Ancient Kition

Tickets and tours: which to book

No tour is sold online for Kition alone, and the visit is simple: the Kathari site, also called Area II, has a small ticket office run by the Department of Antiquities, and the low fee is paid at the gate. A raised walkway lets you look down over the temples and walls without stepping on them.

The second excavated area, Bamboula, lies just behind the Larnaca District Archaeological Museum, where the ancient acropolis and harbour stood. It can be seen from the street and the paths around it, but much less survives there. The museum itself charges its own small fee and holds finds from both areas, including sculptures, pottery and Phoenician inscriptions.

Most visitors combine Kition with a walk through Larnaca, past the Church of Saint Lazarus and along the seafront promenade. Island tours from Limassol, Nicosia or Ayia Napa that cover Larnaca usually stop at Saint Lazarus and the salt lake rather than Kition, so if you want the ruins you will probably go independently. Private guides in Larnaca can include the site in a walking tour.

The sensible plan is to visit the museum first, then walk 15 minutes north to Kathari and pay at the gate.

A short history

Mycenaean Greeks settled Kition in the Late Bronze Age to work local copper. The town was destroyed around 1200 BC and soon rebuilt with a cyclopean wall and new temples. From the 10th century BC Phoenicians from Tyre settled here, and after about 850 BC they rebuilt the sanctuaries. Kition became one of the leading kingdoms of Cyprus, under Egyptian and then Persian overlordship. In 312 BC Ptolemy I killed its last king, Poumyathon, and burned the temples. Earthquakes in the 4th century AD destroyed the Roman town. Swedish archaeologists dug at Bamboula in 1929 and 1930, and Vassos Karageorghis excavated Kathari from 1959 to 1981.

Getting there

Kition lies within the modern town of Larnaca, on the south-east coast of Cyprus. Larnaca International Airport is only about 5 km south of the centre: buses run to the town in about 20 minutes, and taxis take around 10 minutes. From the seafront promenade, the Kathari site is a walk of about 15 minutes north through the streets of the old town. Bamboula is just behind the Larnaca District Archaeological Museum, about 500 metres to the south. Intercity buses link Larnaca with Nicosia, Limassol and Ayia Napa, arriving near the seafront. By car, there is street parking nearby, but spaces in the centre fill quickly.

Rules and what to bring

Stay on the raised walkway and do not climb down onto the walls or temple foundations. Drones need permission from the Department of Antiquities. There is little shade, so bring a hat and water in summer. Take care on the steps of the walkway, and keep children from leaning over the rails. Facilities at the site are basic, but cafes and restaurants are a short walk away in the centre of Larnaca.

When to go

Kition is rarely crowded, and even in high summer you may have the site almost to yourself. Heat is the main concern: Larnaca is very hot from June to September, with afternoon temperatures often above 32 degrees, and there is little shade over the ruins. Go at opening, or in the last hour before closing when the light is softer.

March to May and October to November are the best months, warm but comfortable for walking around the town. Winter is mild and green, though opening hours are shorter and occasional rain can be heavy. Larnaca hosts the Kataklysmos festival at Pentecost, when the seafront is busy but the site stays quiet. Allow 45 minutes to an hour at Kathari, and another hour for the museum and the Bamboula area, or half a day if you add the town.