About the town » Paphos, Pafos, Cyprus

Paphos, sometimes spelt as Pafos, is a coastal city in the southwest of Cyprus and the capital of Paphos District. In antiquity, two locations were called Paphos: Old Paphos and New Paphos. The currently inhabited city is New Paphos. It lies on the Mediterranean coast, about 50 km west of the Limassol (the biggest port in island), which has an A6 highway connection. Paphos International Airport is the country's second largest airport. Near Palaepaphos (Old Paphos) at the seaside of Petra tou Romiou is the mythical birthplace of Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty and the founding myth is interwoven with the goddess at every level, so that Old Paphos became the most famous and important place for worshipping Aphrodite in the ancient world. In Greco-Roman times Paphos was the island's capital, and it is famous for the remains of the Roman governor's palace, where extensive, fine mosaics are a major tourist attraction. The apostle Paul of Tarsus visited the town during the 1st century AD. The town of Paphos is included in the official UNESCO list of cultural and natural treasures of the world's heritage. Paphos enjoys a Subtropical-Mediterranean climate, with the mildest temperatures on the island. The typical summer's season lasts about 8 months, from April to November, although in March and December temperatures may also reach 20 °C . Paphos has been selected as the European Capital of Culture for 2017 along with Aarhus.