We are a couple in our mid-seventies. We are quite fit. We bike almost every day.

We live 30 minutes from the ocean (Ft Lauderdale). Nightlife other than going to dinner isn't on our list.

I'm an avid amateur photographer. We enjoy wandering around towns and see the sights, markets, etc.

Our visit to Israel for this May obviously isn't going to happen. The trip was going to start in Belgium for 3-4 days and then we had booked a tour in Israel. This was to be the first time we've gone on a trip that included a tour. I usually plan the details of our trips but I didn't have it in me to plan an Israel trip.

I'm interested in adding a few days somewhere close to Israel as the Belgian stop complicated our airline issues of our non-trip. Closest place appears to be Cyprus. I would like to fly from Tel Aviv and return there to fly back home (South Florida).

The Israel tour would most likely be during the first half of May. Not sure of which year.

With what I described, would Larnaca (because of proximity to the airport) be a good choice or some other place easy to get to. Typically we don't rent a car of our trips.

Can you fly into Paphos? They have some wonderful ancient mosaics and ruins, plus it's on the coast. We only had two nights there a couple of years ago but it's well worth a visit. We flew into Larnaca but spent no time there since we were going to a wedding in Ayia Napa so I can't really say what's available there.

The parts we saw, scenery-wise, were so like where we are from in California it was eerie. My sister remarked, "Even the weeds are the same."

The area around Larnaca is rather dry and arid, on the other hand you are travelling in May which means it is much greener. There are some worthwhile sights for tourists, here are a few

Hala Sultan Tekke Mosque
Church of St Lazarus in Larnaca, the interior is beautiful
Coastline of Cape Greco, various sea caves have interesting rock formations and the sea is crystal clear
Monastery of Ayia Napa - was under restoration
Take a tour or the bus to Famagusta, it is a wonderful old walled city

You might have a problem trying to get around other places without a rental car. There are bus and scheduled taxi services from Larnaca town to Paphos and other places but it is getting onwards to the historical sights might be an issue. Car rental is very cheap in Cyprus. Close to Limassol is Kolossi Castle, Curium, Paphos has the Archaelogical Park with wonderful mosaics, the Tomb of the Kings, Paphos Harbour Castle etc. There is more than enough to see for a few days. There are some nice villages to photograph eg Lofou and Laneia (Limassol district).

From a quick check it looks as if you can fly Tel Aviv to Paphos - I think that's a much better airport than Larnaca if you don't want to hire a car. I think Paphos is probably the best base in Cyprus for a sojurn of a few days - nice seaside location, Roman mosaics and temples, plenty of nice restaurants and lots of travel agencies doing organised day trips if you want to venture into the surrounding area. Laid back but still plenty to see.

littlejane,

I couldn't find any direct flights from Tel Aviv to Paphos.

What did you find?

Ryanair fly the route but whether they will in future remains to be seen.

What I'm thinking is that I won't make a decision to do this until close to the travel date. If it becomes a hassle or no hotel availability we'll just spend the few days in Israel after the tour.

The only real downside is that I'll have to make a list of what we'll do for two places. There are worse things to have to do.

Yes RyanAir was the one I found.

Northern Cyprus has the some of the best sights of the island. It used to be less touristy and less overdeveloped than the Republic of Cyprus, I'm not sure if this still holds true, but in case you have a limited time and interested in historic sights I'd focus on Northern Cyprus anyway.

Public transit is pretty good between Nicosia, Kyrenia and Famagusta, but to explore sights away from the cities(castles, beaches, monasteries) you need to rent a car or a private car with driver/taxi.

If you want to stay at one base and not change locations, than the capital Nicosia would be your best bet. It's central for both North and South Cyprus and has a great deal of sights and interests on its own right, plus it is the real Cyprus with locals outnumbering tourists and not a ghastly tourist resort like Paphos, Larnaca or Ayia Napa.

The recommended guidebook for Northern Cyprus is the Bradt. https://www.bradtguides.com/north-cyprus-pb-3660.html