Xerokolympos is one of the big high-mountain picnic sites of the Troodos, set at 1,334 m beside the stream of the same name on the Platres – Prodromos road, just before Trooditissa Monastery and about 6 km from Platres. The setting is its calling card: dense forest, wooden tables tucked among the trees, and the sound of water coming down small natural falls.
With an official capacity of nearly 880 people it is also one of the best equipped — drinking water, toilets, barbecue hearths, a children's playground and wheelchair-accessible facilities — and the monastery sits right next door for a visit after lunch.
Trails ring the site. The E4 passes about 400 m away, the Trooditissa - Phini trail runs just over half a kilometre from the tables, Chantara is about a kilometre away, and Atalanti about 1.5 km.