The villa is situated in a quiet residential area on the outskirts of the old mountain village of Lapta. Built on a ravine, the villa stands in an elevated position with views of the sea and the mountains. The gardens contain established shrubs and trees, a fledgling orchard with trees now bearing oranges, lemons, mandarins and grapefruit. The overflow pool measures 8m x 4m with inbuilt steps leading to the shallow end, and side mounted steps down to the deeper end. There is an outside shower located by the pool and a barbeque. There is also a large gazebo in the garden. Four bedrooms ( the ground floor one has a safe) are all air conditioned, each with it's own shower room & toilet. There is also a separate toilet downstairs. The living room, dining room & kitchen all open out to a large patio area leading to the pool and gardens. The gated drive can accomodate 2 cars. Beaches, restaurants and bars are within a short distance. Picturesque Kyrenia Harbour is approximately 15 mins drive.
You will find an information folder inside the villa providing a wealth of local information and maps that you can take out with you to help you readily find your way back to the villa - Or show one to the restaurants and takeaways, to make delivery easier. There's an abundance of well stocked supermarkets selling local produce as well as more familiar groceries, plenty of bakeries and pharmacies. The language is Turkish but English is widely spoken & understood. The currency is Turkish Lira and Euros & GB£'s are also accepted in restaurants, bars and shops with a fair rate of exchange - any change is usually given in Turkish Lira. There are plenty of banks and ATMs. You tend to get a better rate for your money at the local exchange venues. The nearest to the villa is a short drive along the main strip opposite Greens garage (which is on the left hand side of the road) as you're driving towards Kyrenia. There are plenty of beaches locally including our favourite - Escape Beach which has everything you could possibly need. There's a small fee but it's worth it. Top tip, it gets very busy at weekends! In addition, all of the hotels and holiday clubs have facilities that are open to the public for a daily fee which usually includes lunch.
There are some lovely , pretty villages around which should be visited if you can manage to tear yourself away from the pool. Lapta itself & Alsancak locally are traditional old villages and have good restaurants. Higher up the mountain, Karaman is gorgeous and has a couple of bars and restaurants. Kyrenia (Girne) has its pretty horseshoe shaped harbour, recently refurbished has reopened and is a great place just to sit and people watch or is a good starting point to wander the narrow streets. Boat trips are available from the harbour. There's an old abbey in Bellapais well worth a visit - Bellapais is an old village with the 'Tree of Idleness' written of by the famous author Lawrence Durrell in 'Bitter Lemons'. A journey to the top of St Hilarion Castle should not be missed - though not during very hot sunshine. There is so much to see and do!!
Flights can be into Ercan in the North (Turkish side) with a touchdown in Turkey, or into Larnaca in the South(ROC) and we can help arrange transfers from either airport and can also assist with car hire. Ercan is approx 40mins away; Larnaca about 75mins. Be aware that you must enter and leave from the North or the South for example, you can't arrive in the North and then leave from the South and vice versa. There's no visa requirement for UK citizens for entry into Cyprus, North or South. If you're travelling from the South to the North you no longer require a visa, but you do have to produce your passport at the border. Whichever way you choose to fly, there are no difficulties but we can help with transfers to make it easier for you.
