MAĞUSA (Famagusta): The Turkish name for Famagusta is Gazimagusa or Magusa. The city is located on the far East coast of Cyprus, has experienced extremes of fortune throughout its long and fascinating history. Today visitors to Famagusta’s old city will be struck by how ramshackle and ruined it appears and yet it was once the most lavish and rich city in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Places to go in Famagusta:

Ancient city of Alasia /Engomi
Famagusta City Walls (Venetian Fortification: Land Gate and Ravelin)
Scarlet Bath (Kızıl Hamam)
Dry Foundation (Kuru Çeşme)
Nestorian Church
Church of St. Anne
Tanner’s Mosque
Carmelite Church
Armenian Church
Martinengo Bastion
Notched Bath (Kertikli Hamam)
Diamante Bastion
Church of St. Fotu
Church of St. George of the Latins
Citadel / Othello’s Tower
Sea Gate
Hospital of St. Anthony
Canbulat Gate and Bastion
Church of St. Zoni
Church of St. Nikolaos
Church of St. George of the Greeks / Church of St. Symeon
St Nicholas Cathedral / Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque
Namık Kemal Square
Venetian House
Twin Churches
Ağa Cafer Pasha Hamam
Franciscan Church and Monastery
Venetian Palace
Namık Kemal Prison and Museum
The Church of St Peter and St Paul
Venetian / Chimney House
Salamis Ruins
Royal tombs
St Barnabas Monastrey and Icon Museum
Ancient city of Alasia /Engomi
İSKELE : It is a small fishing village between Famagusta and Karpaz. Iskele is very famous for its small harbour, Boğaz where you can stop on the way to Karpaz and have try fresh fish and mezes.

Iskele Icon Museum/ Panayia Theodokou Church
Kantara Castle
KARPAZ (Karpaz Peninsula): has been called the nature reserve of Cyprus, with abundant wildlife and flowers.

Places to go in Karpaz:

Kantara Castle
Iskele Icon Museum/ Panayia Theodokou Church
Panayia Kanakaria Church
Church of Ayia Trias
Church of Ayios Thrsos
Church of Aios Philon
Aphendirka Settlement/ Antique-Urania Settlement
Apostolos Andreas Monastery
Kastros Neolithic Settlement and the edge of the island

In the 3rd century BC the town was founded by the Egyptians and it was indeed a town of some significance, but until the abandonment of the city kingdom of Salamis in AD648 its population was not great. It wasn’t until around 1291 that the town became particularly prosperous...following an influx of Christian refugees from the Holy Land the town benefited from the demographic lift and grew to become the most wealthy and successful city in the Eastern Mediterranean as previously mentioned. It also became an important trading centre because it benefited from a harbour with naturally deep waters.

As a result of the opulence of the city so many churches belonging to the different religions inhabiting the city sprang up across Famagusta and at one stage it was reported there were as many churches as there were days in the year! Unfortunately the city’s fortunes began to change for the worst in 1372 when it was seized by the Genoese, and they further deteriorated following the Ottoman invasion and capture in 1571.
The site that visitors behold today of a town in partial ruins with destruction and half finished buildings, broken churches and half standing houses is mainly as a result of the Ottoman siege.


During the 1960s and 1970s the town was a booming tourist town; it was one of the most desirable destinations in Cyprus and in fact on the Mediterranean. It held great attraction for local Cypriots as well and it was inhabited by both Greek and Turkish Cypriots. Following the conflict in 1974 the city’s tourist industry was completely destroyed, the city’s beach that was the main draw for the crowds who visited the town was actually closed and the residents of the town were forced to once again rebuild their lives.