View from Hotel room Paphos 28.11.25
We have been to Paphos before – but not since I retired so it was well over 10 years ago. Last time we hired a car and toured along the coast and also visited the Troodos Mountains. This time we were going with the hope (subject to the weather) of seeing some winter sun and getting away from the domestic cold and those slate grey skies which have been prevalent throughout 2025.
A particularly early flight out of Gatwick was offset by using valet parking. Take the car into the right car park, hand over the keys and walk across into the departures area to drop cases and then go through security. On this Friday morning it is pretty quiet and apart from the usual need to inspect my carry on bag we are soon through the other side. A decent breakfast courtesy of Sonoma and then the usual wait for the plane to be ready. It is at one of the nearer gates which makes a pleasant change. The flight is full and it is a 4.5 hour flight to Paphos – earphones in and away we go.
We are staying at the Amavi which is one of about four major hotels along the sea front and I can heartily recommend it – after all at reception we are offered an upgrade and end up in an impressive fourth floor suite which has a balcony with loungers, table and chairs and is completely protected from the prevailing wind – meaning we can enjoy fresh air all the way through the week.
The hotel has extensive grounds and allocates residents a pair of sunbeds for the week – it is relatively quiet this time of year but in the busy times it means there are no towels reserving sunbeds or similar. It is also quiet. We do not see anyone in the outdoor pools as they are probably simply too cold. We do not use the indoor one as we prefer the open air. We only use the sunbeds a couple times – but the weather is warm enough to mean we can return with some tan rather than none.
In the peak the hotel has three special restaurants. At the time we visited the outside ones are closed but the inside one operates in two different formats – half the time serving European food and on other nights it is a Japanese menu as it seems this is in favour in Cyprus at present – it seems to be on offer elsewhere.
Paphos Wine Tasting 4.12.25
On the first day we were supposed to go on a local tour with wine tasting but regrettably (and without being told) it was cancelled – all funds re-imbursed. We had expected it to go ahead having had an email the previous day and quite why no-one managed to let us know it was cancelled we did not understand. (Autogenerated emails from Trip Advisor are not to be trusted it seems). Later in the week the hotel organised a small wine tasting and I can confirm that there are some excellent local wines available with the Persephone being local to Paphos apparently – and from a winery we should have visited!
During our stay we wandered into central Paphos and since our last visit the main front has been pedestrianised and therefore it all looks a little different. It no doubt makes it far safer but it seems quieter – but that may just be the time of year. It is obvious that there has been some development away from the main front and this includes “The Lodge” a newish restaurant serving South African barbecue food where we dine one evening. Recommended even if the service is just a little rapid.
On the main front we stopped in Aphrodite’s Secret and selected some excellent supplies – so many nuts that we brought a lot home and some wines. They also told us that one of the wineries we had been due to visit was not actually that good (no names) so we may have had a lucky escape!
A restful week and the temperatures were around 20 deg C – slightly warmer on some days too – which makes it pleasant. We had thought about visiting the Roman remains and the Old Town but decided to save those delights for a return visit at some future date.
However a decent week away despite the high winds one one day and I am told we ended up under budget.
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