Stand on Ledra Street and look up: the Shakolas Building rises twelve floors above a medieval street where most buildings stop at two or three, and from its penultimate floor you can trace the line that divides the city. That view is the clearest introduction to Nicosia, the last divided capital in Europe, where the Old City's star-shaped walls enclose both the south and the north.
This guide suits travellers who want museums, churches and city walls rather than beaches, and who are willing to start early: many sights in the Old City close early, and an early start also helps you beat the summer heat.
Everything below sits in or around the Old City and the area just west of the walls, so you can plan a trip largely on foot. Names are given as they appear on their own pages so you can look each one up.
Top things to do in Nicosia
1. Ledra Observatory Museum
On the penultimate floor of the Shakolas Building on Ledra Street, the observatory lets you see the division of the island laid out below you. Older Nicosians know the building by its former name, The Mangli. Entrance is €2.50.
To reach it, go into the Debenhams shopping complex in the middle of Ledra Street and take the lift up. There is also a café on the sixth floor with views, though the best viewpoints are usually taken by paying customers.
2. Cyprus Museum
On 1 Mouseiou Street, west of the city wall between the Tripoli bastion and the municipal gardens, this museum showcases the best of Cypriot archaeology from the 9th millennium BCE to the end of antiquity. There is a café on the grounds, and entry is free.
It opens Tuesday to Friday 08:00–18:00, Saturday 09:00–17:00 and Sunday 10:00–13:00, and is closed on Mondays and on New Year's, Easter and Christmas. Pair it with a walk through the municipal gardens afterwards.
3. Byzantine Museum
On Archbishop Kyprianou Square, this museum holds one of the world's best collections of Orthodox icons and other artworks, mostly from the 9th to the 16th century. You will spot it easily by the giant statue of Archbishop Makarios standing outside. Entry is €2.
It opens Monday to Friday 09:00–16:30 and Saturday 08:00–12:00, and is closed on Sundays. The Archbishop's Palace and St. John's Cathedral, and the National Struggle Museum, are on the same grounds, so combine them in one visit.
4. Walls of Nicosia
The old city walls with their bastions encircle the city, running through both the current northern and southern parts of it. The moat has been converted into a pleasant park, which makes the circuit an easy walk rather than a hike.
Wandering the Old City is an experience in itself, but be aware that some buildings, especially those near the Green Line, are derelict and crumbling. An early start is best, both for the light and for the heat.
5. Leventis Municipal Museum
On Ippokratous 17 in Laiki Yitonia, this museum has been housed in a converted two-storey house since 1984, with exhibits dating from 2300 BC to the present day. It was voted European Museum of the Year in 1991, and entry is free.
It opens Tuesday to Sunday 10:00–16:30. Its location in Laiki Yitonia makes it an easy stop while walking the Old City's lanes.
6. Famagusta Gate
On Leoforos Athinon, this is one of Nicosia's three old gates, now turned into the Lefkosia Municipal Cultural Centre and used for exhibitions and performances. It is worth the walk for the gate itself and for what is happening inside it.
Check what is on before you go, since the programme changes. It sits on the edge of the Old City, so it fits naturally into a circuit of the walls.
7. Archbishop's Palace and St. John's Cathedral
The palace is the residence of the Archbishop of the Church of Cyprus, built in neo-Byzantine style and finished in 1960. It is not open to the public, but you can view it from the outside. Next to it are the old palace and St. John's Cathedral, the main church of Cyprus, constructed in 1662 on the site of a former Benedictine monastery.
The Byzantine Museum and the National Struggle Museum are also on the palace grounds, so treat this as one stop rather than three separate trips.
8. Ömeriye Mosque
On Platia Tillirias, Ömeriye is regarded as the most important mosque in the non-Turkish part of Cyprus, and it is open to both worshippers and visitors. It was built in 1571, when the island came under Ottoman rule after the Ottoman-Venetian War.
Dress respectfully and time your visit outside prayer hours. It sits within the Old City, so it can be folded into a walking route.
9. National Struggle Museum
On Kiniras 7, this museum documents the history of the Cypriot independence movement from 1955 to 1959, with a rather positive spin on the EOKA guerrilla movement. Entry is €1, and it opens daily 08:00–12:00.
Because it closes at noon, visit it in the morning. It is on the Archbishop's Palace grounds, next to the Byzantine Museum.
10. House of the Dragoman Hadjigeorgakis Kornesios
On Patriarch Gregoriou St, this beautifully restored 18th-century building now houses an ethnological museum. Entry is €1.
It opens Monday to Friday 08:00–14:00 and Saturday 09:00–13:00, and is closed on Sundays. Its morning-only hours make it a good early stop in the Old City.
11. Leventis Gallery
On 5 Leonidou street, this gallery holds Cypriot and European paintings. Alongside temporary exhibitions there are three permanent collections: the Greek, the Paris and the Cyprus collections.
It opens Monday 10:00–17:00, Wednesday 10:00–22:00 and Thursday to Saturday 10:00–17:00, and is closed on Tuesdays. The late Wednesday opening is useful if you have filled your day with morning-only sights.
12. Bayraktar Mosque
Built and expanded gradually during the 18th and 19th centuries, the mosque stands around the tomb of an unknown Ottoman flagbearer who fell during the conquest of Cyprus in 1570. It was bombed three times in the violent decades after World War II and heavily vandalised in 1975, possibly in retribution for the Turkish invasion, and has been open to worshippers again since 2003.
It is a sombre stop rather than a decorative one, and it pairs naturally with a walk along the nearby dividing line.
13. Archangel Michael Trypiotis Church
This Orthodox church was built in 1695 according to an inscription, though its icon of Archangel Michael is older. Its 18th-century iconostasis and the relics of Saint Riginos are the points of interest.
It is a quiet stop within the Old City, best visited in the morning alongside the other churches and museums nearby.
14. Nicosia Municipal Arts Centre
On 19 Apostolou Varnava Str, this contemporary art gallery is housed in a converted old power station built in 1936. The building sat derelict for 20 years and reopened as a gallery in 1994, and it won a 1994 Europa Nostra award.
It includes a decent café-restaurant with a Mediterranean menu, which makes it a sensible lunch or afternoon break between sights.
15. Holy Mother of God Cathedral
On Elefsinos, the Surp Asdvadzadzin Church was built and opened in 1981 to replace the main church of Nicosia's Armenian community, which was left on the Turkish side. It is the only church built in traditional Armenian style on Cyprus.
Around it are other monuments related to the Armenian community, including the Armenian Genocide Monument, a marble khachkar and several statues, so allow time for the surrounding grounds.
If you only have one day
Morning. Start early, since many Old City sights close early and the heat builds through the day. Begin at the Cyprus Museum on Mouseiou Street when it opens, then walk into the Old City to the Byzantine Museum on Archbishop Kyprianou Square, combining it with the National Struggle Museum on the same grounds while its daily 08:00–12:00 window is still open.
Afternoon. Walk a stretch of the Walls of Nicosia and its moat-turned-park, then head to Ledra Street and take the lift in the Debenhams complex to the Ledra Observatory Museum to see the division of the city from above. If time allows, stop at the Leventis Municipal Museum in Laiki Yitonia on the way.
Evening. Finish at the Nicosia Municipal Arts Centre, whose café-restaurant serves a Mediterranean menu, or take a later look at the Leventis Gallery, which stays open until 22:00 on Wednesdays.
Frequently asked questions
When is the best time of day to see the Old City sights?
Get an early start. Many sights in the Old City close early, and starting early also helps you beat the heat in the summer. Some museums, such as the National Struggle Museum and the House of the Dragoman Hadjigeorgakis Kornesios, are morning-only.
Which museums in Nicosia are free?
The Cyprus Museum and the Leventis Municipal Museum are free. Others charge a small amount: the Byzantine Museum is €2, the Ledra Observatory Museum is €2.50, and the National Struggle Museum and the House of the Dragoman Hadjigeorgakis Kornesios are €1 each.
Can I see the division of the city?
Yes. The Ledra Observatory Museum on Ledra Street, on the penultimate floor of the Shakolas Building, is where it is possible to see the division of the island. Note that some buildings near the Green Line are derelict and crumbling.
Which sights are closed on Sundays?
The Byzantine Museum and the House of the Dragoman Hadjigeorgakis Kornesios are closed on Sundays. The Cyprus Museum opens Sunday 10:00–13:00, and the Leventis Municipal Museum opens Tuesday to Sunday 10:00–16:30.
Pick your dates, check the opening days against your list, and start building your route through the Old City.