More than 70,000 have visited Varosha since October  

More than 70,000 people have visited Varosha in two months since the partial opening of the fenced-off area in the northern part of Famagusta, Turkish Cypriot media reported on Monday.

Between October 8 and December 8, more than 70,000 people from the north and the government-controlled areas of the island visited Varosha according to Famagusta’s ‘mayor’ Ismail Arter.

Despite the pandemic, the town sees approximately 500 to 1,000 visitors on weekdays, a number that reaches to 7,000 over the weekends, Arter added in his statements to Yeni Duzen.

The opening of Varosha, Arter said, is a positive step that could help in the resolution of the Cyprus problem.

Two beaches are also expected to open for the public, one next to Palm Beach hotel and another next to Deve port.

Works to develop the area concerning infrastructure are continuing, said Arter, following the asphalt pavement installation. Varosha also has a 3.5-kilometre bicycle road, eight canteens and mobile toilets.

For visitors who do not wish to walk, there are 600 bicycles for rent. The bicycles are disinfected after every use, wrote Avrupa newspaper.

They are available for a two-hour rent for 10TL. Payments are only available via credit card.

Authorities are continuously patrolling the area on scooters.

 

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.