North Cyprus offers the perfect escape from the stresses of everyday life. Enjoying more than half of the island’s 480 miles of spectacular coastline, North Cyprus boasts a myriad of picturesque coves and beautiful broad bays backed by historical harbours and citrus groves. Whether it’s swimming on secluded stretches of sandy beaches in the Karpaz, enjoying the excellent facilities and activities of private hotel beaches or scuba-diving in one of the region’s spectacular dive sites, there’s a great choice for beach-lovers. Indeed, it’s no surprise that according to legend, Julius Caesar gave the island to Cleopatra as a token of his love.


Turtles of North Cyprus
Offshore, the famous sea turtles of North Cyprus mingle with a fantastic range of fish that draw divers from around the world.These splendid creatures come ashore on the golden beaches in May to lay their eggs, about 40 cm down, before carefully re-covering them with sand and heading back out to sea. Then, two months later, in July, baby turtles hatch through their leathery eggs and dig their way to the surface before scuttling out to sea to meet their parents.

Modern developments have driven the turtles from all but a few of their nesting sites in the rest of the Mediterranean, but the quieter bays of North Cyprus and the Turkish shoreline offer breeding sanctuaries for the 300 green turtles and around a thousand loggerhead and caretta caretta turtles that live in the region. It is impossible not to be in awe of these fantastic creatures and the beauty of their natural habitat.

Turtle Watching on Alagadi Beach
Indeed, as well as nesting on approximately 88 sandy beaches around Girne, on the Karpaz Peninsula and Gazimağusa Bay, Alagadi Turtle Beach, east of Girne, is dedicated a specially protected area for these endangered Green and Loggerhead Turtles.