Paphos Cyprus: Your Top Summer Holiday Destination For 2008

Paphos in Cyprus is the 2008 summer holiday destination that ticks all the right boxes; golden sandy beaches, endless sunshine, stunning scenery and plenty to see and do. To make the most of your holiday in Paphos Cyprus, a car hire gives you the freedom to explore when you want to, and relax when you don't!

Right from the moment you step off the plane at Paphos airport, a pre-booked Cyprus car hire will actually be saving you money. With no public bus service at Paphos airport, you can simply pick up your keys, stroll to your car hire, pop your luggage in the boot, and be on the motorway to Paphos before your fellow passengers have even found a taxi!

For over 600 years, Paphos was the capital of Cyprus, and it's a fascinating place to stay - all you have to decide is how close to the sea you want to be! If you love to be close to the beach and the action, choose Kato Pafos, the lower part of town neat the historic harbour area. For more peace and quiet, and amazing views across the sea, choose Upper Pafos, or Ktima as it is known. A Cyprus car hire also gives you the option to rent a villa on the outskirts and drive into Pafos whenever you like; there are big, free car parks in both parts of town.

The first thing you probably want to do on your holiday in Pafos is chill out for a day or so. Enjoy the beaches or your hotel pool, or take a gentle stroll along the sea front to the old harbour area. Here, you can enjoy a leisurely lunch at one of the many harbourside restaurant, complete with resident pelicans begging for scraps! In the evening, there are plenty of local bars and a surprising number of foreign cuisine restaurants in both parts of Paphos.

Whatever you do, don't miss the world-famous mosaics of Pafos. Feel like an extra from Gladiator for a morning, as you wander through the remains of the old Roman town, and the five magnificent Roman villas that have been excavated. Here, the wealthy Roman owners showed off their wealth and status by giving their homes the most expensive decoration possible, intricately-made mosaic floors. Then, stroll to the nearby Byzantine castle of Saranda Kolnes, where the kids can let off steam climbing over the ruined battlements.

Now, your Cyprus rental car starts to pay off! Just a short drive north of Pafos are the Tombs of the Kings, amazing rock-cut tombs, created during the occupation of Cyprus by the Egyptians and Romans. Looking like mini-temples, it's a fascinating (and shady) adventure for a hot summer's day.

With a Cyprus car hire, the whole of western Cyprus is yours to explore from your base in Pafos, whether you love beautiful scenery, sun-kissed beaches, exciting scuba diving, a round of golf or even the odd glass of wine!

Beach lovers are spoilt for choice along the stretch of coast north of Kato Pafos. Choose from the sands of Agios Georgios, Toxeftra, or the beautiful Lara Bay, home to a unique sea turtle conservation project. For an ideal day by the sea, head over the hills to Polis, and on to the pretty port of Latchi. Enjoy a wonderful lunch at one of the seafront fish restaurants, amongst the best in Cyprus, then relax on the near-empty local beach.

Latchi is also a great place to learn to scuba dive, and well worth the drive, since you actually learn in a sheltered sea lagoon, not a swimming pool. Nearly every seafront hotel in Paphos also offers scuba diving lessons and morning dives to favourite sites, plus the wreck of the Dhimitrios for the more experienced.

The Akamas Peninsula north of Kato Pafos is one the last wild places left in Cyprus. You'll need to hire a 4x4 jeep type vehicle to really explore the heart of this rugged landscape, but a normal Cyprus car hire will still get you to places tour buses don't reach! Take your 4x4 to reach the Avakas Gorge, the path through the banana plantations leading into the gorge itself, with its streamside pine trees, rare orchids, and tree frogs.

If that's too energetic, take your normal Cyprus car hire to the hills, and look for signs for local vineyards! These hold free wine tastings, where you can try rustic reds or cool, refreshing whites, and take a case or two home for later!

There is so much to do that a week's holiday will never be enough, so book a fortnight and also enjoy the frescoed churches of the Troodos Mountains, the excellent Cyrus golf courses, sunset at the the romantic Rock of Aphrodite... Ready to book yet?!