Transport of Cyprus and what to move

Cyprus has a system of intercity and city buses, and this is the only form of public transport in Cyprus. Unfortunately, buses rarely run, there are not many convenient routes for tourists, so it is better to rely on renting transport or a taxi. Read more about each method:

Taxi

Taxis in Cyprus are very expensive by Russian standards, but sometimes this is the only way to get to the right place, especially when you need to get from airport to airport. Trips from airports to places of rest are offered at fixed rates, if desired, you can order on the counter. Here are taxi prices from airports as of 2021:

• Larnaca Airport- Larnaca city center-from 5 euro/5.82 USD.
• Larnaca-Ayia Napa Airport-45 / 52.42 USD.
• Larnaca-Limassol Airport-54 / 62.9 USD.
• Larnaca-Paphos Airport-100 / 116 USD.
• Larnaca-Polis Airport-140 / 163 USD.
• Paphos airport - center of Paphos-from 14 euros / 16.31 USD.

All trips to and between cities should theoretically be carried out using counters at rates of 65 euro cents per landing (0.76 USD, see currency of Cyprus and its exchange rate), and 22 cents (0.26 USD) for each kilometer. For example, a short trip within a tourist area for 2 kilometers should cost 1 euro (1.16 USD). But in practice, local taxis are not very willing to go by the meter, offering instead a fixed price, usually rarely agreeing to go at a price cheaper than 5 euros (5.82 USD).

You can order a taxi by phone, at the hotel counter, at airport counters, through Bolt or nTaxi applications. The Uber app in Cyprus does not work.

There is a way to save on a taxi if you are traveling alone, this is the use of the so – called Service-Shared Taxi, which can be roughly translated as "shared taxi". The bottom line is that you share the cost of the trip with other fellow travelers. At the airport, you can ask for a Shared Taxi at the counter, and then you will be picked up by fellow travelers, but you may have to wait a little. At resorts, Shared taxis can be found at travel agencies and hotels, sometimes labeled on signage as Tourist transfer.

If you are used to planning everything in advance, it is better to use the order of a tourist transfer from the airport to the place of rest and back. Tourist transfer is also a taxi, only you book it in advance at home online, and the driver will meet you at the airport with a sign, and with complete comfort will take you to the right place. When ordering online, additional options are available to increase comfort and safety, including ordering child seats, which is required by law.

Rent a car

Renting a car in Cyprus is the most profitable and convenient way to travel around the country. It will be convenient both for those who travel independently in different parts of the country, and for those who rest at the same resort on a package tour. In the off-season (from November to April), Car Rental here is even cheaper than renting a bicycle or moped, and cheaper to travel by bus. Moreover, the lease will not even need international law( IDL), there are Russian and other Driving License. But there are also features:

• Traffic in Cyprus is left-sided (in Russia it is right-sided).
• You can not drive a rented car to Northern Cyprus.
• Insurance is not valid on dirt roads.
• For collateral you need to have a credit card, debit may not be accepted.

It is cheaper to take a car at the airport of Larnaca or Paphos, at resorts prices are higher. Here are the minimum prices for the benchmark as of 2021.

• In high season (may-October) - 68 euros for 7 days (79.21 USD), or 9.7 euros / day (11.3 USD).
• Low season (November-April) - 26 euros for 7 days (30.29 USD), or 3.7 euros / day (4.31 USD).

These are the minimum prices for a car without air conditioning and with a manual transmission, available online. When looking for a car on the spot at resorts, prices can be much higher, usually below 30 euros per day can not be found. If the rental period is less, then the price for one day will also be less profitable, so it is most profitable to rent immediately for the entire period of your vacation.

You can search and book a car directly on the websites of rental offices, or you can use aggregators that compare prices at once from many distributors. There is no difference by and large, just in the latter case there are more chances to find a profitable option. We recommend data aggregators:

Learn more about all the subtleties of renting a car in Cyprus, see here.

Buses

Intercity and city buses run in Cyprus. There is also a variety of intercity buses-the so-called shuttle buses (Shuttle Buses), and AirPort Express. Theoretically, you can get almost anywhere by bus, but in many directions they go very rarely, sometimes even once a day or not every day. They run on a strict schedule.

The route network is divided into large regions or districts: Nicosia, Paphos, Larnaca, Limassol, Famagusta. All buses within the same region are urban and are paid as urban, and between regions are already considered intercity.

To plan your trip, you can use the site cyprusbybus.com/ (there is a Russian version, switch to the menu), where almost all flights of the country are summarized, but some of the rarest are missing, and sometimes the information is updated with a delay. The site has a free Cyprus by Bus app, but maps and some other features in it are paid. To be sure of all routes, you can additionally use the sites of individual carriers by region:

• Nicosia - osel.com.cy
• Limassol - limassolbuses.com
• Paphos - pafosbuses.com
• Larnaca - zinonasbuses.com
• Intercity flights - intercity-buses.com
• Airport buses and shuttles - kapnosairportshuttle.com/

The fare is paid in cash to the driver. The cost depends on the time of day. Here are the rates:

• City buses during the day-1.5 euros (1.75 USD), children under 6 years-free of charge.
• City buses at night (from 21:00 to 04:00) - 2.5 euros (2.91 USD), children under 6 years-free of charge.
• Long-distance flights from 4 to 15 euros.

There are also passes for 1 day, week and month on urban routes, and daytime on intercity. Passes are sold only at the ticket offices at major bus stations, usually these are final. Full see the current list of tariffs here.

Northern Cyprus also has its own route network, but these are not large regular buses, but dolmushi taxis, the same as in Turkey. There is no information about their routes and schedules on the network, but in general they go more often and are cheaper than on the Greek part, but are paid in Turkish lira. The main transport centers (final) of dolmushi are Nicosia (Lefkosia), Famagusta, Kyrenia (Girne).