St. Hilarion Castle

The best preserved of the three crusader castles, St. Hilarion possesses a fairy-tale quality that makes the visitor wonder what it must have been like to live here during the medieval period. Having been built on a double peak of 732m it provides a superb view over Girne and the costal areas to the east and west. Originally built by the Byzantines in the 7th century as a watch tower, it was enlarged into a castle during the 10th century and repeatedly modified in the following 400 years. Most of its present shape dates back to the period between the 12-14 th centuries. Story: Local legend credits the castle with having 101 rooms, of which 100 could easily be found; the last, an enchanted garden, contains a treasure. If you stumbled through the magic door into the 101st room, you would tend to wake up years later, with empty hands among bare rocks…!

Tip: in spring quite a few wild flowers can be seen alongside the path leading up to the top level! There is a handrail available for most of the way.