Things to Do in Famagusta: A Day Inside the Walls and Beyond

Arrive in Famagusta in the late afternoon, when the light runs sideways along the walls and turns the Venetian stone the colour of honey. A minaret’s shadow falls across a Gothic façade, and seven centuries fit into a single view. Gazimağusa — Mağusa to the people who live here — sits on the east coast of North Cyprus, an old port city that is also, thanks to its university, one of the youngest towns on the island. By day it belongs to its stones; by night, to its streets.

What follows is shaped like a day: in through the walls in the morning, the Gothic heart at midday, out to the sea gate as the afternoon fades, and the evening for the town itself. The places beyond the walls come after, for the days that follow.

Morning: in through the Land Gate

The most dramatic way into the Old Town (Kaleiçi) is through the Land Gate and its great Ravelin bastion on the south-west side. The walls were rebuilt by the Venetians in the 16th century to stand up to cannon, and their sheer thickness still surprises. It was in front of them that the long Ottoman siege of 1570–71 was fought; the city fell to the Ottomans in 1571.

Walk part of the circuit while the air is cool and stop at the Canbulat Bastion, named after one of the Ottoman commanders of the siege and now home to a small museum. In high summer the stone heats fast, so the walls are a morning pleasure.

Midday: the Gothic heart of the Old Town

Inside, everything is close enough to wander between. Give it a few unhurried hours.

Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque

The skyline of the Old Town is a 14th-century Gothic cathedral: the former St Nicholas Cathedral, where the Lusignan kings of Cyprus were crowned kings of Jerusalem. Under the Ottomans it became a mosque and gained its minaret, and the pairing of French Gothic and Ottoman silhouette is the image you will carry home. It is still a working mosque: cover shoulders and knees, and avoid prayer times.

Namık Kemal Dungeon

A few steps away is the building where the Ottoman poet and writer Namık Kemal was held in exile, now a small museum. It is a brief visit, but it explains why this name is on so many Turkish street signs.

The ruined churches

The Old Town is strewn with roofless Gothic churches. Most photographed of all are the paired Twin Churches and the arches of St George of the Greeks. Standing in a nave open to the sky, with the midday light on the carved stone, is one of Famagusta’s quietest pleasures.

Afternoon: Othello Castle and the Sea Gate

Drift towards the harbour as the day cools. Othello Castle — the Othello Tower — guards the north-east corner of the walls above the port, and takes its name from Shakespeare’s tragedy, set in a sea-port in Cyprus. Restored, it reopened to visitors in 2015; from its ramparts the harbour spreads out below you and Famagusta makes sense as a city of the sea.

Close by, the Sea Gate was the old town’s door to the harbour. Step out through it near sunset and walk a little way along the outside of the walls; it is the best possible prelude to an evening.

Beyond the walls: days out from Famagusta

With Famagusta as your base, a remarkable amount is within a short drive:

Salamis deserves a morning of its own — see our Salamis guide. Read the Varosha guide before you visit the fenced-off quarter; its rules are strict. For the sea, Glapsides, Palm Beach, Silver Beach and the İskele coast are all close, compared in our beaches guide.

Evening: a university town after dark

Since 1979, when Eastern Mediterranean University was founded, tens of thousands of students have given Famagusta its young pulse — which means affordable food, places open late and streets that stay lively well into the night. Dinner on a stone square inside the walls, then the newer town after dark, gives you both of Famagusta’s characters in one evening. If Cypriot cooking is new to you, start with our food guide.

For a calmer close to the day, LÉAA LOUNGE is our lounge in Famagusta — food, cocktails, coffee, wine and shisha under one roof. Our menu is here.

Before you go

• From Ercan Airport: a drive of 40–50 minutes covering roughly 50 km. Shuttle buses, taxis and pre-booked transfers all run; times and fares change, so see our airport guide.
• From Larnaca: around an hour by road through the crossings on the Famagusta side. Taxis and transfer companies drive it; buses do not cross the line.
• When: spring and autumn are ideal for walking the Old Town. In July and August afternoons reach 33–36 °C, so sightsee early and late.
• Tickets: museum and site fees and opening hours change — check before you go.
• Language: as a university town, Famagusta understands English widely.

Famagusta is not a city to rush. A day inside the walls, a few days beyond them, and evenings that grow a little longer each time: it opens itself slowly, and it is worth the wait.