Limassol

Limassol district runs from salt flats at sea level to the Pitsilia peaks, and its thirty-six trails hold both ends of the island's range. The two sunniest walks in Cyprus are here, and so are the wine villages, a coastal network you can walk for a whole day, and some of the steepest short climbs on the island.

The lay of the land

Three kinds of walking, and they barely resemble each other.

The coast. Pissouri has five colour-coded routes around the village, from the 3.8 km Pink to the 15.8 km Green down to Melanda Beach — a genuine full-day walk. Closer to the city, Lady's Mile circles 3.6 km of dunes and brackish lagoon on the Akrotiri peninsula, where flamingo, black-winged stilt and Kentish plover feed. Apollo Hylates walks 3.6 km past the ancient sanctuary near Episkopi.

The wine villages. Short, stone-paved routes through Lofou, Vasa, Arsos, Koilani and Dora, usually an hour or two: Lofou climbs through the alleys of a village at 780 m to the Faucet of Elitzi, Neromylos makes a 4.2 km loop past an old water mill from Koilani, and The Six Springs crosses a river near Arsos.

The Pitsilia highlands. The real climbing. Papoutsa – Eagle's Nest gains 434 m in 4.5 km to a rock formation below the peak, and Palaichori – Papoutsa gains 442 m on a parallel line. Around Agros, Agros – Kato Mylos is a 6.3 km circuit with a lake, a church and a bridge on it.

When to go

The extremes are extreme. Kourteli and Lady's Mile each take 13.9 hours of direct sun on a midsummer day — the two most exposed trails we cover anywhere in Cyprus — and the whole Pissouri network sits above eleven. Those are November-to-April walks, and superb ones: the coast in winter is quiet, mild and full of birds. The village and mountain routes hold up better in summer, though only The Six Springs at 3.3 hours reaches our deep-shade tier. Note that Six Springs runs the other way round from most trails here — it crosses a river, so it is easiest in the dry months and needs waterproof boots between November and April.

Four to start with

• Lofou — the best of the wine villages on foot, half an hour from Limassol.
• Lady's Mile — flat, open wetland walking with flamingos; go early or in winter.
• Papoutsa – Eagle's Nest — a sustained climb to a landmark rock, and the district's best summit for the effort.
• Pissouri Blue Route — 7.4 km along the cliffs to Cape Aspro, the pick of the coastal five.

Practical notes

Plan water carefully. Limassol has thirteen picnic sites, more than almost any district, but only three have drinking water — Agia Paraskevi, Kakomallis and Polemidia. The other ten have tables and barbecues and nothing to fill a bottle from, so treat them as places to stop rather than places to resupply.

Bases are easy: Pissouri village for the coastal routes, Agros or Kyperounta for Pitsilia, and any of the Krassochoria villages for the short walks between them — those cluster closely enough that two or three make a good day, with lunch in between.