A month in Cyprus (1): Around Mazotos

Cyprus - what do I say about this breathtakingly beautiful and relaxing island country, with friendly people, tasty food, loads to do and a cool vibe that's rare. I spent a month in Cyprus in the summer of 2023. And what a summer it was!

View of Mazotos

Cyprus had been an accidental pick for me but turned out to be such an amazing find. The perfect place to relax, reflect and rejuvenate. With gorgeous beaches, refreshing mountains and forests, picturesque towns, ancient history, and so much more. As I was there for a month, I explored it leisurely. Some days we went out, some days not. Sometimes to new places, sometimes to our old favourites. Sometimes I was working, sometimes exploring with friends. Taking each day as it comes. And Cyprus gave me as perfect a holiday as is possible.


Getting there

First view of Larnaca

Getting to Cyprus was a bit complicated. Flights there are expensive and a lot of them landed very late at night. That was definitely something we had to coordinate a bit about. The view from the flight was also entertaining. We flew over plains, mountains and lakes, then reached the sea. We flew over some Greek islands, with mountains and fields and beach resorts. And then everything vanished, there was only the fog. Everywhere. And water. It was like we were going through a different dimension to get to Cyprus😁. And just before landing, the sun also vanished. And suddenly Cyprus appeared. And all I could see were the lights of this spread out town, Larnaca where I landed. It gave me some comfort as we had not researched Cyprus much and just decided to go there. The fact that Larna seemed like a bigg-ish town was a big comfort to me. I rented a car from near the airport and was off to our accommodation.

Swimming at Hadjios Valley

I was staying in a holiday homes campus nearby, called Hadjios Valley. It was outside of Larnaca, in a village called Mazotos. The drive there at night felt mysterious. I couldn’t get much of a sense of the surroundings around, as it was pitch dark by then. And I had no clue on what to expect during the day. Thankfully even at 9 pm at night, the island was warm. And given how we were having a coolish summer back home in Amsterdam that year, it was a welcome change. When I reached Hadjios and started exploring the area, I saw people swimming at 10 pm at night! It was definitely a sign of things to come. And we weren't disappointed.


About Cyprus

Cyprus is a small island (relatively) as you can drive from one end to the other in 2-3 hours. Where I stayed was approximately in the centre and over the next one month I was able to easily explore the island all around. Cyprus has everything, stunning beaches, watersports, picturesque villages, monasteries, Greek and Roman ruins, Greek mythology, mountains with forests and wineyards, hiking, and even skiing. Everything is generally within 1-2 hours of driving and was easily accessible from where I stayed.

It is an ex-British colony (which I didn't know before landing). That made all our travels so much easier - the cars were left hand drive (I realised it when I rented the car!!!), the sockets were British style (and we all had landed up with European ones 🤣), there were loads of British residing there, all traffic signs were in English and everyone spoke English! All this made our vacation so much easier to enjoy.

Most of the island is bare and brown (at least in summer). Most houses are simple but grand, with very few apartments anywhere except in the cities. People are extremely friendly, like extremely. The food is tasty, with fish and Greek, sorry Cypriot salad being the most popular fare.

I stayed in the village of Mazotos, near Larnaca. Which was kind of in the centre of the island. Sometimes I drove east, to visit our neighbouring town of Larnaca with slow tourism options or to Ayia Napa, a famous partying spot. Sometimes I drove west, to Limassol, which is the main tourist hub and Paphos which is the cultural hub of Cyprus. And sometimes to the North, to the capital city of Nicosia and the Troodos mountains. It was such an amazing month on the island, and writing about it is making me nostalgic again.


About Hadjios Valley

Hadjios Valley

Hadjios Valley holiday homes are in the village of Mazotos, near Larnaca. And I absolutely loved living there. There were a row of houses, all either owned as holiday homes or rented out long term. Only a few of them were available to tourists like me.

Pool at Hadjios

Hadjios was a self -serve accommodation but there were some basic services provided centrally, e.g., a pool, a gym, a library, olive farms all around to walk around, the owners were always around and they had some people working there to help out whenever needed. There were olive farms and farm animals all around for entertainment. The pool was a pleasure to swim in, any time of the day or night. And could go for a swim even late at night, it was always so warm. It was so easy to drive everywhere from here - Larnaca was 15 mins away, the airport 10 mins away, countless beaches nearby and so on. The homes had a view of the village on one side, and the sea on the other. Every morning, I would see the sun rise over the homes in the village and it was a scene worth remembering forever. And the sunset over the pool were stunning. Most of the houses were occupied by long term dwellers, so they all chatted with the visitors making them feel at home. The owners also came sometimes and helped the visitors whenever needed. The homes were just perfect, I couldn’t have asked for a better place to stay.


About Mazotos

Church in Mazotos

Hadjios Valley was near the small non-descript village of Mazotos. It was a small cute little village with small hills and narrow winding roads, old houses, 2-3 eating places, some churches and views of the sea (which was a bit far off). And all around the village were either dried grasslands or fields, some of them with olive plantations. We went into town mostly for grocery shopping or eating at the local taverna. And it always felt so slow, so relaxed, so lazy.

Our favourite restaurant in town was the Mazotos taverna, always full with the locals, and a very friendly owner who chatted for long with us every time we visited. There was always some Cypriot music playing on the tv which added to the chill ambience. And it had such a rustic feel to it, it was open air, with fans blowing warm air, local music playing in the background and everyone talking loudly while enjoying their meals. Everyone always left by 10 pm though which felt quite early as we would end up staying till much later. There was also a big grocery store in town which had everything we needed.

A few times, I walked around the village and would see the locals chilling, living a simple slow life. We also ran into a few British people who had bought houses in the village and had settled there. There were loads of holiday homes nearby - apartments with pools etc. and though much newer, somehow they still fit in with the village as they were painted in the same orange and white colours as the old town.

Agios church

I once visited the old and new Agios Xenophontas churches in the village. They are located on top of a hill and tower above the village. Only the old church was open though, it was very old with only a few statues left.

Mazotos beach in the morning

Mazotos beach was nearby, about a 5 mins drive or 35 mins by foot. Once I walked there in the morning to see the sunrise. It was a nice walk, through fields and fruit trees. And then there wasn't a path to walk on! But it was still possible to get to the beach through the grasslands. In the morning, I saw loads of people camped right on the beach where it was a pebble beach. Some of them had woken up to swim in the morning, at 7am! As I walked along the beach, it changed from a pebble beach to a sandy one, with a beach bar and beach beds to sit under. The sunrise was magnificent that day. Though it became such a norm that it lost its novelty soon. Walking back to Hadjios got too hot though and I think therefore, this was one of the only times I walked so much in Cyprus 🤣.

Sunset at Mazotos beach

I went to Mazotos beach a few times after that morning walk. Once to eat at the Mazotos taverna on the beach. The food was average, but the setting next to the water was great. One day we went to the beach to see the sunset. The sun was setting behind the mountains towards the centre of the island but somehow when we got to the sunset point, we saw a stunning view. And the whole area around turned golden yellow making it a very alluring moment.

Mazotos beach

Once I also went to swim in the water. The water was warm as always but it wasn't as crystal clear as some of the other beaches I went to. In fact it was a bit muddy even. It was also a shallower beach with very few people around. But for the fact it was just 15 mins from our holiday home, it was an excellent option.


Restaurants and other places around Mazotos

Most of the restaurants we went to near Mazotos were on the coastal road as you drive towards Limassol. We would just drive on that road and stop at any place which caught our fancy. And most of them turned out to be quite good.

Akroyiali restaurant (Taverna) - This was a taverna kind of a restaurant next to Mazotos beach. The food there was quite average. But the setting was very relaxed and friendly, it looked like the kind of place locals would come to, to hangout with each other.

Mama's taverna

Mama’s fish taverna – Further along the beach road was Mama's taverna. And this was a favourite restaurant of ours. We went there on our first day in Cyprus, and then a few more times after. It was a 15 mins drive from our holiday home. It was an open restaurant, located on a pebble beach, with the waves crashing onto it the whole time. It used to be warm during the day but always windy which would make it fun to sit there. And the owner was quite chatty too. The food was tops. What's not to like? 😊. And somehow, every time on our way to Mama’s, we would stop on the way at a shop selling fresh strawberries and watermelon (being run by a Nepali woman)!

Along the same beach road

Akakia beach bar - One evening, we were driving along the coastal road and heard party music playing on the beach, close to Mama’s taverna. So we turned back and drove back to the beach bar. It was a full moon night and the beach party was full of some local teenagers celebrating their graduation. We were too lazy to join the dancing though but we sat next to it, enjoying a sushi dinner and the music. There were even some fireworks in the sea towards the end of the day. The food was ok though. And just as we were headed towards our car, they played two Bollywood songs! As we were tired, we didn’t turn back this time, but definitely enjoyed our find that day - a lovely place we just discovered by mistake!

Pentaschoinos Seafood experience – This was another find along the coastal road, close to Mama’s. It looked inviting while driving next to it, so we stopped there. It’s a gorgeous, open air restaurant right on the beach, next to the waves. The decorations were charming, with lots of lights and a cosy atmosphere. And the food was amazing. They mostly serve seafood, and it tasted so fresh, as if it was caught right next to the restaurant. That night, there was an orange moon and its reflection in the water while we were eating was just bewitching.

Zygi waterfront

Zygi and Archipelagos taverna - One day when it was a Cypriot holiday, we went out looking for food and realised that most places along the coast were closed! So we drove all the way till the coastal village of Zygi. It turned out to be a bigger village than ours, with a lot of shops and restaurant options along the marina. It was also quite pretty and nice to walk around. The day of the holiday though, we only found one restaurant open - the Archipelagos taverna. It was quite empty that day but the food was good.

I landed in Zygi another day though returning from somewhere, and there was a full mela going on. Apparently, every Saturday, they have events going on at the marina. That day, there was a concert going on and everyone was dancing on the streets. All around there were people playing music and eating and just hanging around, enjoying a nice summer evening outside. It had just such a great vibe to be there. I wish I had known about it sooner.

View from Kahuna surf house

Kahuna surf house - On my last day on the island, I had a few hours to kill before my flight. So I found this small kitesurfing beach and shack on the map and drove there. And for a few hours, I just sat there eating, reading and watching kitesurfers riding the waves! Everyone there was either sitting at the shack or kitesurfing in the water. It was the first time I was seeing kitesurfing and loved it. It was just so relaxing seeing them all do acrobatics in the air, sometimes struggling and sometimes challenging nature, enjoying themselves along the way. The colours were gorgeous, the sky was serene, the water was stunning. And the experience, very idyllic. I had a lovely afternoon lazing around there. And this was another example of how non touristy places can also sometimes be so interesting. Especially when you have a lot of time, it's possible to do such simple, meaningless things (like watching kitesurfers on the beach) which otherwise we never have the time to do.

Cyprus (2): Larnaca and Ayia Napa