Top Cyprus Christmas

This was a great experience. The first two stops were connecting my roots with Cyprus: at the first one we saw a Maramures timber church (my mother is from Maramures). Unfortunately the Christmas houses and the shop were already closed, being January. At the second one I could buy kürtös kalács in an original fashion, with orange instead of nuts. Also the village of Phicardou is a very interesting one in stone, and, if I am not wrong, it is in the dry stone construction intangible architectural heritage. I was anyway able to buy a Commandaria wine. The third stop, which was the longest, was in the village of Pano Lefkara. This is a bigger settlement but I went down to the Holy Cross church and near it I was able to find the shop of a 83 years old woman teaching a younger women how to make lefkarika. This embroidery is now inspiring the Cyprus presidency logo which just started. There is also another motiv, sometimes combined, which is connected to Leonardo da Vinci, who visited the island and used the motiv in Milan and the Last Supper. I spend several years as Marie Curie fellow in Pavia which is near Milan, since there Leonardo draw his Vitruvius man, so it is said, and also visited the Last Supper. After that, I went on his footsteps in Florence and saw the interactive show in Bucharest. I ate in the Leonardo da Vinci pizzeria in Pano Lefkara a Cyprus pizza. At the end of my pizzeria stay a guy came to play a Cyprus instrument. Overall as said, great, and a very good way to forget about problems at work. The programme was just at a right pace, not too much rush and not too slow, so we used to be in time but could enjoy, which is rare today. We returned at sunset to Larnaca. The Christmas cities are also marked as such with great photo spots. The Nusskracker is very present as a motiv in Cyprus, so I am glad that I came with my huszár jacket and the blue jeans are suitable for it. It was good also for the cake in Phicardou.

I had a wonderful day with Katarina as our driver/tour guide! She had a wealth of information to share. She made extra stops along the way where we can appreciate the views of the Trodos mountains and Larnaca. I enjoyed the monestary quick visit as well. The Christmas markets were wonderful and unique. I enjoyed each and wished I had more time in the second and third Christmas markets. I loved the visit to the Rose factory as well! Had a wonderful day and bought some great souvenirs and gifts!!

This Christmas 2024 excursion was extremely well planned and truly enjoyable from start to finish. The tour was conducted privately in a comfortable 6-seater van, which made the whole experience relaxed and personal. Our tour guide was highly professional, knowledgeable, and added a lot of value to every stop.We visited beautiful villages like Lefkara, Fikardou, Agros, and Kyperounta — each with its own charm, Christmas markets, and unique local traditions. From historic cobblestone streets to stunning Troodos mountain views, every moment felt special. The optional lunch at a traditional Cypriot tavern was also a highlight.Overall, an unforgettable holiday experience that I can highly recommend!

We have visites two markets, it was great, except the guide was not really a guide. Just a person to answer questions eventually

Our guide was great, very friendly and had interesting facts about each of the stops. The Christmas villages were cute and a nice excuse to visit some of the cute mtn villages.