Ayia Napa

Ayia Napa has a reputation, mostly the party kind. What gets buried is that it sits on the best beaches in Cyprus, with water so clear it looks photoshopped, sea caves you can swim into, and a Venetian monastery in the middle of town. Visit out of season and it's almost peaceful.

Ayia Napa is really two towns wearing one name. There is the famous one: the Square, the clubs, the summer nights that end at sunrise. And there is the one underneath: a former fishing village gathered around a Venetian-era monastery, sitting on a stretch of coast so lovely it would draw crowds even if nobody had ever thrown a party here. Which town you meet depends on when you come and where you stand, and even in high summer the mornings belong to the sea.

The water is the real headline. Nissi and Makronissos are the classic sandy bays, Konnos Bay hides in its pine-backed cove towards Cape Greco, and the sea caves along the headland are made for boat trips and confident swimmers. Water so clear the boats seem to float on air is this coast's party trick, and our island beach guide puts these beaches in context against the rest of Cyprus. Add the sculpture park on the headland, the Thalassa Museum and the monastery at the centre of it all, and there is far more here than the reputation suggests.

In peak summer Ayia Napa is loud, young and makes no apology for it; if that is your holiday, you will be in your element, and the events calendar will tell you what is on while you are here. Outside those weeks it mellows fast: spring and autumn bring warm sea, quieter beaches and walkers on the Cape Greco trails, while families fill the waterpark and the gentler bays all season long. Fish tavernas around the harbour do the food justice, our eat and drink guide explains the classics, and the things to do guide covers everything within day-trip range.