Limassol Castle
Popularity over the year
O atrakcji
Limassol Castle stands at the head of the old harbour, a low, blocky, honey-stoned building that looks more like a strongbox than a fortress — and that, essentially, is what it is. Built originally by the Lusignan kings in the 14th century on the foundations of an earlier Byzantine castle, rebuilt by the Ottomans after the conquest of 1570, restored by the British, it now houses the Cyprus Medieval Museum.
The castle's most famous moment was 1191. Richard the Lionheart of England, on his way to the Third Crusade, captured the island from the renegade Byzantine pretender Isaac Komnenos and married Berengaria of Navarre in the chapel that stood here — making her the only English queen never crowned in England. (Berengaria was crowned the next day at Limassol's Latin cathedral.) The Lusignan castle that followed was sacked by Genoese and Mamluks repeatedly through the 14th-15th centuries; the present squat structure is essentially Ottoman.
The museum inside is small but excellent: vaulted halls displaying medieval weapons, armour, ceramic, Crusader-era tombstones with French and Latin inscriptions, ecclesiastical vestments, and a long-running exhibition on Byzantine and Lusignan Cyprus. The roof terrace gives a 360° view over the old harbour, the carob warehouses (now restaurants and the Carob Mill Museum next door), and the marina.
Insider tips. Allow 60-90 minutes. The dungeon vaults are atmospheric — bring a small torch for the dimly-lit cases. The roof terrace is the surprise — most visitors do not climb the spiral stair to the top, and it is the best free view of the old town. Combine entry with the nearby Cyprus Carob Mill Museum (in the carob warehouses, 50 m away).
Combinations. A natural Limassol old-town walk: castle, then the carob warehouses for lunch, the medieval Latin cathedral foundations, the Limassol Marina (10 min walk), and the long Molos coastal promenade.
Bring. Comfortable shoes for the spiral stairs, sunscreen for the roof, small change for the kiosk. Entrance is around 4.50 EUR. When. The castle is most evocative in late afternoon when the stone goes gold. Tuesday-Saturday 09:00-17:00. The roof at sunset, on a soft April evening, is one of Limassol's quiet pleasures.
