Crossing From South to North Cyprus in 2026: Every Checkpoint

One of the quiet pleasures of a stay in Cyprus is that the island is small enough to hold two worlds in a single day. You can spend an afternoon in the south and be back in the north in time for dinner, as long as you know how the line between them works. This guide explains the checkpoints as they stand on 31 October 2026, which ones suit Famagusta, what happens to a rental car at the line, and why the airport you arrived at matters more than most visitors expect.

How the Green Line works

The Green Line is the UN buffer zone that divides the island, and it is crossed only at official checkpoints. The essentials:

• There are nine crossings, and every one of them works in both directions.
• Most are open around the clock; if you plan a late-night crossing, check before you set out.
• You show your passport or ID card on both sides, to the northern and to the southern officers.
• Heading south, you may carry only modest quantities of alcohol and tobacco under the EU’s Green Line rules.
• Buses do not cross. You cross by car, taxi or transfer, or on foot where a crossing allows it.

The nine crossings at a glance

If you are based in Famagusta

Deryneia, opened in 2018, is on the edge of Famagusta and the obvious choice for a day in the south. Pergamos and Strovilia sit on the Larnaca–Famagusta side too; to reach either you drive through Dhekelia, a British Sovereign Base Area, so do not be surprised by the change of signage.

If you are in Nicosia

The Ledra Street crossing, open since 2008, lets you walk from one half of the old city to the other in minutes. It is the most atmospheric crossing on the island, and the easiest way to see both sides of the capital without a car.

Arriving at Larnaca and heading north

For many European travellers the cleanest route to Famagusta begins at Larnaca airport. The drive takes roughly an hour, usually crossing at Deryneia or via Pergamos and Strovilia. Taxis and transfer companies run the route, but no bus crosses the line, so arrange a transfer in advance if you land late in the evening. Arriving this way also keeps your options open for visiting the south later.

Going south after arriving through Ercan

This is the point that catches people out. To the Republic of Cyprus, arriving through Ercan means using an illegal port of entry; the Republic recognises only its own seaports and the airports at Paphos and Larnaca. In practice EU citizens who flew into Ercan are usually let through the checkpoints, but the risk is real: a fine, a refusal, or questions when you leave from a southern airport. These are the Republic’s rules, not the north’s. If seeing both sides is part of your plan, fly into Larnaca. The Ercan airport transfer guide covers the alternative.

Papers for the south

EU citizens can cross with a passport or ID card, UK citizens with a passport. Turkish citizens must carry a passport and will, as a rule, also need a visa from the Republic of Cyprus, so check the Republic’s own rules first. The full picture is in our page on North Cyprus entry requirements.

Rental cars and the line

Cars are where the rules are least forgiving:

1. Rented in the south: the car can come north only when its rental contract says so. Because its cover ends at the line, you buy third-party insurance for the north at the crossing booth, valid for a few days or a month, at prices that change.
2. Rented in the north: these cars generally may not go south. If you want a day in the south, leave the car and cross on foot or by taxi.
3. Neither side’s insurance reaches across the line: a southern policy is no use in the north, and a northern one is no use in the south.

For the northern side of the road, from licences to speed limits, see our guide to driving in North Cyprus.

What to carry

Even for a short day trip, keep your passport or ID card and any entry slip together, carry a card that works in both lira and euros, and, if you are driving, the rental contract and the insurance papers from the booth.

New crossings: talked about, not open

In 2026 negotiations are under way on new crossings at Mia Milia/Haspolat, Louroujina/Akıncılar and Athienou–Aglandjia. As of this update none of them is open, so do not build a route around them.

A day on both sides, sketched

1. Cross at Deryneia early in the morning, so the whole day lies ahead of you.
2. Spend the day in the south with your passport or ID, a card that works in euros and a little cash.
3. Keep the duty-free limits in mind on the way back, and allow a few minutes of slack at the checkpoint.
4. Let the evening unwind in the north. LÉAA LOUNGE, a lounge in Famagusta, brings food, cocktails, coffee and wine together; you can see the menu here.

How to handle two currencies is in North Cyprus currency and money, and the wider picture of the north is in our North Cyprus travel guide.