Cyprus in September, the long summer

September is summer stretched out, and the month I’d pick for a beach holiday with a bit more culture. It’s hot, it barely rains and two of the calendar’s loveliest events arrive, opera by Paphos castle and wine in Limassol. I go through it with WMO and CYSTAT data and each festival’s sources. The whole season is in Cyprus in autumn.

September weather

In Larnaca the average high is 31.4 °C and the low 20.5 °C, and in Paphos 29.4 and 20.4 °C. Nicosia drops to 33.6 °C, almost four degrees below August. There’s very little rain, 9 mm in Larnaca and 5.8 mm in Paphos, over one or two days. In the Troodos, Prodromos has a 24.7 °C high.

Opera in Paphos

The Pafos Aphrodite Festival, run by a municipal company, held its 24th edition on 4 and 5 September 2026, with Donizetti’s L’Elisir d’Amore in the medieval castle square, according to the Cypriot press. I cover it in the Pafos Aphrodite Festival.

Once your dates are set, check which hotels are still free in Paphos before prices climb.

Wine in Limassol

On 26 September 2026 the Limassol Wine Festival opened in the Municipal Gardens, with concerts, dancing, theatre, workshops and tastings every evening, according to Limassol’s tourism board. It ran until 4 October. More in the Limassol Wine Festival.

How busy it is

CYSTAT counted 570,635 arrivals in September 2025, 12 % more than in September 2024 and almost as many as in July. From the UK, 179,293 came. CYSTAT hadn’t yet published the September 2026 figure when I wrote this page. The season, in short, is still in full swing, so book your room and car well ahead, as you would for July.

If you would rather have a local show you round, book a guided tour in Paphos and choose by the reviews.

No holidays

The Central Bank of Cyprus lists for 2026 and 2027 include no public holidays in September. The next one is 1 October.

What to pack

Summer clothes, swimwear, sunglasses and sun cream, plus a light long-sleeved layer for late-month evenings or a trip up to the Troodos.

A car frees you from timetables: search car hire in Paphos on DiscoverCars and compare companies.

Compared with 2024

September was one of the fastest-growing months in 2025, up 12 % according to CYSTAT. Cypriot tourism is stretching further into autumn, and September now looks a lot like July in visitor numbers.

Rainy days

The WMO gives one to two rainy days on average on the coast, 1.8 in Larnaca and 1.1 in Paphos, and Nicosia still touches 34 °C. Bring sun cream rather than an umbrella.

Once your dates are set, check which hotels are still free in Paphos before prices climb.

My September plan

Beach by day and festival by night, based in Paphos early in the month for the opera or in Limassol towards the end for the wine. If it suits you better, Cyprus in August is hotter and Cyprus in October milder. In September I still see the east as the best coast for swimming, with Nissi Beach, Fig Tree Bay and the Ayia Napa beaches.