Nicosia

Nicosia sits inland on the hot Mesaoria plain, so swimming always means a drive. The sea within reach is warm: Larnaca's town beach and the sand south of its airport are about 45 minutes away, and the coast around Kyrenia, across the Green Line, takes about as long over the Kyrenia range. In high summer the water reaches 27°C and stays swimmable well into autumn.

The beaches are a day out, not part of daily life. In the city a hotel or municipal pool is the only place to cool off, and visitors who want sea and sand every day usually stay on the coast and come to Nicosia for its sights.

Eating here means meze: a long run of small plates, from tahini, halloumi and village sausage to snails, kleftiko and souvla from the charcoal grill, taken slowly at a taverna table. The old town inside the walls has the most atmospheric places, especially the lanes around Faneromeni and the restored houses of Chrysaliniotissa, while families and office workers eat in the suburbs.

Crossing the Green Line on foot gets you the Turkish Cypriot kitchen: kebab grills, lahmacun and syrupy pastries near the Selimiye Mosque and the covered Bandabulya market. Coffee is a serious habit, from thick Cypriot coffee to iced frappé drunk all afternoon. Commandaria, the island's sweet dessert wine, and the wines of the Troodos villages are worth trying. Outside Cypriot cooking the international choice is narrow.

The old city sits inside a ring of 16th-century Venetian walls with eleven heart-shaped bastions, and the Green Line runs straight through it, so one walk covers two halves of a divided capital. On the south side, the Cyprus Museum holds the island's best antiquities, from Neolithic figurines to the Archaic terracotta warriors of Ayia Irini. The Archbishop's Palace and its Byzantine icon collection, the Leventis Municipal Museum and the frescoed Agios Ioannis cathedral are also here.

North of the line stand the Selimiye Mosque, a French Gothic cathedral with minarets added, the Ottoman caravanserai of Büyük Han and the Bedesten. Lusignan, Venetian, Ottoman and British layers are all in close quarters. It is a rewarding two or three days, though the city has no single sight of international rank.

Going out happens mostly inside the walls. Bars fill the narrow streets around Faneromeni Square and Ledra Street, and a mix of students, young professionals and creative types drinks on the pavements late into warm nights. Cypriots eat late, so bars only get busy towards midnight. A handful of clubs and lounge bars along the main avenues outside the walls carry on after that.

It is friendly, local and relaxed rather than a destination in itself. Summer evenings outdoors are the highlight, and the bigger club scene on the island is on the coast.

The city lies on the Mesaoria, a flat plain that turns brown and very hot in summer, and green space in town is limited to the moat gardens and a few parks. The landscape starts at the edges. The long limestone ridge of the Kyrenia range rises to the north, with trails along its crest and views over the sea to Turkey. The pine-covered Troodos mountains are about an hour south-west, and Mount Olympos reaches nearly 2,000m. They have marked nature trails, cool air in summer and snow on the top in winter.

Spring is the season for walking, when the plain is green and wildflowers cover the hillsides. From June to September most outdoor activity is confined to early mornings or the mountains.

The island is small, so most of it makes a day out. North over the hills, about 40 minutes away, are Kyrenia's horseshoe harbour and castle, the Gothic abbey ruins of Bellapais and the fairy-tale crags of St Hilarion castle. East is Famagusta, with its walled old town and cathedral-mosque, and next to it the Roman city of Salamis.

To the south, Larnaca has the church of Saint Lazarus and the Hala Sultan Tekke on its salt lake, and the lace-making village of Lefkara and Neolithic Choirokoitia are on the way. The UNESCO-listed painted churches of the Troodos lie in mountain villages about an hour or so away, and Kourion and Limassol are within reach. Paphos is a long day. A car makes all of this far easier, and hire cars can cross the Green Line with extra insurance.

Cypriots are very relaxed with children, families eat out together late into the evening and the city feels safe. What it lacks is anything made for children. There are a few playgrounds and parks, the moat gardens and some hands-on rooms in the museums, but no zoo, aquarium or theme park of note, and the beaches need a car. July and August are hard work with small children, often well over 35°C, so spring and autumn suit families much better. Most families with young children are better off on the coast and coming here for a day.

Inside the Venetian walls everything is within a short walk, and the pedestrian crossing at Ledra Street takes you to the northern half in minutes, with a passport or ID check. Beyond the old town the picture changes. The city spreads into low suburbs built around the car, there is no rail, local buses are infrequent and rarely useful to visitors, and pavements are patchy.

Intercity buses link the city to Larnaca, Limassol and Paphos, and shuttles run to Larnaca airport. For the mountains, villages and most day trips a hire car is the realistic choice. Traffic drives on the left.

The main shopping is on Ledra and Onasagorou streets inside the walls, lined with chain stores, cafés and some small independents. Makarios and Stasikratous avenues just outside hold the international and designer brands. The old town has a few craft and design workshops, and the Cyprus Handicraft Centre sells Lefkara lace, basketry and pottery.

Across the Green Line, the covered Bandabulya market and the lanes near the Selimiye Mosque sell spices, Turkish delight, textiles and copperware. It is pleasant browsing rather than a reason to come.

Nicosia is moderately priced for a European capital. Eating out is the best value: a full meze or a souvla lunch fills you for a modest sum, and coffee and pastries are cheap. Hotels are fewer and more business-oriented than on the coast, so rooms are mid-range rather than a bargain. The northern half of the city is noticeably cheaper for meals and shopping. Museums charge little, but the real extra cost is a hire car, which most visitors need for anything beyond the walls.

As the capital, Nicosia has most of the island's formal culture. The Cyprus Symphony Orchestra performs a regular season, the state theatre company stages plays, and the municipal theatre and a few smaller stages run year-round programmes. Most drama is in Greek, so music and dance suit visitors better. Live music in the old town bars ranges from rebetiko and Cypriot folk to jazz and indie, and summer brings open-air concerts in the moat and courtyards. It is a modest, mostly local scene that rewards a visitor who checks what is on.

Nicosia has a small but real bathing tradition from its Ottoman centuries. The Omeriye Hammam, a domed 16th-century bath next to a former church, has been restored and still offers steam and massage. In the north, the Büyük Hamam and other old baths continue the tradition. Beyond these, wellness means hotel spas.

The pace in the old town is slow: long coffee breaks in shaded squares, a quiet siesta lull in summer afternoons and evenings that start late. For deeper rest, people head to the cool pine villages of the Troodos.