Kouklia Village and sanctuary of Afrodite Archaeological Park

What to Expect and Is It Worth Visiting

Kouklia Village - another traditional village with beautiful narrow streets, decorated with houses made of white and beige limestone. But among the rest it stands out that here is the Archaeological Park Sanctuary of Aphrodite or Sanctuary of Aphrodite of Palaepafos it is also called simply Kuklia Archaeological Park. This is one of the largest and most interesting archaeological parks in the country, and in our opinion (the authors of the site) is second only to archaeological parks in Paphos and Kourion Limassol. However, I would like to note that without a walk through the village and seeing the rest of the free attractions in it, The Sanctuary itself may seem too boring for such a long trip from Paphos.

So, outside the territory of the Archaeological Park in the village of Kuklia, you can see the ancient Catholic Church of Panagia Odigitria of the XII century for free. In the very center of the village is no less interesting Orthodox Church St Luke's Church with a bell tower, and on the street Apostolou Louca Avenue on the signs you can find a private snake nursery, which is visited for a fee of 2 euros, open from 07:00 to 19:00. In general, the village of Kuklia is a rather interesting and atmospheric place, where you should come for a few hours to walk, visit the mentioned sights, sit in a tavern, and buy a handmade souvenir in a shop on the central square.

Kuklia archaeological park itself is located on the site of the ruins of a sanctuary dedicated to the goddess Aphrodite. It was not a city or settlement, as in other archaeological parks of Cyprus, but a place of worship of the goddess. It is believed that it appeared from sea foam in these parts, in the place where the Aphrodite stone attraction is now located. The cult of worship of Aphrodite originated around the XII century BC, and it is to this period that the appearance of the first religious buildings on this site is attributed, i.e. some ruins here are more than 3000 years old! But during the excavations, even more ancient figurines of women were found, belonging to the cult of worship even before Aphrodite. The sanctuary existed until the IV century AD, after which it was abandoned and closed.

Today, excavations are underway on the site of the sanctuary and the surrounding buildings, an archaeological park has been organized to get acquainted with the ruins. Its territory is not as large as in Paphos, but still for a walk along it you should take water, a hat and sunscreen with you, you will have to walk a lot. In addition to the ruins on the territory there is a museum under the roof in an ancient building, where you can get acquainted with the most valuable exhibits, its visit is included in the price. It contains the most ancient figurines, coins, pots, architectural elements, mosaics. Visiting the entire complex will take 1-2 hours.

Also see options for excursions in Paphos that can be booked online:

• 📷 search for excursions in Paphos on Tripster.ru