Travel Guide Episkopi

Between the Paphos freeway and the Kouris river, this large village is home to the superb remains of the ancient city of Kourion (town, sanctuary and stadium), the beautiful beach of Kourion and the white cliffs of Kensington. All these sites are on British territory. But the town itself belongs largely to the Republic of Cyprus. Predominantly populated by Turkish Cypriots until 1973, it owes its name to the former Byzantine bishopric (επισκοπή in Greek) of Kourion. It retains a well-preserved Ottoman quarter and the beautiful late 12th-century Agios Ilarion. It boasts several restaurants and a small museum displaying artefacts found on the various sites of ancient Kourion. To the south, on the British side, are the church of Agios Ermogenis (built from the 7th century onwards) and the ruins of the Seragia, a fortified Lusignan manor. Finally, to the west, the Episkopi Cantonment houses the administrative center of the British territories of Cyprus, with barracks, a court of justice, warehouses and allotments for the subjects of King Charles III.