The Akamas National Park occupies the entire peninsula on the north-west of Cyprus. It is a hill, richly overgrown with bushes and trees. The park is crossed by the tourist ring route "the Trail of Aphrodite".
The area of the Akamas Peninsula occupied by the reserve reaches 230 km2. The highest mountain in the Park is Mutti tis Sotiras (370 meters). It is located near the Northern shore. At the base of the Akamas Peninsula, there is an even higher mountain (428 meters), but it is far from the tourist routes.
50 kilometers to the south of the Akamas nature reserve is located the large city of Paphos, and the nearest village where routes start along the northern shore of the Akamas nature reserve is resort Neo Chorio. Next to it is the larger town of Polis.
There is a legend that the National Park was named after Akamas, the son of the mythical Greek hero Theseus. This place also was visited by the Greek goddess of Beauty Aphrodite. Not far from the village of Neo Chorio there is a Aphrodite Baths, hidden from prying eyes by the lush vegetation of the oasis. In this grotto, the Goddess Aphrodite met her lover Adonis, who was considered the most beautiful living on earth.
In Neo Chorio or Polis, you can take a boat for a guided tour. They all sail along the northern shore of the Akamas reserve to the Blue Lagoon. There are very beautiful turquoise and blue waters. The farther away from the shore, the more blue and saturated the color of the water becomes. The Blue Lagoon can also be reached on foot via a path that runs along the shore. This route is called the "Aphrodite Trail". The distance from Neo Chorio is 3.5 kilometers. People who come to the Blue Lagoon by ship swim in the sea from the ship, but there is also a small beach.
On the West Bank of the Akamas Peninsula, there are two well-known natural attractions: the Lara tortle beach and Gorge Avakas. They have to be visited during one tour. Lara beach is a completely wild, carefully protected beach. From July to August, turtles come here and lay their eggs. The reserve staff takes care of them to support the population. At night, the beach is completely closed to the public, as turtles lay their eggs at night. During the day, you can see the nets that the reserve staff put over the egg clutches.
The Avakas gorge is also a protected natural attraction in Cyprus. It is located 2 kilometers from Lara beach. The height of the rocks in the gorge reaches 30 meters, and the width of the passage in some places is only 3-5 meters.
