Andrew's Monastery, an important place of pilgrimage for Orthodox Cypriots. The unspoilt Golden Beach stretches along the coastline. Sea turtles have been coming to lay their eggs on these beaches of the Karpaz peninsula every summer since time immemorial.

Overnight stay at the Vuni Palace Hotel****

How to get to Crusader Castle St Hilarion at 700 metres above sea level in the mountains. Built by the Byzantines and further strengthened by the Franks, the castle is part of a series of defences intended to protect the northern range.

In the afternoon, visit the Turkish part of the capital Nicosia, starting at the Girne Gate and continuing to the Dancing Dervishes Monastery, now a museum. Through the lively shopping street past St Sophia's Cathedral (13th century), which is currently being renovated and cannot be visited, to the bazaar and the Büyük Han, the caravanserai built during Ottoman rule. In the afternoon, visit the Derviş Paşa Konak, a townhouse built in the classic Ottoman style.

Overnight stay at the Vuni Palace Hotel****

Drive to Barnabas Monastery with its icon and archaeological museum. St Barnabas is considered the founder of the Cypriot church and his remains lie in the crypt near the monastery. In the necropolis (6-7th century BC) of Salamis, the burials bear witness to the wealth of the inhabitants and their burial rites. Salamis was the largest Roman city in Cyprus. You can visit the thermal gymnasium with heated baths, the latrine complex and the Roman theatre. Afternoon tour of the old town in Famagusta. The historic part is surrounded by a Venetian defence wall from the 16th century and was built as a defence against the Ottomans. In the centre is St. Nicholas Cathedral, once the crown church of the Lusignans, today it is the main mosque of Famagusta.

Overnight stay at the Vuni Palace Hotel****

In the morning, drive to the village of Kantara, where the Crusader Castle is located. Wonderful view into the Gulf of Famagusta up to the Karpaz Peninsula. Around midday, visit the small church of Panayia Theotokos in Iskele with frescoes from the 12th century. In the afternoon, drive along the Fünffinger Mountains to the Church of Antiphonitis with frescoes from the 12th and 14th centuries.

Overnight stay at the Vuni Palace Hotel****

Drive to the west of the island to the fertile region of Güzelyurt. The small provincial town of Güzelyurt with the church of St Mamas lies in the middle of the orange and lemon plantations. The local saint is above all the patron saint of tax evaders. His church is therefore not only protected by the Cypriots. Further to the west are the excavations of Soli, a Roman settlement with a Roman theatre and the remains of an early settlement. theatre and the remains of an early Christian basilica. The Persian palace Vouni was built in the 5th century BC. Magnificent views of the bay of Güzelyurt, the archaeological site of Soli and the Troodos Mountains can be enjoyed from this special place.

Communal Cypriot farewell dinner in a taverna, overnight stay at the Vuni Palace Hotel***

Transfer to your return flight. We will also be happy to book an extension for you at the Vuni Palace Hotel or another hotel.