Buyuk Han (Great Inn)

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North Nicosia (Lefkoşa)

Strolling the back streets of the Old City in North Nicosia (Lefkoşa in Turkish) feels like dropping into an earlier era. Its wiggling alleys are home to half-derelict town houses, washing lines strung between window shutters with peeling paint, and the occasional strutting rooster.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • Selimiye Mosque in Nicosia, Northern Cyprus.

    Selimiye Mosque

    North Nicosia (Lefkoşa)

    North Nicosia’s most prominent landmark (also clearly visible from the southern half of the city), the Selimiye Mosque is a beautiful mongrel of a…

  • Buyuk Han (The Great Inn) Nicosia, North Cyprus; Shutterstock ID 54096925; Your name (First / Last): Josh Vogel; Project no. or GL code: 56530; Network activity no. or Cost Centre: Online-Design; Product or Project: 65050/7529/Josh Vogel/LP.com Destination Galleries

    Büyük Han

    North Nicosia (Lefkoşa)

    The Büyük Han is Cyprus' best-preserved example of Ottoman caravanserai architecture. Built in 1572 by the first Ottoman governor of Cyprus, Lala Mustafa…

  • Armenian Church & Nunnery

    Armenian Church & Nunnery

    North Nicosia (Lefkoşa)

    This church and nunnery is first thought to have been established in the 13th century as the Abbey of Our Lady of Tyre, and was handed over to the island…

  • Mevlevi Tekke Museum

    Mevlevi Tekke Museum

    North Nicosia (Lefkoşa)

    This 17th-century former tekke (dervish house) was once Cyprus' central meeting place for the island's followers of the Mevlevi Order. Made famous by the…

  • Arabahmet Quarter

    Arabahmet Quarter

    North Nicosia (Lefkoşa)

    This neighbourhood rubbing up against the Green Line is home to well-preserved examples of Ottoman-era town-house architecture. The narrow alleyways are…

  • Haydarpaşa Mosque

    Haydarpaşa Mosque

    North Nicosia (Lefkoşa)

    The second-most important Gothic structure in North Nicosia after the Selimiye Mosque, this building began life as the 14th-century Church of St Catherine…

  • Bedestan

    Bedestan

    North Nicosia (Lefkoşa)

    Renovated as part of the Nicosia Master Plan, the imposing Bedestan dates from the 6th century, when it was built as a small Byzantine chapel. It was…

  • Ethnographic Museum of Cyprus

    Ethnographic Museum of Cyprus

    North Nicosia (Lefkoşa)

    This eclectic museum in the New City is the work of Ergün Pektaş, who scoured Northern Cyprus to salvage and preserve local craftwork, day-to-day objects,…

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Articles

Latest stories from North Nicosia (Lefkoşa)

A picture taken on April 7, 2017 shows vegetation growing on a barrier made of barrels in the green line, a UN controlled buffer zone, separating the divided Cypriot capital Nicosia.

History

Tracing history across Nicosia’s Green Line

Jan 7, 2022 • 7 min read

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