Longer opening hours for Nicosia museums

PLACES of interest in Nicosia such as museums and churches will shortly have extended opening hours, in order to make the capital’s historic and cultural heritage more accessible to both locals and tourists.
The Folk Art Museum, the Byzantine Museum and Art Galleries – located in the Archbishop Makarios III Cultural Centre – and Nicosia churches will be the first to stay open longer.
The Archbishopric is also considering opening its doors from 9.30am to 5.30pm, while the Antiquities Department will shortly consider a proposal for extending museum opening hours on normal working days. However, museums will continue to be shut on Mondays, in line with current European practice.
The decision to extend opening hours was taken at a meeting on Friday of municipal and other relevant bodies hosted by Commerce and Tourism Minister Antonis Paschalides. Those attending included Nicosia Mayor Eleni Mavrou, Antiquities Department head Maria Hadjicosti, and representatives from the Archbishopric and the Cyprus Tourism Organisation.
A press statement said that the meeting was called in response to an evident need for Nicosia to promote its tourist attractions, which fall outside the usual “sun and sea” formula, in a way that offers broader and more flexible choices.

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