Located on the southeast coast of Cyprus, Ayia Napa is a seaside resort renowned for its beaches, popular with tourists. However, this year, professionals in the sector are not very optimistic.
The cause is gloomy international news, particularly with the war in Iran, which is already starting to have an impact on the start of the tourist season.
In 2025, the island welcomed a record number of 4.5 million visitors.
“Usually the boats, hotels and restaurants are very busy at this time of year. Last year, at this time, all the hotels were 100% booked. This year, compared to last year, the numbers are lower, I think by 30-40%,” said Sukan Samnice, a boat rental company in Ayia Napa.
On March 2, a drone launched from Lebanon hit a British naval base on the island, causing a wave of flight cancellations.
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The mayor of the resort, Christos Zannetou, stressed that the situation in the Middle East has caused a lot of damage, but that tourists are beginning to understand that Cyprus is a safe destination. This is why, moreover, there is now a recovery, he told Euronews.
“The correlation between last year and this year is about 35-40% less mobility. But this gap is narrowing day by day. 2025 was the best tourist season for Cyprus, and in particular for Ayia Napa, since 2019. When we speak of numerical comparisons, so we have to take this into account. In the last two weeks we have seen a recovery. We think that people now trust Ayia Napa, Cyprus, that it is a safe destination and it seems that interest in bookings has started. to start again,” he assured.
Even if the cancellation rates skyrocketed a few days after the start of the conflict, they have since fallen and some, like the mayor of Ayia Napa, prefer to remain optimistic and put things into perspective.
Tourism, which represents around 15% of GDP, is crucial for the country, which hopes that visitors will not be discouraged by the news. Some also wanted to maintain their stay on the island.
“We decided to come here a long time ago, there were several options, but above all we were convinced by the warm weather and the sun, not to mention the picturesque landscapes, which inspired us to paint some watercolors as souvenirs,” said Philippe, a tourist from Poland.
Others, even if they have made the trip, still think about the international situation.
“We really like it here. Unfortunately, the world situation is somewhat tense at the moment and we hope that peace will reign everywhere in the world as soon as possible,” said Klaus, a German tourist.
Tourist arrivals at Cypriot airports fell by 16% in April, but in May flights from the UK had an occupancy rate of 92%, indicating a recovery in tourist traffic.
The press release from the Cypriot airport operator indicates that “the month of April recorded a decrease of 16% compared to April 2025, which represents around 95,000 fewer passengers. The average rate ofAircraft occupancy was 76% at both airports, down from 83% from the same period last year. Regarding the summer season (April to October), airlines have made some adjustments to their schedules. Total available capacity fell by at most 5%, or around 600,000 seats, despite the extension of flight times planned for the month of September. Total passenger numbers for the period are expected to decline by around 9%, or around 450,000 arrivals.
There are, however, encouraging signs. Over the past two weeks (since April 20), arrival occupancy rates have improved, reaching between 80 and 85%. Key tourism markets such as the UK and Poland are performing particularly well, with occupancy rates of over 90%. Cyprus’ connectivity remains strong, with 54 airlines connecting the island to 165 destinations in 42 countries. It should be noted that most recent adjustments mainly relate to reductions in the frequency of weekly services rather than cancellations. For the month of May, indicative figures show strong activity in key markets: the United Kingdom records on average 30 incoming flights per day with an occupancy rate of 92%, Israel around 20 daily flights with an occupancy rate of 60%, Poland 9 daily flights with an occupancy rate of 93% and Germany 8 daily flights with an occupancy rate of 86 %“
