Holiday advice needed - travel to Larnaca but back from Ercan

laurah


Joined: 18/02/2008
Posts: 2

Message Posted:
18/02/2008 15:36

Hi,



I am looking at going to North Cyprus for a holiday around September this year. What I'd like to do is fly to Larnaca, then spend 1-2 days in GC before heading over the border, probably to stay in or around Kyrenia and then fly back from Ercan.



Can anybody give advice about whether there are any problems doing this in terms of the border crossing/paperwork? Which way would you say it's best to do it: LON-GC-TRNC or LON-TRNC-GC? Can you see any problems in taking over my luggage/any souvenirs or other items I probably will have bought whilst on the island?



Has anybody done this, and have you had any problems?



I used to live in Cyprus for a while years ago and used to travel across the border quite often, but haven't been back since the border has opened and am not familiar with the new rules / what's allowed and what's not.



A couple more questions to help me plan the holiday:



Also, does the ferry still run from Kyrenia to Alanya? How much is it roughly if I return on the same day?



And if I was to fly back from Ercan via Istanbul, is it possible to leave the airport between the flight connections (say I had enough time to go and see Istanbul city between the flights)?



Thanks very much in advance!



Laurah

orangekazzie



Joined: 31/07/2007
Posts: 1091

Message Posted:
18/02/2008 15:41

Wouldn't think there would be a problem because you don't have your passport stamped at Larnaca any more. Make sure you have it stamped at the crossing though.

There are 3 ferries which run from Girne daily but am not sure of their destination, except the fact they all go to Turkey. I don't think you can return on the same day though as they arrive in Girne around 10am and leave again around 1pm (ish). I don't think they come back again the same day.

Can't answer the last question as I've never gone via Istanbul sorry.

Karen

ukturk



Joined: 01/09/2007
Posts: 1974

Message Posted:
18/02/2008 16:00

hi laurah

welcome to the forum, and you have made a good choice in joining the forum

firstly there are two services that run from turkey to north cyprus, one is the tasucu to kyrenia crossing which runs all year round this costs 70euros return aswell as a hydrofoil service which is quicker and cost 78euros

then their is the alanya crossing which runs from april to sept and costs around 80euros (last years price) i have included a link for you to look at

http://ferries-turkey.com/cyprus/cyprus-en.html



if you do fly back via istanbul you prob wont be able to leave the airport to go and sight see unless you did a overnight stay in istanbul then you will be able to do this



there are no problems in you crossing border all you need is your passport and they give you a seperate piece of paper that you put you name on it and passport number and the customs stamp this rather than you passport

flying in and flying out from diffrent airports tottaly depends on you i.e price, time etc, and you wont encounter any problems doing either way

hope this all helps

regards

ukturk

simbas



Joined: 16/07/2007
Posts: 5943

Message Posted:
18/02/2008 20:17

Hi laura , welcome to the forum , looks like your questions have been all answered , hows that for service ! people are always so helpful and quick to respond ,hope you enjoy the threads

regards simbas

butters


Joined: 27/12/2006
Posts: 60

Message Posted:
18/02/2008 20:40

Hi Laurah

Have made this journey on a few occasions never had any problems either way.

will be flying to Ercan April out again via Larnaca.

Have a great holiday.

regards



mary

Inca999


Joined: 25/11/2007
Posts: 20

Message Posted:
19/02/2008 07:32

Hi Laurah



We travelled in via Larnaca last September. We had no problems arriving and went the the border without an issue but on the way back it was no so pleasant.



Our Taxi driver who was TC was grilled for sometime and we had our luggage searched for no real reason other that I think the guy at the border was having an off day. It took us best part of an hour to get through there.



We decided to use Larnaca because we thought it might be a quicker option but really it turned out a longer day and ended up costing more. We won't use that route again unless we have no other choice.



Anne

laurah


Joined: 18/02/2008
Posts: 2

Message Posted:
20/02/2008 15:03

Hi all,



Thanks everyone for your helpful answers - it's really good to know that there is a board like this where people reply quickly, and most importantly know what they're talking about



Thanks so much for your answers and the help. I'll definitely be making the journey to Northern Cyprus this year, details still need to be sorted!



Laurah

Nadeem


Joined: 15/02/2009
Posts: 1

Message Posted:
15/02/2009 12:20

Hi all



I am planning to travel from Cape Town, South Africa to Lefke, North Cyprus via Larnaca. Please advise if there any any travel problems in general from Larnaca to North Cyprus. I ahve heard of South Africans being sent back home from Larnaca.



Thanks.

Nadeem

TimothyCadman


Joined: 13/12/2007
Posts: 1040

Message Posted:
15/02/2009 18:33

Nadeem,



For the lastest information on Visa or Travel Documents you require contact. Things change rapidly and they will give you definitive answers to your specific questions at the time of calling:



Embassy of the Republic of Cyprus in South Africa

Address: Corner Church and Hill Str. Arcadia 0083 Pretoria, South Africa P.O.Box. 14554, Hatfield 0028 Pretoria, South Africa

Telephone:+ 27 12 3425258

Fax: + 27 12 3425596

E-mail: cyprusjb@mweb.co.za

TimothyCadman


Joined: 13/12/2007
Posts: 1040

Message Posted:
15/02/2009 18:37

There should be no problems getting from the RoC to North Cyprus as long as you have a Passport with at least 6 months validity on it.



Suggest you do not ahve your Passport stamped but use the seperate forms available to slip inside your Passport with the entry visa on. Primarily this advice is given so that if you visit certain other countries in the future you will not be declined entry if they see a North Cyprus stamp in your Passport.

flightholiday


Joined: 19/07/2007
Posts: 3217

Message Posted:
15/02/2009 18:45

Hi Nadeem,



The only crossing from South to North Cyprus that the Greek Cypriots will officialy accept/recognise is with an EU passport. So if you want to cross the Green Line you might find that you are not allowed to do so. They may allow a day pass but might not a longer stay. Also they might give problems on the return. - A lot of what is published is hearsay so you need to check very thoroughly and as Timothy mentioned the rules can change by the hour.



If you fly into Turkey and then onto North Cyprus you should not have a problem - check with the Turkish Embassy in South Africa and the North Cyprus representative office ther or in the UK/US.

cyprusishome


Joined: 31/03/2007
Posts: 2381

Message Posted:
15/02/2009 19:02

A friend did the SA trip via Istanbul and if you do not fly with Turkish Airlines you have to go through immigration and that means a massive visa charge.



There was a case in newspapers here 2.5 years ago where this happened the family had not appled for visas because they thought they would be in transit.



Unfortuanatley from SA citezens I understand there are still a lot of countries that cause hassle for you.



So as per above, you must contact all relevant embassies before travelling, do not get caught out for the sake of a phone call.

LondonCypriot


Joined: 15/12/2008
Posts: 426

Message Posted:
15/02/2009 21:21

Its upto the Cypriot Immigration officier to decide. He/She has the power to refuse any person apart from an EU member person, even though you have got all your paper work.

LondonCypriot


Joined: 15/12/2008
Posts: 426

Message Posted:
15/02/2009 21:29

NON EU PASSPORT HOLDERS ONLY. You won't be able to stay in the North if you arrive in international government areas I..E ARRIVING IN LARNACA OR PAPHOS. If you do cross over to the North-TRNC, and stay you may end up not bering able to cross to the South.



If you enter via the North and then cross over to the South you could be prosecuted and jailed by the Greek Cypriot officials for illegally entering the island.