# Advice on best place to live in Larnaca



## MultipleMummy (Jan 29, 2010)

Hi

I am a newbie and have been trawling through all the treads on this forum. I have found some of the info to be so helpful but would love a little guidance on Larnaca.

My husband has a job in place in Nicosia but as we have four children (triplets aged 4 and another aged 5) I would like to be as close to a beach as possible.

Acouple of friends are trying to persuade us to live in Nicosia but I dont see the point of moving to Cyprus from Manchester to live in another city.

Could anyone point me in the direction of a good area to look for rentals in Larnaca ? I have read alot about Mckenzy Beach? Any advice would be greatly appreaciated

Also I am looking at Med School for them as this is only a two year contract so would like to keep them on track with uk education...does anyone have any advice on this school ??

Many thanks in advance x


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## kimonas (Jul 19, 2008)

MultipleMummy said:


> Hi
> 
> I am a newbie and have been trawling through all the treads on this forum. I have found some of the info to be so helpful but would love a little guidance on Larnaca.
> 
> ...


The beaches in Larnaca are extremely child friendly as the waters are always calm and it shelves so gently you have to wade for quite a distance before it is swimmable - but the down side is the dead tape sea weed which seems to carpet the whole stretch and the sand is grey and a bit muddy. It suits tens of thousands however, and is one of the most popular of the family beaches. Nicosia to Larnaca commute will cost about 160 euros a month (I currently commute in the opposite direction as I live in Nicosia but work in Larnaca). Depending on which side of the city your husband is working the commute can be a bit frustrating and he would have to get up very early to avoid the bottleneck bank lights and rush hour which snarls traffic into the centre (which can add another half hour to the commute). Depending on where you live in Larnaca the same could be said for getting to the beach. There are two main stretches - that in town which is where all the facilities are, and the Makenzie stretch which is more remote but more easily accessible by car has many fish resturants lining the strip (it also backs onto the main airport which is great if you like plane spotting, but not so great if you want to avoid constant engine noise at the height of the season).

I would recommend Med Schools - it has a poor reputation among locals (laregly because it is populated by real teachers - mostly UK trained and qualified expats themselves who give realistic marks and treat the children as children and give them a school life, PE, drama, music etc - this is regarded as soft and undisciplined by many locals who prefer the stricter regimes of the other favourite schools in the area (the Academy Junior and Pascal - which isn't relevant to your situation as it doesn't yet offer junior classes). In my considered opinion these schools are just smarter versions of State schools and tend to be frequented by richer Greek Cypriots (Med schools is much more multi-cultural with many expats). I would avoid state schools altogether as they don't follow the Uk curriculum at all. Private schooling can be expensive, but if you present yourself as a supermum of triplets + they will give you a sibling discount. The Headmistress of Medschools is Cypriot by birth but was raised and educated in Canada (is a child pschychologist and very good with all the children that fall under her care) - there are now four Med schools - Kindergarten, infants, junior and High - they are on a split site and depending on the exact age of your singleton, they may be on different sites (a couple of miles apart) which could be a pain, but I think I'm right in saying that they'd be in the infants division which is more Mackenzie way. Visit their website for more info.


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## MultipleMummy (Jan 29, 2010)

Hi Kimonas

Thanks for the advice; Im not sure what to do now as I definatley do not want to live near the airport.

I am fussy about beaches as genereally, I do like white sand but I know that beggers cant be choosers lol. 
Could you reccomend any towns that would suit my family? We are aged 27 and 28 and obviously the kids are all five and under.
My husband will actually be working for Omonia Football Club; and thinks that Nicosia would be a better option as the scool there (Junior School) is better. 

I have only ever been on a flying visit to Cyprus and not really seen much of the Island and so am doing alot of research on the net. Im bringing the children over in March and am trying to compile a list of places,houses and schools to checkout.

If there are any other areas suitable aside from Larnaca and Nicosia? Id love to hear about them.

Thanks once again; still cant believe how useful this site and the people are !! x


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## BabsM (May 24, 2008)

MultipleMummy said:


> Hi
> 
> I am a newbie and have been trawling through all the treads on this forum. I have found some of the info to be so helpful but would love a little guidance on Larnaca.
> 
> ...


Personally I would not like to live anywhere along Mackenzie. IMHO its too close to the airport. At the end closest to the airport, the planes land directly over the top of your head! Also, you often see (and smell) the seaweed on the beech.

If you want to live close to Larnaca and the beach, how about Oroklini? Its just outside the town and very popular with Brits. The village stretches from Larnaca Bay up to Oroklini hill, a distance of 3km. The beach is sandy with artificial rocks. It doesn't seem to have the same problem with seaweed as the main Larnaca beaches. It takes 10 mins max to get from Oroklini to central Larnaca. The Larnaca-Agia Napa motorway runs through the outskirts of Oroklini and leads onto the Larnaca-Nicosia motorway.

You might also like to consider Kiti and Pervolia. They are next to each other, close to Larnaca town but on the other side of Larnaca to Oroklini. Pervolia is under the flight path but nowhere near as close as Mackenzie!. It has beachside properties.


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## kimonas (Jul 19, 2008)

MultipleMummy said:


> Hi Kimonas
> 
> Thanks for the advice; Im not sure what to do now as I definatley do not want to live near the airport.
> 
> ...


The airport isn't so noisy as the planes approach over the sea and the wind always blows the noise away from the town - I know quite a few people who live in the area and they don't seem to complain. I think the club is based at the stadium which avoids the traffic altogether as it is on the approach to Nicosia. Have you explored the Junior school? It has an excellent reputation but is expensive and locals joke that you have to register as soon as you get your first scan to stand a chance of getting a place by the time the child is ready to go to school. Nicosia is probably the best place for shops/entertainment, shopping Malls, bowling alleys, cinemas clubs, free kindergarten at IKEA etc., but on the down side it is at least half an hour to the beach and is extrememly hot in summer. 

You might investigate one of the cooler hill villages half way (best of both worlds) such as Lythrodontas - but it all depends on whether you want to have access to other expats and how far you're prepared to commute to schools etc. Certainly the samller towns and villages do not have English private schools.

The best beaches, unfortunately, are in the occupied territories - currently visitable by car accoss the bufferzone through crossing points (although many locals frown at the idea of 'crossing over'). There are also white sand beaches along the east coast in Paralimni, Protoras and Agia Napa but they do tend to get very busy and draw all the tourists - hugely popular in the summer and all pretty much ghost towns out of season. 

My wife goes to the twins club in Nicosia and says there are a number of ex-pats there (it meets on Thursdays) she says it's nothing to shout about but is quite good for socialising. I'm sure other forum members will chip in with news of facilities elsewhere to help in your deliberations!


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## theresoon (Apr 11, 2008)

kimonas said:


> The airport isn't so noisy as the planes approach over the sea and the wind always blows the noise away from the town - I know quite a few people who live in the area and they don't seem to complain. I think the club is based at the stadium which avoids the traffic altogether as it is on the approach to Nicosia. Have you explored the Junior school? It has an excellent reputation but is expensive and locals joke that you have to register as soon as you get your first scan to stand a chance of getting a place by the time the child is ready to go to school. Nicosia is probably the best place for shops/entertainment, shopping Malls, bowling alleys, cinemas clubs, free kindergarten at IKEA etc., but on the down side it is at least half an hour to the beach and is extrememly hot in summer.
> 
> You might investigate one of the cooler hill villages half way (best of both worlds) such as Lythrodontas - but it all depends on whether you want to have access to other expats and how far you're prepared to commute to schools etc. Certainly the samller towns and villages do not have English private schools.
> 
> ...



Junior school was talking applications for 2011 admission back in spring. 2010 had already closed. I wouldn't be surprised if 2011 is closed by now as well.


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## MultipleMummy (Jan 29, 2010)

BabsM said:


> Personally I would not like to live anywhere along Mackenzie. IMHO its too close to the airport. At the end closest to the airport, the planes land directly over the top of your head! Also, you often see (and smell) the seaweed on the beech.
> 
> If you want to live close to Larnaca and the beach, how about Oroklini? Its just outside the town and very popular with Brits. The village stretches from Larnaca Bay up to Oroklini hill, a distance of 3km. The beach is sandy with artificial rocks. It doesn't seem to have the same problem with seaweed as the main Larnaca beaches. It takes 10 mins max to get from Oroklini to central Larnaca. The Larnaca-Agia Napa motorway runs through the outskirts of Oroklini and leads onto the Larnaca-Nicosia motorway.
> 
> You might also like to consider Kiti and Pervolia. They are next to each other, close to Larnaca town but on the other side of Larnaca to Oroklini. Pervolia is under the flight path but nowhere near as close as Mackenzie!. It has beachside properties.


Thank you BabsM, 
Im going to google the areas you have suggested. I know Im not going to get a good feel of any area until I visit but this information is really helping me so thanks very much x


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## MultipleMummy (Jan 29, 2010)

theresoon said:


> Junior school was talking applications for 2011 admission back in spring. 2010 had already closed. I wouldn't be surprised if 2011 is closed by now as well.


Hi

I was worried about this but I am getting some positive feedback from them so it could be a possibility.

Thanks


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## MultipleMummy (Jan 29, 2010)

kimonas said:


> The airport isn't so noisy as the planes approach over the sea and the wind always blows the noise away from the town - I know quite a few people who live in the area and they don't seem to complain. I think the club is based at the stadium which avoids the traffic altogether as it is on the approach to Nicosia. Have you explored the Junior school? It has an excellent reputation but is expensive and locals joke that you have to register as soon as you get your first scan to stand a chance of getting a place by the time the child is ready to go to school. Nicosia is probably the best place for shops/entertainment, shopping Malls, bowling alleys, cinemas clubs, free kindergarten at IKEA etc., but on the down side it is at least half an hour to the beach and is extrememly hot in summer.
> 
> You might investigate one of the cooler hill villages half way (best of both worlds) such as Lythrodontas - but it all depends on whether you want to have access to other expats and how far you're prepared to commute to schools etc. Certainly the samller towns and villages do not have English private schools.
> 
> ...


There is so much to think about Im confused How do you and your wife find living in Nicosia? Are your twins in school yet ?
I definatley would like to be near to the action and other ex pats as I dont speak any Greek (yet) so dont want to feel alienated.

I visitied Nissi Beach briefly and fell inlove with it..but everyone tells me it is very rowdy in the summer. Are there any other beaches like this?

This forum is fab :clap2:


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## BabsM (May 24, 2008)

MultipleMummy said:


> Are your twins in school yet ?
> I definatley would like to be near to the action and other ex pats as I dont speak any Greek (yet) so dont want to feel alienated.
> 
> I visitied Nissi Beach briefly and fell inlove with it..but everyone tells me it is very rowdy in the summer. Are there any other beaches like this?
> ...


The places that I suggested are near to the action and are all popular with Brits.

I agree, Nissi Beach is lovely, as is Makronissos beach and Agia Thekla is also close. The problem is the distance to Nicosia from any of these for your husband's work and the distance to the nearest English school. Nissi Beach is also in the main tourist area for Agia Napa. I really think you would be better off in the Larnaca area or between Larnaca and Nicosia other wise you are all going to be doing a lot of travelling.


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## kimonas (Jul 19, 2008)

MultipleMummy said:


> There is so much to think about Im confused How do you and your wife find living in Nicosia? Are your twins in school yet ?
> I definatley would like to be near to the action and other ex pats as I dont speak any Greek (yet) so dont want to feel alienated.
> 
> I visitied Nissi Beach briefly and fell inlove with it..but everyone tells me it is very rowdy in the summer. Are there any other beaches like this?
> ...


I tried to learn Greek and got my diploma from night school when I first arrived, but there is a confusion in that the lessons are in mainland Greek, whilst the _lingua franca_ here is a Cypriot regional dialect based on an ancient branch of Greek. It is rated as the second most difficult language for British adults to learn and I admit I gave up after a couple of years. I haven't found the lack of language alienating as almost everyone speaks English (at least in the tourist areas and major towns). There are also nigh on 150,000 migrant workers in Cyprus from all over the world who commuicate with their employers in English as the international language.

Nicosia is a fascinating place, we find it very convenient as it has everything one would need without having to travel too far (although the longest journey on the island is only a few hours). We do have an added advantage of course of a pre-existing circle of friends in the City as my wife is Cypriot - and I have heard others on the forum complaining that Nicosia is a bit unfriendly and it's difficult to make friends etc. We do go to the beaches in the summer but tend to avoid the tourist traps as they are just madly busy and far too noisy. There are quite a number of excellent (and reasonably remote) beaches around the island if you know where to look. There's one between Paphos and Limmassol for example with long stretches of sand, fossil beds to keep the kids busy and a great taverna for refreshments - and not a jet ski or moronic DJ in sight.

Our twins have just turned one, so they're still a way off school age yet. We're saving up!!


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