# Getting married in Paphos > The west coast of Cyprus, where the sun sets into the sea: a harbour with a stone fort, Roman mosaics by the shore, Aphrodite’s Rock at Petra tou Romiou and the wild coves of the Akamas. - URL: https://lensandvows.com/cyprus/paphos - Cyprus: https://lensandvows.com/cyprus (Markdown: https://lensandvows.com/cyprus.md) - Português: https://lensandvows.com/pt/cyprus/paphos.md - Español: https://lensandvows.com/es/cyprus/paphos.md - Italiano: https://lensandvows.com/it/cyprus/paphos.md - Deutsch: https://lensandvows.com/de/cyprus/paphos.md - Français: https://lensandvows.com/fr/cyprus/paphos.md - Lens & Vows: https://lensandvows.com/ Paphos lies on the west coast of the island. Kato Paphos, the lower town, runs along the harbour to a squat stone fort at its western end, first built by the Byzantines and rebuilt by the Ottomans in 1592; just behind the quay lie the mosaics of Nea Paphos and, a little to the north, the rock-cut Tombs of the Kings, which, with the sanctuary of Aphrodite at Kouklia, make up a UNESCO World Heritage site. Twenty-five kilometres east, the sea stacks of Petra tou Romiou mark the place where, the legend says, Aphrodite was born from the foam; to the north, past Coral Bay, the coast turns wild along the Akamas peninsula, a national forest park of rocky headlands and turquoise coves. Couples from abroad marry legally with the municipality, after applying in person at least a day before: in the old District Governor’s House or its garden, on a beach, in a hotel garden, on a boat in the harbour or, with the Department of Antiquities’ permission, at the castle or the medieval manor house at Kouklia. Then come portraits at Petra tou Romiou or on the cliffs at sunset, and dinner by the sea. ## When to marry in Paphos - **Best:** April, May, June, September, October - **Good with planning:** March, July, August, November April, May and June, then September and October, are warm and dry: at Paphos airport the average high climbs from about 22 °C in April to 28 °C in June and is still 27 °C in October, with rain on two days a month at most. July and August average 30–31 °C, in humid sea air, and the last ten summers have run nearer 32 °C; the west coast stays a little cooler than the south, but at midday a suit or a gown is hard work. From November the rain returns — on about eleven days a month in December and January — though the days stay mild, around 17–20 °C. - **Spring:** Green hills and wild flowers into May, a sea still cool for swimming and long, soft evenings; after March, showers are rare. - **Summer:** Cloudless days, warm nights and the sun going down at about eight. Ceremonies move to the evening: plan shade and water for the guests, and keep the middle of the day for rest. - **Autumn:** The sea still warm from summer, the light turning golden from late September, and the first rain usually in late October or November. ## In numbers - **Hottest month, average high:** August · 31.0°C — Cyprus Department of Meteorology (WMO): https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/3.3/data/0-data/Region-6-WMO-Normals-9120/Cyprus/CSV/PafosAirport_17600.csv - **Average high in the best months:** Apr 21.8°C · May 24.9°C · Jun 28.1°C · Sep 29.4°C · Oct 27.0°C — Cyprus Department of Meteorology (WMO): https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/3.3/data/0-data/Region-6-WMO-Normals-9120/Cyprus/CSV/PafosAirport_17600.csv - **Days with 1 mm of rain or more, best months:** Apr 1.4 · May 1.2 · Jun 0.3 · Sep 0.5 · Oct 2 — Cyprus Department of Meteorology: https://www.dom.org.cy/CLIMATOLOGY/English/Daily%20Temperature%20and%20Precipitation%20Data/ - **Sunset on 21 June:** 20:07 (Paphos) — NOAA: https://gml.noaa.gov/grad/solcalc/ - **UNESCO World Heritage:** [Paphos](https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/79) (1980) Temperatures: Pafos Airport, normals 1991–2020 · Rain: Pafos Airport, normals 2016–2025 · Checked 24 October 2026 ## Where couples marry here The kinds of places — ask your photographer which ones they know well. - **The harbour and Kato Paphos:** The fort at the end of the quay, fishing boats and the seafront promenade, with the columns and mosaics of the archaeological park just behind. A civil wedding at the castle needs the Department of Antiquities’ permission, applied for through the municipality at least a month ahead, with no flowers, rice or confetti thrown; a professional photo shoot inside the ancient sites needs the Department’s permission too. - **Petra tou Romiou:** Aphrodite’s Rock: sea stacks off a long pebble beach under pale cliffs, reached by an underpass from the roadside pavilion and protected as a national forest park. Legend has it that swimming round the rock three times brings luck and true love; in the evening the light here is soft and warm. - **Coral Bay and the Peyia coast:** A curve of sand in Peyia with lifeguards from April to October, and the low cliffs and coves to the north of it, where the sun drops straight into the sea — the place for a sunset ceremony or portraits on the rocks. - **The Akamas:** Rocky headlands, scrub and turquoise water: the Blue Lagoon near Fontana Amorosa, and the Baths of Aphrodite, a grotto and garden past the fishing harbour of Latsi. The beaches of Lara and Toxeftra are turtle nesting grounds: from June to September no umbrellas or sunbeds there and nobody on the sand from an hour before sunset, and no vehicles on the beaches at any time of year. ## How the light falls Paphos faces west, so the sun sets over the sea all year. At midsummer it goes down at about seven minutes past eight and rises just after half past five; at midwinter the day runs from just before seven to about a quarter to five. From late morning the summer light is white and hard on the pale stone; the hour before sunset, and the blue minutes after it, are the ones for portraits — and the coolest. ## Getting there Paphos airport is about 15 km from the town, and Larnaca airport about 140 km away by motorway. Kato Paphos is walkable; for Petra tou Romiou, Coral Bay and the Akamas, plan a car. Drones follow the EU rules — operators register on drones.gov.cy — and may not fly in the red zone around the airport; check the Department of Civil Aviation’s zone map, not the one built into the drone. In a heatwave the Department of Meteorology issues yellow, orange and red warnings, and the Ministry of Health advises keeping out of the sun from 11:00 to 17:00. ## Photographers in Paphos The first photographers in Paphos are joining now. Tell our concierge your date and your plans — it checks who is free and fits. https://lensandvows.com/photographers?region=paphos https://lensandvows.com/photographers?region=paphos&sort=rating (Highest rated) ## Read before you plan - [Getting married in Cyprus as foreigners: civil, religious or symbolic](https://lensandvows.com/journal/getting-married-in-cyprus): How couples who don’t live in Cyprus marry there legally: ordinary notice or the special procedure, documents by nationality, Paphos, Limassol, Larnaca, Ayia Napa and Nicosia, beaches and castles, church weddings, civil unions and the photographer. (Markdown: https://lensandvows.com/journal/getting-married-in-cyprus.md) - [How to choose a wedding photographer: the steps, and the questions to ask](https://lensandvows.com/journal/how-to-choose-a-wedding-photographer): The decision in order — whole weddings, style, availability, the package, the contract and deposit, cancellation, delivery and a conversation — then a checklist of questions, with why each one matters. (Markdown: https://lensandvows.com/journal/how-to-choose-a-wedding-photographer.md) - [A wedding-day timeline built around the light](https://lensandvows.com/journal/wedding-day-timeline): Sunset decides more of your photos than you might think. Approximate sunset times by month, where golden hour fits, and two example timelines — one for June, one for October. (Markdown: https://lensandvows.com/journal/wedding-day-timeline.md) - [How deposits and payment protection work on Lens & Vows](https://lensandvows.com/journal/deposits-and-payment-protection): A 30% deposit holds your date; the balance goes straight to the photographer, or through us with payment protection. Every step, what each choice costs, and what happens if plans change. (Markdown: https://lensandvows.com/journal/deposits-and-payment-protection.md)