One of Cyprus's largest seaside resorts, and arguably the least attractive, it is the 2nd largest city on the island hosting the main commercial port and a central gateway to exploring the whole of the island with motorways to all other resorts and cities.

The main tourist area, some 2 mls E of the town centre, consists of a 7-ml-long stretch of coast, just ½ ml wide, lined with a mixture of medium- to high-rise apartments and hotels. Shops with tourist tack, bars, discos and tavernas are plentiful along the traffic-heavy seafront road, so driving in Limassol can be frustrating and time-consuming.

Other centres of activity include the old port area, with some upmarket dining opportunities, and the attractive Old Town, with cobled streets and more traditional outlets – shoemakers, tinkers, quilt makers and ironmongers, surrounding the trendy café bars medieval fort and municipal gardens.

Experiencing an on-going facelift with a promenade walkway stretching the length of the coast having been recently built, some hotels and apartment blocks that were popular in the past with UK clientele have been renovated and now being sold as upmarket residential beach suites.

At the rear of Limassol, are the Troodos Mountains, in whose fertile foothills most of the country's grapes are grown, explore the traditional villages to the top of Mount Olympus where a Ski club is open Jan – Mar.