Whether you’re going all out on the rowdy strip in Ayia Napa, exploring the diverse and exciting bars and clubs of Limassol, or checking out the bustling student scene in Nicosia, the Cyprus nightlife can be as loud or relaxed as you want to make it. Come here to discover quirky bars, some of the biggest clubs in Europe and a healthy dose of live music – if you know where to look.
Ayia Napa might be an ancient town, but nowadays it’s best known for the hordes of tourists who flock here to soak up some sun and immerse themselves into the raucous and vibrant clubbing scene. There are over a hundred bars and clubs, all located within stumbling distance of one another, as well as an abundance of English-style pubs and cafes, and a range of restaurants serving cuisine from all around the world.
With a growing number of legendary nights on the clubbing scene, Ayia Napa is swiftly becoming one of the top European party holiday destinations. Internationally renowned DJs play here throughout the summer months, causing an increase of discerning clubbers to head to the white sands of this beach party town year after year. Cyprus has really raised the clubbing stakes.
Castle Club
Louka Louka St, Ayia Napa, Cyprus
The biggest, oldest, and most famous of Ayia Napa’s clubs is Castle. It has three rooms; Revolution, Urban Fusion, and Nu Disco, as well as a VIP lounge and Ayia Napa’s largest open-air terrace for when you need to take a breather. Year after year the best of the DJ world play here; in previous years, Tiesto, Judge Jules, and Freemasons have had sets, to name but a few.
Revolution is the main arena of Castle; it’s where the majority of the legendary acts to grace Ayia Napa’s have performed. Between June and September, Revolution is open and pumping out the best in house, trance, techno and progressive music. The second room, Urban Fusion, specialises in R&B and Hip Hop, and retains some of the original castle decor, complete with its own dungeon and battlement balcony. At the very top of the multi-storied Castle is Nu Disco, where the bar is open early on in the night, before the clubs really get going. The music in this room is generally party, dance, and chart.
Club Aqua
Pambos Magic Hotel, Katalymaton, Ayia Napa, Cyprus
If the club you spent the early hours in is closing but you don’t feel quite ready to let the night wind down, Club Aqua is your go-to destination. This after hours club doesn’t even open till 3am, meaning you’ll be carrying on the night with a like-minded crowd of hardcore party-goers. The most notorious feature of Aqua Club is the indoor swimming pool, complete with nearly-naked revellers, as well as a dance floor space for those who don’t fancy a drunken dip in the water.
Club Aqua is located in the basement of Pambos Magic Hotel; as you can imagine from a hotel with a club underneath, it has a reputation for non-stop parties; expect it to be loud at all hours of the day and night. As well as Club Aqua, there’s a pool with a bar, and music playing for the majority of the day.
Macronissos Beach Club
Nissi Avenue, Ayia Napa, Cyprus
Macronissos Beach Club is located in a picturesque cove, and during the day is the perfect place to chill out, cocktail in hand, and take in the view. After a massive refurbishment and upgrade in 2011, Macronissos Beach Club takes a place as one of Cyprus’s top live events venues, having welcomed The Kooks, Example, and Timati on its reopening in 2012.
The Napa Live Festival, Summer Love Beach Party and Fire on the Beach, among Europe’s biggest beach festivals, have been hosted in this cool beach location, with international acts like Chase and Status appearing in 2012, and Example in 2013. Ministry of Sound are set to play weekly events here throughout 2014, and with a history of big acts appearing here, the line up is worth keeping an eye on.
Starsky’s
Ayias Mavris Street, Ayia Napa, Cyprus
Starsky’s opened its doors to Ayia Napa in 1990, though it’s gone through a few name changes over the years before hitting jackpot with both the name and the concept of Starsky’s. They play commercial dance music, with a bit of electro and chart hits thrown in for good measure; expect crowd-pleasing tunes, drinking and dancing at this laid-back bar on the Ayia Napa strip.
They encourage dancing on the bar, especially by the ladies – sorry guys! There’s also an upstairs mezzanine level for those that prefer to sit back and watch the action of the main bar. Entry Starsky’s is included on the itinerary of tours such as Ayia Napa Takeover, meaning that throughout the summer, it’s packed with holiday-makers in search of a good time.
Club Ice
Louka Louka St, Ayia Napa, Cyprus
One of the largest clubs on the Ayia Napa strip, Ice plays host throughout the summer to some of the biggest club nights and major international music events. R&B and old school club classics night Twice as Nice (which in the past has seen live performances from Wiley, Tempa T, and Ms Dynamite) is on every Friday night, and Ice has also hosted MTV Live Links, Trevor Nelson’s River Nation, and some of the biggest DJ parties on the Ayia Napa scene.
Club Ice is best known for its foam parties. They are some of the largest in Europe with over 1500 clubbers and not to be missed on any trip to Ayia Napa. They take place a couple of times a week – if you buy tickets from reps earlier in the day they’re likely to be cheaper – and there are various areas in the club so you can always find space to chill out if the foam is getting too much for you.
