Two ways to fly to North Cyprus

There are two main ways to reach North Cyprus by air. You can fly into Ercan Airport (ECN) in the north, or into Larnaca (LCA) or Paphos (PFO) in the Republic of Cyprus and cross the Green Line by road. Both work. Which one suits you depends on where you are flying from, the fares on your dates and how much time you want to spend on the road after landing.

Flying into Ercan

Ercan is the airport of North Cyprus, east of Nicosia (Lefkoşa). International flights to Ercan route via Turkey, so most visitors from the UK and Europe either connect in Turkey or take a flight that stops there on the way. The big advantage is what happens after landing: you are already in the north, with no checkpoint to pass. Sur Car Hire delivers rental cars to Ercan Airport free of charge, so you can collect the car and drive straight to your hotel. Our Ercan Airport car rental guide explains how pickup works.

Flying into Larnaca or Paphos

Larnaca and Paphos are in the south, and both have a wide choice of direct flights from the UK and across Europe. From either airport you travel by road and pass through a checkpoint on the Green Line to enter the north. Larnaca is the closer of the two to Famagusta, İskele and the east coast; Paphos is on the far west of the island, so the road journey from there is considerably longer. Take your passport or ID card for the checkpoint.

Getting from Larnaca or Paphos to your hotel

A rental car from the north cannot be collected in the south, and our cars cannot cross into the south, so the usual plan is a transfer to your hotel and the rental car from there. Our taxi service runs fixed-price transfers from Larnaca (LCA) and Paphos (PFO) airports to Famagusta, İskele, the Long Beach hotel strip and the Karpaz. You choose your airport and destination in the booking form and see the price before you book. If your hotel is in one of our delivery areas, such as Famagusta, İskele or Long Beach, your rental car can be delivered there free of charge.

Which should you choose?

Choose Ercan if you want the simplest arrival: land in the north, pick up the car at the airport and go. Choose Larnaca if it gives you a direct flight or a better fare and you are staying on the east coast around Famagusta, İskele or Long Beach; a transfer covers the trip across. Paphos makes most sense if it is the only convenient flight, because of the longer drive. Whichever you pick, compare the full door-to-door journey, not just the flight time.

Before you fly

Book your car online in advance and send us your flight details so the delivery is arranged for your arrival. There is no deposit at booking; a refundable £200 security deposit is collected when you receive the car. The minimum driver age is 26. Remember that the car stays in the north for the whole rental: see our guide on driving a North Cyprus rental car to the south.