# Guide to Green - Nicosia



## kimonas (Jul 19, 2008)

Several people have asked about the parks of Nicosia, so I put together a brief guide - perhaps others could do the same for the areas where they live - I get the feeling that there is lots of money now being put into parks, gardens etc. but they're not very well advertised. I'd been living in Nicosia for several years before I realised that the grounds of the Kykkos Archbishop's Palace were open to the public, but for all the world they look like they're private - and quite a few Nicosians are unaware of the excellent facilities along the Linear Park...enjoy the shade!

On the face of it Nicosia does seem to be a bit of a concrete jungle with not a lot of Green sanctuaries to get away from the sun, but there are in fact quite a few family oriented parks, and a fair few miles of well designed pathways for the energetic.

Here is a round-up of some of the Oases of Nicosia…

Athalassa National Park is on the outskirts of Nicosia – a favourite spot for Green Monday for Nicosisans, the park is part plantation, and part walkways, with a lake, picnic area, playground and kiosk – was very Green but will start to dry up a bit now that the weather has turned. The wild flower meadows surrounding the eastern part of the park are a must for flora hunters – swathes of poppies, chamomile etc and a butterfly spotter’s paradise. Follow the Brown signs for Athalassa National Park off the motorway or from the University New campus roundabout.

Acropolis Park is compact and bijoux but has everything a young family needs – play area with a soft landing, swings, icecream and beer… a nice wild wooded network of walkways and a water feature with a bridge connecting caves to the restaurant. To get to Acropilis Park turn at the Bank lights (pointy sculpture) (right heading OUT of Nicosia) and turn right again at the first major crossroads lights (about 1.5km) head past M&S and turn first right down the hill into the residential area and the park is on your right (usually plenty of parking as most of the park goers are acropolite families who stroll there from their penthouses). There are no road signs to the park as far as I can remember.

There is a humungous city centre park (2 mile perimeter) right next to the Makarios III Hospital which merges with the Grounds of the famous English School which are open to the public – there are often free exhibitions, folk dancing, music, fairs and festivals in this park as there is plenty of parking both at the hospital car parks and further down the dual carriageway with access to the park of it. This park has a stadium, fountains, woodland walks, tennis courts, futsal pitches, kiosks, picnic areas etc.

Proedriko park is the public access bit of the Presidential Palace Gardens and grounds and it merges with the Pezodromos Linear Park which stretches for over 7 miles from the heart of the City through the Old colonial suburbs, through old Strovolos ( heads just past Jumbo) and continues for several miles into Lakatamia. This Park has had millions of Euros poured into it (and is still being developed). 

The Linear Park can be accessed from several points along the river as it snakes through the city, and joins together several other subsidiary parks such as the Nicosia Park (also known as the CYTA Park) which is very well kept and also houses the National Theatre and includes the Nicosia Municipal Gardens. 

There’s plenty of wilder orchard and grove walking to be had in the grounds of the University of Cyprus (Nicosia City Campus) but also at the New Campus (although the gardens there are still under construction.

There’s a small but very nice park with excellent views across the city (and restaurant within the caves of Aglantzia Skali Park which houses the amphitheatre which leads down to the excellent tavernas and refurbished buildings of the village itself (which seems to be miles away from anywhere but is surrounded by and has been swallowed up by the city).

Kykkos Park in Nicosia (also known as Engomi Park) is my personal favourite, opposite the European University campus. This park is maintained by the coffers of the Kykkos Archbishopric & has a menagerie parrots, swans, ducks, geese, baboons and beautiful fountain and immaculate walkways and is surrounded by ancient olive and citrus groves.

Some of the streets aligning the parks can also be treated as extensions of them as they contain the billionaire’s rows and company headquarters of converted colonial mansions where people live and work in splendor within beautifully shady tree lined streets which are very interesting to wander along. For example the stretch from the Anglican Cathedral down towards the ford across the river at Podromos Park which has quite an extensive wood and children’s play area and restaurant.


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