İskele: Long Beach, Boğaz harbour and Kantara Castle

By Talk Cyprus. Published 19 October 2026.

Last verified 19 October 2026

North of the Green Line. Greek: Trikomo. Turkish: İskele.

İskele (Trikomo) is a small town on the north eastern edge of the Mesaoria plain, about three kilometres inland from the coast road that runs north from Famagusta (Ammochostos, Gazimağusa). It is the administrative centre of a district that stretches all the way out along the Karpas Peninsula. For visitors the area falls into two parts: a quiet old town with two churches worth seeing, and a long sandy coast that has changed faster than almost anywhere else in the north. For swimming, see our beaches guide.

A fast changing coast

Over the last decade the coast below İskele has become one of the largest building zones in north Cyprus. Apartment blocks and holiday complexes, some up to 25 storeys high, now rise above the flat plain around Long Beach, on the south side of the town and along the road towards Boğaz. The old village centre has changed far less. Expect cranes, building sites and new roads, and expect the view behind the beach to look different from one year to the next.

Growth has put pressure on local services. In summer 2022 sewage reached the sea off Long Beach, and the area has had problems with water supply. The sea was later cleaned up, but it is worth knowing that infrastructure here is still catching up with the building.

In town

Panagia Theotokos. A 12th century church in the town that now serves as an icon museum. Look for the paintings of the Virgin of the Annunciation and of Joachim and Anna embracing, with a young girl peering out from behind a window. Marble from the church’s original iconostasis is displayed in the belfry. Check opening times locally before you go.

Agios Iakovos. A tiny cross shaped church dedicated to Saint James, built in the 15th century. It makes a short second stop after Panagia Theotokos.

Along the coast

Long Beach. About three kilometres of fine golden sand on Famagusta Bay, roughly half an hour’s drive north of central Famagusta. The water is shallow and slopes gently, which suits children. Some stretches are free public beach, including a section run by the municipality with lifeguards, showers and parking. Others are run by beach clubs that charge for loungers. A paved promenade with a cycle path runs behind the sand.

Boğaz (Bogazi). A small fishing village about seven kilometres north east of İskele town, on the main road towards the Karpas. Its harbour is lined with fishing and pleasure boats, there is a sandy beach beside it, and the waterfront is where people come to eat fish. It makes a sensible base for day trips up the peninsula.

Bafra (Vokolida). Further along the coast, the former village of Bafra has been designated a tourism zone and is now mostly large resort hotels. The sand is good and the water clear, and there is a public beach with a facility run by the municipality.

Inland

Kantara Castle (Kastro tis Kantaras, Kantara Kalesi). The easternmost of the three medieval castles on the Kyrenia Mountains, with Buffavento and Saint Hilarion further west. Its recorded history begins in 1191, when Richard the Lionheart took it. It was strengthened under the Lusignan kings in the late 14th century and given up by the Venetians early in the 16th, when hilltop castles had stopped being useful. You enter through a barbican and twin towers, then climb past garrison rooms and cisterns to a lookout at the summit, with views over the Mesaoria, the Karpas and the north coast. The usual approach is from Kaplıca (Davlos) on the north coast, up a narrow, winding road to a car park. Allow about an hour on site. There are unfenced drops, so keep children close. Expect a small fee, paid in Turkish lira.

The Mesaoria plain (Mesarya). The broad, flat plain that crosses the island between the Kyrenia and Troodos mountains, from Famagusta Bay in the east to Morphou Bay in the west. Its name means “between the mountains” in Greek. It is the island’s main farming country, dependent on winter rain, and much of it is open, bare land. İskele sits on its north eastern edge, and you cross it on any drive in from Nicosia or Ercan.

The Karpas Peninsula. Beyond Boğaz the main road continues north east along the Karpas, with its empty beaches, wild donkeys and the monastery of Apostolos Andreas at the tip. See our Karpas Peninsula guide.

Getting there

İskele town lies about three kilometres inland from the main coast road from Famagusta to the Karpas Peninsula, and Long Beach is roughly 30 minutes’ drive from central Famagusta. A hire car is by far the easiest way to get around. See car hire in north Cyprus.

From Ercan. Most people who fly into the north land at Ercan and drive east across the Mesaoria. Our guide to flying into Ercan covers the airport and crossing to the south.

From the south. The nearest crossing is at Deryneia (Derinya), just south of Famagusta, which opened in 2018. It is the obvious route if you are staying in Larnaca (Larnaka) or on the south east coast. Read our guides to border crossing points and taking a hire car across the border before you set out.

All areas, north and south