Tombs of the Kings

No kings were buried here. The name comes from the scale of the tombs, cut into the soft coastal rock from the third century BC for the Ptolemaic officials and wealthy families of Paphos, and the grandest of them are built as underground houses: a sunken courtyard open to the sky, surrounded by Doric columns cut from the living rock, with burial chambers opening off the peristyle. The site runs along the shore for several hundred metres and is part of the Paphos World Heritage inscription.

What you actually see

• The peristyle tombs - sunken courtyards ringed by rock-cut Doric columns.
• The loculi - burial niches cut into the chamber walls.
• The coastal setting - the necropolis running along low cliffs above the sea.
• The scale - eight tomb groups spread across a large open site.

When to go

March to May and September to November are the comfortable months. Summer here is severely hot with almost no shade and the rock reflects the heat. Early morning is the best hour in any season.

Honest expectations

There is essentially no shade across the whole site and midday in summer is punishing. Several tombs are closed or fenced. Steps down into the courtyards are uneven and awkward.

Nearby

Paphos Archaeological Park is south along the shore, and Coral Bay is north.