Everything you need to know about Northern Cyprus
Explore Northern Cyprus from North Nicosiaโs courtyards and Kyreniaโs harbour to Famagusta, ancient Salamis and the Karpas Peninsula. Place eight cities and towns, discover eight sights, read ten illustrated topics and begin Turkish.
Read it, then make it stick
Geography of Northern Cyprus
The northern coast of Cyprus faces Tรผrkiye across the eastern Mediterranean. Behind Kyrenia, the narrow Kyrenia range is also called Beลparmak in Turkish and Pentadaktylos in Greek, names associated with its five-fingered silhouette. Limestone ridges, wooded slopes and castle sites rise sharply above the coastal strip. South of the range, the Mesaoria plain stretches towards Nicosia and Famagusta; its name is associated with its position between the islandโs two main mountain ranges.
Know the shape of the country
Locate eight cities and towns in the Turkish Cypriot-administered north. The map shows Cyprusโs whole physical coastline for context, with no administrative boundaries. North Nicosia has its own northern settlement pin. Place names often have Greek and Turkish forms; pins are learning locations, not entrances or crossing routes.
Places worth visiting
Essential ยท Harbour and castle
Kyrenia Harbour and Castle
Kyrenia, also called Girne, has a harbour beside a castle shaped by Byzantine, Lusignan and Venetian building phases. It lies in northern Cyprus. The castleโs shipwreck collection connects the waterfront with ancient Mediterranean trade.
Explore eight sights across the Turkish Cypriot-administered north, from North Nicosia and Kyrenia to Famagusta and the Karpas Peninsula. The map shows Cyprusโs physical coastline for context, without administrative boundaries. Pins mark learning locations, not entrances or crossing routes. Essential is our shortlist for a first trip, and worth a detour goes further. Select a pin to read about a place, then play the map and find them all.
Take Turkish with you
Greetings and politeness
Hello, please, thank you, sorry: the ten openers everything else builds on.
Keep going one country deeper
When you have had your fill of Northern Cyprus, the countries marked guide have a page like this one, and every other has maps of its own.
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