Discover Nikosia Trip 2026

Since the Turkish invasion of 1974, a UN-monitored buffer zone runs through the middle of the capital, making Nikosia Europe's last still-divided capital, with a Greek Cypriot and a Turkish Cypriot part.

The Venetian defenders built a star-shaped fortification with eleven bastions in the 16th century to better withstand cannon fire, and the well-preserved wall still encloses the entire historic old town today.

The buffer zone patrolled by UN soldiers cuts through the old town along abandoned buildings, some still marked by war, and several crossing points today allow visitors a day trip into the northern part of the city.

The old town's busiest shopping street leads directly to one of the buffer zone's crossing points and connects modern city life with the turbulent recent history of the divided island in an unusually immediate way.

Since Nikosia has no international airport of its own, the capital can be reached from Larnaka Airport by bus or taxi in about 45 minutes.

Since the Turkish invasion of 1974, a UN-monitored buffer zone runs through the middle of the capital, making Nikosia Europe's last still-divided capital, with a Greek Cypriot and a Turkish Cypriot part.

The Venetian defenders built a star-shaped fortification with eleven bastions in the 16th century to better withstand cannon fire, and the well-preserved wall still encloses the entire historic old town today.

The buffer zone patrolled by UN soldiers cuts through the old town along abandoned buildings, some still marked by war, and several crossing points today allow visitors a day trip into the northern part of the city.