Xystarouda is a small forest picnic site beside the road from Pedoulas to Kykkos Monastery, at 924 m in the Paphos Forest. With room for about 220 people it is one of the quieter Department of Forests sites — tables and barbecue hearths in the trees just off the asphalt, with toilets that were fully rebuilt before the site reopened in December 2023. There is no drinking water here, so bring your own.
For hikers this modest clearing punches far above its weight. The demanding Xystarouda - Agiasma - Vasiliki trail starts directly opposite and crosses two streams through some of the densest forest around, with wooden bridges, moss-covered rocks and an old tar kiln along the way. Kalopanayiotis - The Discovery Trail (5) passes right by the tables as well, and the E4 and the Ariadni trail are both about 2 km away.
That combination — a quiet roadside clearing that doubles as a trailhead — makes Xystarouda a natural staging post on the drive to Kykkos.