Mandria

Mandria sits on the coastal plain east of Paphos, between the airport and a long open shoreline of dark sand and shingle. It is a farming village first and a visitor one second, surrounded by the greenhouses and banana plantations that work this flat, well watered strip of land, and it has stayed noticeably quieter than the resorts further along the coast.

The beach below the village is broad, exposed and largely undeveloped, which makes it a favourite with people who want space rather than sunbeds. Winds off this stretch draw kitesurfers and windsurfers, and the same exposure means the sea is often livelier here than in the sheltered bays to the west. Inland, the village keeps a working square, a church and a scatter of tavernas serving the local trade rather than a tourist one.

Its position is part of the appeal: a few minutes from Paphos International Airport, a short drive from the archaeological sites of Kato Paphos, and on the road that runs east towards Kouklia and the hills behind, where the Asprokremmos reservoir and the Diarizos valley open up.