BSAC TRAVEL CLUB - Trip Reports

TRAVEL CLUB

Polis, Cyprus - April/May 2006

by Sarah Lee

Myself and my partner Kenny are stationed in Cyprus for the next 2 and a half years and after arriving earlier this year we were keen to see what Cyprus had to offer for diving. (We are Sports and Adv Diver, respectively). So during the Easter Bank holiday we decided to spend the weekend in Polis with “Polis Divers” having seen their advert in the Dive magazine. Polis is situated on the north coast of the island about a 40 min drive from Paphos airport and lies at the bottom of the spectacular Akamas peninsula.

Polis divers is owned by Diane, with joint directorship with her partner Mark, they cater for both PADi and BSAC divers. My first contact was with Mark who was extremely helpful and enthusiastic. Although April is early in the tourist season for diving he agreed to take us out on his boat without hesitation. They have an 8m long Cat, passenger capacity of 8, moored at Latchi marina. The boat is clean and tidy with a sheltered cabin to escape the elements should you wish to. There is a toilet on board which is great as diving tends to be 2 tank dives so you will be out for most of the day.

Entry to the water is by backward roll and exit via a rear ladder. This can be quite tricky and requires a bit of flexibility on the divers part to get a foot on to the ladder. For some, removing your equipment may be a better option. However, Diane and Mark are looking at ways to improve this and may be in place soon. Latchi marina is about a 5 min drive from the dive shop, transport is provided, or you can arrange to be picked up from your accommodation. Having our own car we tended to drive direct to the marina then back to the shop at the end of the day to have a drink and chill in one of the numerous cafes next to the shop.

Mark and Diane are meticulous with diving safety; they deliver clear dive/boat safety briefs and on-site briefs. A diving slate is also kept for which divers must sign.

We had 2 boat dives Saturday and Sunday, then Monday morning was a shore dive as we were having an introduction to DPVs dive.

There are a variety of dive sites around the Latchi area and along the Akamas peninsula catering for all standards. The fish life is not prolific, over fishing coupled with a poor nutrient sea means it can be disappointing, that said now we are now used to it and have begun to look at other things. The underwater topography is interesting and there are lots of pretty gullies and swim throughs to brighten up the dives. The life that does exist tends to be smaller so you just have to look harder ! Turtles come to nest along the shores around May and June, we saw one on the waters surface in May.

St Georges Island is one of our favourite site, a small island just off the Akamas, it’s about a 15 minute transit by boat from the marina. On one side it shelves down to about 50m, we dived it to 33m. There is a little more fish life here and again the topography is interesting.

Black Rocks is a pretty dive site further down the Akamas, dropping is at about 8m you then follow rocks, seagrass and sand down to about 13m.

Fontana Amoroso is another shallower dive site in the same area, this is allegedly where pots were thrown to the gods as offerings, many of which can still be seen embedded and encrusted in the rocks.

Our DPV dive was a shore dive from a beautiful sheltered lagoon on the Akamas. The bonus here was a spectacular drive along the peninsula to the site so we got a jeep safari and dive all in one.

The water temperature in April was 18 but rose to 20 when we returned in mid May. I dived in a dry suit (and still am in late May), although Kenny was comfortable in a 5mm semi dry. I would suggest if you feel the cold and you are diving early in the season you may want to bring along a dry suit or an extra shortie over a long John, gloves and a hood. All our dives were morning/early afternoon dives with teas/coffee or squash provided on our return. Lunch, in the form of local bread/pita bread, cheese, etc was also provided after the first dive which gave us a decent surface interval time as well as satisfying our hunger ! Visibility during April /May was between 15-20m depending on the dive.

Polis divers run the usual suite of PADI courses from Bubble maker to Divemaster along with speciality courses, BSAC snorkler courses and BSAC dive courses on request. We paid around £25 per dive (not including the DPV dive) which included air and a tank, (we had all our own kit except a fourth tank), lunch on board along with tea, coffee and squash. Equipment can be hired in the shop and looks well looked after and of good quality. The shop is located in the centre of Polis.

Polis and neighbouring Latchi are quiet, relatively unspoilt resorts. There is good variety of accommodation from apartments to hotels and there are lots of excellent places to eat in both resorts. Dinner in a local taverna, 2 courses (starter and main), a couple of Keo beers and soft drinks set us back about CY£15 for both of us.

For overnights stops we use Nicki’s apartments between Polis and Latchi. A standard 1-bed apartment ranges from £40 low season to £56 high season per room, breakfast £4pp. They also have a villa that can sleep up to 8 people from £82 low season to £120 high season per villa.

A hire car is recommended as public transport does not exist, and if staying at Polis/Latchi for your holiday you will probably want to venture further a field and visit other parts of the Island.

The Akamas peninsula is a stunning part of Cyprus with lots of beautiful bays and walks into the hills. A four wheel drive is recommended if venturing around the peninsula as the roads are dirt tracks.

All prices quoted are in UK sterling, exchange rate approx. CY£0.80 to the UK£ as at May 06.
Polis divers: Tel: 00357 26321071, email Website
Nickis Apartments: Tel 00357 26322226, email: info@nickiresort.com

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