The harbour and castle are in town; Bellapais is about 6 km south-east in the hills, St Hilarion about 15 minutes’ drive south-west up the mountain road.
1 Kyrenia harbour
A small, almost circular harbour lined with old stone carob warehouses that now hold restaurants and cafés, with fishing boats and wooden excursion boats moored below. It is the picture-postcard view of the north coast.
Practical: Free; busiest at lunch and sunset. Boat trips along the coast leave from the quay.
2 Kyrenia Castle and the Shipwreck Museum
A large fortress begun by the Byzantines and rebuilt by the Lusignans and Venetians, overlooking the harbour entrance. Inside, the Shipwreck Museum displays the hull of the Kyrenia ship, a Greek merchant vessel that sank around the late fourth century BC and is one of the oldest ships of its kind ever recovered.
Practical: Ticketed (in Turkish lira). Allow 1–1.5 hours.
3 Bellapais Abbey
A ruined Gothic abbey founded in the late twelfth and thirteenth centuries, with a cloister of graceful arches, a vaulted refectory and wide views over the coast. The village around it was made famous in English by Lawrence Durrell’s memoir Bitter Lemons.
Practical: Ticketed. About 15 minutes by car from Kyrenia; parking in the village.
4 St Hilarion Castle
Built on a rocky peak at around 700 m, the castle grew from a Byzantine monastery and fort into a Lusignan royal retreat. Paths and staircases climb through lower, middle and upper wards to the Queen’s Window, with a view straight down to the coast.
Practical: Ticketed. Steep and uneven — allow 1.5–2 hours and wear sturdy shoes. Can be windy.
5 Kyrenia old town
Behind the harbour, narrow lanes hold small churches, a folk art museum, the old Ottoman cemetery and craft shops — pleasant for an hour’s wander.
Practical: Free; small museums ticketed.
