Happy New Year
Well, what can I say about 2022, apart from ‘goooo away’ to put it politely, In brief; I lost, my health to covid in January, and since then, 3 homes, my dog Roxy, my cat Molly, the love of my life, then all our cats, and finally my left kidney, and yet, we have to stay positive! So, I’m sooo happy to see the back of it, and I’m sooo looking forward to seeing the New Year in with good friends and family … bring it on!
Winter’s Here
January is my favourite month, hmm, mainly because it’s a fresh, new year, for us all. It’s also the first month of a two-month winter in Cyprus when sunny days will still probably exceed rainy days, we hope by far. It’s still shorts & teeshirt weather, normally around 18°C by day, so you can still top up the tan, and long sleeves after the sun sets, and don’t you just love a nice open fire, in many of our restaurants and bars!
Crack the Ice
tbh, I love the winter most because Cyprus oranges are in-season and really because we get a chance to catch up with old friends who have been more like ships in the night, strike up the bbq and crack the ice for your Bailey’s, and tell our stories from the year!
It’s Rainy Season
Again I have to say “bring it on!”, we need all the rain we can get!, and as we only get an average of 35 rainy days of rain a year, who cares? … I wonder how long it will be before we are a year-round destination. Well, fact is, we’re moving in the right direction, expecting visitors to increase by 60% in the next few years targeting 5 million visitors a year, naturally this can only happen by increasing the number of tourist beds available, which is totally evident and making Cyprus an all year destination, by providing more for our visitors to do!
On the Coast
I just love those invigorating walks along the coastline, enjoying that smell of the sea as it catches the wind, floating fresh crisp spray into the air, and the distinct abundance of that wonderful Iodine, invigorating, especially for our senior visitors and only in Cyprus … and btw, the sea never drops below 15°C so as long as it’s not too windy, if I go to the beach I’ll end up in the sea.
Only in Cyprus
Our skiers and snowboarders will be in heaven this month as The Troodos Mountains are coming into their element and getting covered in snow … There’s some wonderful little guest houses, hostels, and hotels, so book a room and go skiing in the morning, go Husky Sledding at Lunchtime, and if you’re lucky you can be swimming in the Med by sunset … only in Cyprus!
Napa’ish
The east coast is a bit quiet, with almost everything closed for their winter break, fortunately, there’s still several places open, enough restaurants to eat a different cuisine every day, enough bars to get pissed in, and plenty of Things to Do … We have to take note that Ayia Napa and Protaras’ peak seasons are April, May to the end of October and either side of that there’s still things to enjoy, but you might just have to move a bit inland to Paralimni and join the locals in their town! … or just opt for the best night out at Carwash Disco, apparently staying open every night ’til it snows in Napa!
The Hub of Cyprus
Now, down in Larnaca, our port of old, the winter brings the influx of many locals from the surrounding cities, Paralimni, Limassol and Nicosia, getting out to party like only the Cypriots do, along with anyone who’ll care to join them … You’ll find excellent hospitality and live music at Savino Live and Hugga by the Sea to mention but a few …
Limassol
Our capital on the coast, with a population of over 150,000, coming out, all cosmopolitan and sophisticated, doing party like only they can do … the 7 miles coastal road still boasting some of the best bars, clubs, and restaurants open all year … A couple of my favourites is the selection at Molly Malones and Chesters …
Sunset City
Paphos of course pretty much carries on as usual, geared up for a 12-month season, as our tour operators send the ever-increasing winter visitors to join an almost 80,000 Population who are making the most of the winter coz they don’t stop in the summer! A couple of my favourites include The Bottle Bank because they do things differently and O’Neills Irish Pub with live music and great pub grub and Sonny’s Restaurant, Andria Steak House, and The Lodge Restaurants.
Topical
Excepting that we’re in winter mode, you might have to look a little harder for places to go and things to do but we’ll help you out with a one-word search on the site … When it comes to eating out we have a selection of Tony’s favourite eateries in Cyprus with many of our followers taking his recommendations very seriously! … and if you like to try something new just choose a city and go ‘Eating Out’ … and remember many of our pubs serve excellent pub grub these days!
Cultural Cyprus
I also love the way Cyprus has become more cultural, helped of course by Paphos’ hosting of The European Capital of Culture back in 2017, and I think Cyprus has finally got the cultural bug and we’ll continue to see an increasing swing toward the modern world and it’s natural and cultural inevitabilities … click here for a more extensive cultural guide by the C.T.O …
Need for Speed
The Motocross season is dapping its way around Cyprus and the Jet Ski Championships, also normally happen about now, when pretty much all the local watersports crews fight it out against each other … They’re great days out! might even see you down there?
Tattoo Time
Many people who like a bit of Ink, choose the winter to get tattooed. Did you know, you can pop over to Cyprus, with accommodation, and get a good tattoo for less money than holidaying at home … check out our recommended tattooists.
Shopaholics
It’s also shopping season, culminating with the February sales, which are starting earlier every year, I think they started on Boxing Day this year … Ladies, check out the stylish Y2K in Napa and Protaras or London Clothing Company, who have shops all over Cyprus
Kids & Grown Ups
The Zoo is currently open in Paphos, so too The Camel Park in Mazados, near Larnaca, and the wonderful Cyprus Maze at CyHerbia Botanical Park in Avgorou. Look out for communities like Soul in The Sun who normally organise soul and reggae parties, and the night clubs, are swinging towards the Cypriot market, and more and more summer seasonal workers who decided to stay for the winter, and boy do they know how to party!!!
Finally
Many of you know I love this rock with a passion, coz I believe it’s paradise … and so, I just want to close by saying a big Happy New Year to all our sponsors and followers, who help make this network the original and officially The Best Guide to Cyprus!
And really finally
if I can leave you with just one tip for January … make sure you do at least one thing you’ve never done before!
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