Pedoulas, the cherry village of Marathasa

Pedoulas is the Marathasa village with the most going on for visitors. It has one of the loveliest painted churches in the mountains, two museums and a curious recent history, that of a village that lived off tourism and cherries before almost anyone else. I lean on the mountains’ development company for the village story, on the Nicosia Tourism Board for museum days and hours and on the CYSTAT census.

A high village of cherry trees

Pedoulas sits at 1,100 metres, at the top of the Marathasa valley, surrounded by pines and the cherry trees that made its name. In 2021 it had 139 residents. The company traces its history back to Byzantine times and explains that, after the Second World War, it was a pioneer of tourism and cherry production, becoming the cultural and commercial centre of the valley.

The UNESCO church

The gem is Archangelos Michael at Pedoulas, raised and decorated in 1474 thanks to a donation from the priest Vasilios Chamados. It keeps a wooden iconostasis from the same period and welcomes visitors each day between 10:30 and 17:00. It belongs to the group of painted churches of Troodos that UNESCO protects.

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

The museums

Pedoulas has two. The Byzantine museum, from 1999, brings together icons and sacred objects of the 13th to 20th centuries taken from the ten chapels of Pedoulas, and can be visited Tuesday to Sunday, opening at 10:00 and closing at 16:20. The folk art museum, from 2005, occupies a restored building with a bust of its benefactor, the shipowner Vasos Hadjiioannou, at the entrance, and is devoted to traditional trades. It opens Tuesday to Sunday from 9:30 to 16:00. Both details come from the Nicosia Tourism Board.

More churches, a cross and a cedar

The village is dotted with churches, some from the 14th century, such as the chapels of Agia Paraskevi and Agios Georgios. The main church is Timios Stavros, from 1935, with a precious cross and brightly coloured frescoes, and the newest, Agios Rafael, from 1996, has contemporary paintings. A large 25 metre cross rises above the west of the village, and there’s also a statue of Makarios, the island’s first president. On the outskirts grows an 18 metre cedar that the company calls the famous cedar of Pedoulas.

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

When to go and where to stay

The company mentions a cherry festival, with summer fruit, local produce and folk music, though it gives no date. For the night, the 2026 official list of mountain accommodation gives it seven establishments, and the company mentions hotels such as the Central and Health Habitat, plus traditional houses, and from here Moutoullas and Kalopanayiotis are a few minutes away. I’d save it for the afternoon, leaving the church till last, as the museum closes earlier, at 16:20.

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