Authentic (Eco) Tourism and Governance of Sustainability Services
F.I. NatureOfCyprus Ltd was established in October 2009 (by Phivos Ioannides) to act as a vehicle in the offer of a collection of services related to the Governance of Sustainability in general and to Authentic (Eco) tourism in particular, in Cyprus.
Current services
Our collection of services for 2010 includes the following:
1. Banner Ad space on www.natureofcyprus.org
www.natureofcyprus.org is the website with the most extensive information on Cyprus nature, including its fauna and flora, and its natural attractions, eg. beaches, trails and wetlands. www.natureofcyprus.org enjoys high recognisability and comes up in the first page of various Search Engine results, for tens of different keywords and phrases related to Cyprus nature. www.natureofcyprus.org receives an increasing flow of visitors from about 40 countries per month. Very important sources of visitors are Germany, the UK and Cyprus.
We maintain limited banner ad space which we either offer to interested companies or (for free) to suitable NGOs. We would like to hear from you if you are any of the two.
2. Sell the book ‘ Guide on Nature of Cyprus’ (published in English and in a Greek version)
Phivos published the book in summer 2009 in order to complement www.natureofcyprus.org. It contains detailed information on about 200 Natural attractions found in Cyprus (80 beaches, 50 trails, 20 wetlands, 30 ancient trees, etc). It has been warmly welcomed. You can either order it directly through us or buy it from selected bookshops (and other shops) or Environmental Education Centers in Cyprus. For a limited time it is also available in many kiosks in Cyprus.
3. Organise and lead groups in walking trips in various excellent areas of Cyprus, especially in Paphos Forest, Troodos and the Akamas peninsula.
Usually we cater to groups that have between 2-8 members (per walk escort) and we can customise the trips as per the group’s requirements (single day or multiday walks). We walk during the whole year. Even in summer, there are excellent walks that one can do in Cyprus, avoiding the high temperatures, provided they are scheduled properly. Examples of routes include Artemis trail in Troodos, Platy valley, Cedar Valley to Tripilos peak in Paphos Forest, the trails at Avakas Gorge, Smiyies and Aphrodite in the Akamas peninsula.
4. Deliver seminars on ‘Nature of Cyprus’
We deliver seminars in English or in Greek on Nature of Cyprus, customised as per trainee desire. Usually the seminars/training lasts for 6-7 hours or 1-2 hours. Our 6-7 –hour training sessions to be offered in the first half of 2010 are subsidised by the government. The participants in the subsidised seminars will come from the tourist sector (eg. reception employees at Paphos hotels and Limassol hotels). We are planning to deliver 4 subsidised seminars (8 in total, as each will be delivered in Greek and in English) each with an emphasis on a specific area of Cyprus. There will be a seminar for Protaras and Ayia Napa area, for Larnaca, for Limassol and for Paphos. The participants are expected to be mainly employees of local hotels (eg. in the Paphos seminar we expect that most participants will be working in Paphos hotels). We are also delivering seminars to colleges (those offering tourism related courses) as well as other groups who may be interested in the subject of Nature of Cyprus (especially to those who like to know how to access relevant info on the internet).
Future services
5. Birdwatching trips – Larnaca wetlands and Akrotiri wetlands
The wetlands around Larnaca and those at Akrotiri (Limassol) have a high density of birds and in bird species. We are planning to run in late 2010, once a week, birdwatching trips around Larnaca wetlands Voroklini lake, Sewerage Works Pools, Salt lake) for Larnaca hotels, and around Akrotiri wetlands (Akrotiri Salt lake, Fassouri reedbeds, Zakaki marsh, Bishop’s Pool) for Limassol hotels. The plan is to run these when there is water in the wetlands (ie, not in summer). We can also organise customised birdwatching trips for interested groups, upon request.
6. Beautiful Coastal sea exploration in comfortable human powered crafts
We are planning to start leading interested parties on beautiful sea routes around Cyprus coastline. The first route to be offered is expected to be between Gliki Nero beach in Ayia Napa - past the Ayia Napa sea caves, around Cape Greko coastline, by Cape Greko sea caves - and Konnos beach near Protaras.
Subsequently we expect to offer routes on the west coast of Paphos, ie from Paphos fort to Agios Georgios tis Pegeias fishing port, a route from Episkopi coast past Avdimou, Paramali, Pissouri bay ending at Petra tou Romiou(Aphrodite’s Rock), and a longer one from Agios Gerogrios tis Pegeias fishing port to Lara coast, around the Akamas peninsula ending near Aphrodite’s Baths cave.
The human powered watercrafts to be used in this service are very stable, fast, easy to use and comfortable (with optional shade). There will be opportunities for snorkeling as well as nature study and birdwatching. Our target market is people of all ages looking to explore the sea in an environmentally friendly way and discover beautiful coastal Natural attractions of Cyprus.
7. Electronic shop
We are planning to offer for sale various products that are environmentally friendly, and also products that are used with relation to nature and the outdoors. We expect to start offering products in 2010.
Please contact us if you are interested in any of our current services or you want to be updated about our services and products, by sending us a relevant email message to phivos.ioannides@natureofcyprus.org.