Escape the Summer Heat: Cyprus's Coolest Trails

By July, the Cyprus coast settles into a long run of days above 35 °C, and the middle of the afternoon becomes something to wait out rather than walk through. But the island has an escape hatch built into its geography. Air cools by roughly 6.5 °C for every 1,000 metres you climb, so the Troodos plateau — much of it above 1,700 metres — runs a good 10–12 °C cooler than Nicosia or the beaches. Add the deep shade of a pine forest or the cold water of a mountain stream, and summer hiking becomes not just bearable but genuinely pleasant.

There are two reliable ways to beat the heat here: climb above it, into the high forests around Mount Olympus, or follow the water, into the waterfall gorges and shaded canyons where cold rivers keep the air fresh. Here are ten trails that do one or both — and a few notes on hiking smart when the island is at its hottest.

Climb above the heat

The simplest strategy is altitude. The trails circling Chionistra (Mount Olympus), Cyprus's highest peak at 1,952 metres, spend almost their entire length in cool, shaded pine forest — the kind of place where you might reach for a light layer at the start of an early walk.

Artemis is the classic: an easy loop right around the summit, through ancient black pine — including two 500-year-old giants — and past crumbling Venetian fortifications. It is known for staying relatively cool even in high summer thanks to the forest cover. Atalanti is the longer, flatter sibling on the same mountain: a forest circuit with spring-fed water sources partway round and an 800-year-old juniper along the way. For something short and family-friendly, Persephone runs almost level along a wooded ridge to the Makria Kontarka viewpoint.

Follow the water

When you want to actually feel cool rather than just avoid the worst of the heat, head for the mountain streams. These trails trace cold rivers through shaded ravines to waterfalls with pools deep enough to stand in.

Troodos has a trio of waterfall walks worth the drive, all of them short, shaded, and cool at the water's edge. Kalidonia — the Caledonia Falls trail — follows the Kryos stream under a canopy of pine, alder, and plane to a 12-metre waterfall and a natural plunge pool; it is one of the island's favourite refuges from the summer heat. Millomeris drops down a short, well-shaded path beside the aptly named Krios (Cold River) to Cyprus's tallest single-drop waterfall, with a cool pool at its base. And Chantara is barely fifteen minutes on foot through plane and pine to an 8-metre fall with a rock pool made for a warm-day paddle. For something longer, Kannoures – Agios Nikolaos Stegis descends along the Karkotis River canyon — constant water, deep forest — to the UNESCO-listed Byzantine church of Agios Nikolaos tis Stegis; remember it runs downhill to the church, so save energy for the climb back.

Into the shade

Height and running water are not the only ways to stay cool. A deep gorge or a dense endemic forest builds its own shaded microclimate even when the land around it is baking — which makes these two a good bet for the west of the island, well away from Troodos.

In Akamas, the Avakas Gorge narrows into a corridor of towering limestone walls that keep a streambed in shade for most of the day; it feels wild and enclosed, a world apart from the exposed, sun-blasted peninsula above. Footing turns slippery where the water runs, so wear shoes with grip. Further north in the Paphos highlands, Cedar Valley winds through a forest of Cedrus brevifolia — a cedar found nowhere else on Earth — where streams and small cascades thread the shade beneath 40-metre trees. And for an almost effortless dose of shade, Alonatsia near Agros offers genuine sanctuary from the summer heat: a level kilometre under a pine canopy, over little wooden bridges to the Kato Mylos reservoir — an easy win with young children or on a recovery day.

Hiking smart in the heat

Even a cool trail deserves respect in a Cyprus summer:

• Start at dawn. The first two or three hours after sunrise are the best of the day on any trail — aim to be finishing as others are starting.
• Carry more water than feels necessary — at least two litres per person, more on the longer loops like Atalanti or Kannoures. Don't count on refilling from streams.
• Mind the exposed stretches. Even high trails have open, sun-facing sections, like the ridge views on Atalanti or the descent on Kannoures. Shade is the rule here, not a guarantee.
• Waterfalls run lower late in summer. Flow peaks in spring; by August the pools are smaller — still cool, just less dramatic.
• Skip the middle of the day. Between roughly 11 am and 4 pm, rest in the shade or a mountain-village taverna rather than pushing on.

Ready to plan? Browse the full collection of trails, or open the map to find cool ground near you.