Must-see attractions in Nicosia (Lefkosia)

  • Top Choice
    Venetian Walls

    The Venetian walls form a border around the Old City and are so unusual that, once seen on a map, you’ll never forget the odd snowflake-like shape.

  • Top Choice
    Cyprus Museum

    Just outside the Old City walls, this excellent museum houses the island's most important collection of archaeological finds. Highlights include Hall 11's…

  • Top Choice
    AG Leventis Gallery

    Located just outside the Old City, this art museum features three collections displaying European paintings and sculpture from the 16th to the 20th…

  • Top Choice
    Nicosia Municipal Arts Centre

    This contemporary-art museum is housed in a former power station, and is the city’s equivalent to London’s Tate Modern. The former industrial setting is…

  • Top Choice
    CVAR

    Opened in 2014, CVAR's collection of art and archival material showcases the story of modern Cyprus. Galleries full of paintings and other artworks…

  • Top Choice
    Leventis Municipal Museum

    The best place in town to get to grips with Nicosia's rich and convoluted history. The permanent collection inside this handsome neoclassical mansion…

  • Top Choice
    Chrysaliniotissa Quarter

    Centred around the Panagia Chrysaliniotissa church, this residential neighbourhood on the edge of the Old City rubs right up against the Green Line, and…

  • Maheras Monastery

    It’s a fair hike out to this sprawling monastery perched in the foothills of the eastern spur of the Troödos Mountains and under the all-seeing radar…

  • Agios Mamas Church

    The somewhat forgotten site of the 16th-century Gothic church of Agios Mamas is like an exercise in nonstarters: it was never finished in the first place,…

  • House of Hatzigeorgakis Kornesios

    From 1779 to 1809 the House of Hatzigeorgakis Kornesios belonged to Kornesios, the Great Dragoman of Cyprus, who accumulated his vast wealth through…

  • Laïki Yitonia

    Meaning ‘Popular Neighbourhood’, Laïki Yitonia was restored after serving for many years as an area for painted ladies and dodgy merchants. This tiny…

  • Pancyprian Gymnasium Museums

    The extensive museum collection belonging to the Pancyprian Gymnasium lies just to the north of the school, housed in a line of restored houses. The…

  • Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation

    The highlight here is the beautifully curated Museum of George and Nefeli Giabra Pierides Collection on the mezzanine floor, which contains more than 600 …

  • Green Line

    The presence of the UN Buffer Zone (commonly called the Green Line) slashing through the capital is a prominent reminder of the island's ongoing division…

  • Church of Archangelos Michail

    This domed church was built in 1695 and is thought to have replaced an earlier Gothic church on the same site. The exterior is built in Franco-Byzantine…

  • Famagusta Gate

    Easternmost city gate Famagusta is the most photographed and best-preserved of the three original gates that led into the Old City of Nicosia. Its…

  • Loukia & Michael Zampelas Art Museum

    This small private gallery, dedicated to promoting contemporary Cypriot art, houses the Zampelas family's permanent art collection. A range of Cypriot and…

  • Panagia Chrysaliniotissa

    The church of Panagia Chrysaliniotissa is dedicated to the Virgin Mary and its name means ‘Our Lady of the Golden Flax’ in Greek. It’s considered to be…

  • Agios Ioannis Church

    Located in the courtyard of the Makarios Cultural Foundation, this 17th-century church has an interior covered in lively and intricate frescos dating from…