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Nicosia is the only city on Cyprus that nobody visits for the beach. It is the capital, and it is built on a different logic from the coastal resorts: inland, with no sea access, surrounded by Venetian walls around the old centre and run on everyday working life.
Car rental reviews in Nicosia
Nicosia's defining trait is that it is a divided city. The Green Line cuts straight through the old centre, and the Ledra Street pedestrian crossing is the most well-known checkpoint on the island. From the south side you can walk into the Turkish-Cypriot north in five minutes without a vehicle. The nearest crossing for cars, Agios Dometios, sits ten minutes from the centre.
Nicosia is about urban impressions, not road routes. Travellers come for a day or two, walk the Venetian walls, dip into the museums, cross to the north side via Ledra Street, drink coffee under the Selimiye minarets. The car spends most of that time parked rather than driving.
Car hire in Nicosia is usually about reaching the city and leaving it, more than driving inside it. Most travellers come from Larnaca on the A2 (forty to fifty minutes) or from Limassol on the A1 (around an hour). Nicosia has no working airport — the old international airport closed in 1974 and now sits inside the buffer zone.
For travellers planning to see Northern Cyprus, Nicosia is the most convenient base. The pedestrian Ledra crossing needs no licence, no special insurance, no rental car. Many clients leave the car parked in the south and walk into the north city for the day.
How to pick up a car in Nicosia without an airport
With no airport of its own, Nicosia uses two pickup paths. The first is collecting at Larnaca (LCA) and driving forty to fifty minutes north on the A2. This is the most common approach: the road is flat with no serpentines, and it works well as a first day on right-hand drive. The Paphos (PFO) alternative routes via Limassol — about an hour and a half — and is more practical for travellers planning a longer coastal loop into the trip.
The second path is hotel delivery in Nicosia. The service is paid; figure on around sixty to eighty euros from either airport, scaling with distance. It works well if you reach Nicosia by airport bus or pre-booked transfer, and only need the car for trips out of the city later in the holiday.
Nissan Note in Cyprus
Thank you, everything is fine, the owner of the raspberry went to the meeting and I extended the lease several times.
Nissan March in Cyprus
Great car, economical, very easy to park due to its size. Because of the color it does not get lost in the mass of other cars in the parking lots, it is very easy to find it. We drove around almost the whole island in it, it worked well in the rain and in the dark. Excellent visibility. Excellent light. Brakes are efficient and reliable.
Nicosia routes and tips on our blog
Our blog gathers what we have written for Nicosia and the centre of the island: how the Ledra Street crossing works and what is worth seeing on the north side, where to park around the Venetian walls, which day-trips are realistic from the capital, how lunch differs across the divided city. Each route is mapped for travellers in a rental car, with notes on the walking sections.
Parking and traffic in Nicosia: the working rhythm of a capital
Nicosia runs on a weekday rhythm — its traffic is commuter, not tourist. Rush hours fall between eight and nine in the morning and five to six in the evening, on weekdays only, on the main routes around the old centre. Weekends are markedly quieter, especially Sundays, when parts of the city are closed to vehicles for the public promenade.
Parking inside the old town is tight: narrow streets, few spaces, blue zones around the wall perimeter. Most visitors leave cars at the paid municipal lots outside the walls — pay at the meter, convenient for a half-day walk. The underground car park near Solomos Square is the best covered option in summer.
Nicosia is the driest and hottest city on Cyprus, with no sea breeze to soften it. In July and August, a parked car turns into an oven by lunchtime. If you have to leave the car in the sun, look for shade or a covered lot — it spares more than the upholstery.
Below — the average daily rental price in Nicosia by month.
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Pickup at Larnaca, then the A2 north
Forty to fifty minutes on the A2 is the most predictable run on Cyprus. A straight motorway, few interchanges, and noticeably lighter traffic than the Limassol or Paphos roads. Picking up the car in the morning at Larnaca and being in Nicosia by lunch is the standard pattern for travellers basing themselves in the capital.
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Hotel delivery into the city centre
Nicosia is small in surface area, and hotel delivery generally covers any address within the ring road. The fee runs higher than in Larnaca or Ayia Napa because of the longer drive from the airport. Delivery time is agreed by message in advance, on the day of pickup, with a buffer for traffic on either side.
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Collection from a Nicosia office
Supplier offices in Nicosia tend to sit along the Lefkosia-Larnaca ring road, near the A1 or A2 exits. This is convenient if you are already in town and want a car for trips around the island. There is parking at the offices, and paperwork takes ten to fifteen minutes.
Where to drive from Nicosia: radial routes across the island
Nicosia sits at the geographic centre of Cyprus, and that is its strongest argument as a base for travellers who plan to move around. All four coastal cities — Larnaca, Limassol, Paphos and Ayia Napa — are between forty minutes and two hours away. The Troodos and the wineries of Omodos sit just over an hour west. Northern Cyprus and Kyrenia are an hour through Agios Dometios on the A2.
Walking routes inside the centre
Nicosia itself is best explored on foot. The Venetian walls with their eleven bastions take an hour or two to circle. The old centre with the Cathedral of Saint John, the Selimiye Mosque on the north side and Ledra Street is compact — everything within walking distance. Leave the car at one of the paid lots outside the walls; the streets inside are narrow and parking is tight.
Nicosia is one of the few capitals in the world where the historic centre is divided by a border. The Ledra Street crossing is open in both directions, on a passport, with no visa. Cars cannot use it — vehicles use the Agios Dometios crossing on the city ring road.
Day-trips outwards
Three directions work as a day-trip from Nicosia. West to the Troodos with Mount Olympus and the wineries. South to Limassol with its serpentines and coastline. East on the A2 to Ayia Napa and Cape Greco — about an hour and a quarter. All three are realistic in a single day with an early start, with no long lunches.
Nicosia is the fastest base on the island for the Troodos — every other city has to detour around. The pattern: early start, winery in Omodos, lunch in a mountain village, descent past a monastery, home for dinner. None of the Limassol traffic to slow it down.
Frequent Questions
Collect at Larnaca (LCA) and drive 40–50 minutes north on the A2 — the most predictable run on Cyprus, flat motorway, light traffic. The Paphos (PFO) alternative routes via Limassol and takes around 90 minutes. The third option is hotel delivery in Nicosia at around €60–€80 from either airport.
No — Ledra Street is a pedestrian-only crossing. Cars use the Agios Dometios crossing on the city ring road, ten minutes from the centre. Even there, most TakeCars partners forbid the trip; a few allow it with prior agreement and a separate Turkish third-party policy bought at the checkpoint. Many travellers leave the car parked in the south and walk through Ledra into the north city for the day.
On TakeCars partners the deposit range is €0–€1,500. Local Cypriot suppliers in Nicosia typically take €100–€500, often payable in cash or on a debit card. International chains hold €500–€1,500 on a credit card in the main driver's name. The no-deposit filter lists cars with no hold at all.
From 21 with at least one year of driving experience on TakeCars partner cars. The widest fleet is available to drivers 26 and over with three years' experience. The per-car age threshold is shown on the listing — it can vary even for similar models.
Inside the old town parking is tight — narrow streets, blue zones around the wall perimeter. Most visitors leave cars at paid municipal lots outside the walls and walk in. Solomos Square has the best covered car park, useful in summer when surface lots heat up sharply. The streets inside the walls are not designed for through traffic.
Nicosia is the fastest base for the Troodos — every other city detours around. About an hour to Omodos and the wineries, an hour and a quarter to Mount Olympus, two hours to Kykkos monastery. The early start, winery, mountain village, monastery descent, dinner pattern works comfortably as a single day.
Weekdays only — 08:00–09:00 in the morning and 17:00–18:00 in the evening, on the main routes around the old centre. Traffic here is commuter, not tourist. Weekends are markedly quieter, especially Sundays when parts of the city close to vehicles for the public promenade.
Solomos Square underground car park is the strongest covered option. Nicosia is the driest, hottest city on Cyprus with no sea breeze; in July and August a parked car turns into an oven by lunchtime. If a covered lot is not available, look for shade — it spares the upholstery and the steering wheel on return.
Three directions in a day. West to Troodos with Mount Olympus and the wineries (~1 hour). South to Limassol with the coast (~1 hour on the A1). East on the A2 to Ayia Napa and Cape Greco (about 1h15). All three are realistic with an early start and no long lunch.
Pay online at jccsmart.com or at any bank within 15–30 days. After 15 days the fine grows by 50 per cent and the supplier may add an admin fee. Police never collect cash on the spot — handing money over is treated as a bribe. Unpaid fines can affect re-entry into Cyprus and the EU.
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How to get to Nicosia
