Varosha is a Cypriot seaside resort that was popular with Hollywood celebrities in the 1960s but has been left in ruins since Turkey’s invasion of Cyprus in 1974.
Varosha has been closed off to the outside world for decades (Getty Images)
What was once a beautiful seaside resort turned ghost town has become a mecca for “dark tourism”, with vacant buildings dominating the eerie skyline.
Once a glamorous resort town frequented by Hollywood celebrities like Elizabeth Taylor, the Cyprus town of Varosha was abandoned for decades but has slowly started to attract tourists back in recent years as it becomes a hotspot for people drawn to a site with dark historical significance.
The fate of this seaside resort changed dramatically on July 20, 1974, when Turkish troops invaded northern Cyprus in retaliation for an attempted coup by the Greek military government just five days earlier. The military invasion prompted a mass evacuation of Varosha’s 15,000 residents, leaving behind their homes, businesses and pristine beaches.
Now under de facto control of the Republic of Northern Cyprus, the area has been sealed off by the military and left untouched for years, with its once-grandeur buildings left to decay.
Residents fled the town when Turkish forces invaded northern Cyprus in 1974 (AFP via Getty Images)
Over time, nature began to reclaim parts of the neighborhood, with plants growing on the walls and sidewalks and sea turtles nesting on Varosha’s beaches. But in October 2020, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and then-Northern Cyprus Prime Minister Ersin Tatar decided to reopen the area to tourists.
The ghost town has attracted more than 1.8 million tourists over the past four years, according to figures released on June 3. But today’s Varosha and its visitors are a far cry from the bustling beach resort of the 1960s. The area is now a dark tourism hotspot, drawing visitors in search of a history of death and tragedy.
It’s now a popular “dark tourism” hotspot and has reopened to visitors (AFP via Getty Images)
Professor Hubert Faustmann of the University of Nicosia told the Express: “As the area became one of the top destinations in terms of dark tourism, they started opening up parts of Varosha and now it is a tourist destination with guided tours, electric bikes, rides, coffee shops and so on. Varosha is being used as a tourist destination, a tourist attraction, and before 1974 there were no inhabitants there. It has changed in the sense that it is open to the public, but re-entry is not allowed.”
Prior to its reopening, Varosha was cleared of debris and equipped with canteens, beach umbrellas and other amenities for tourists. Just a few days after the publication of the tourism statistics, the PACE Committee for Political Affairs and Democracy discussed the situation in Varosha in Oslo. The meeting considered the report of PACE rapporteur for Varosha, Piero Fassino, who visited the ghost town in mid-May. After his visit, the Italian politician expressed hope that Varosha would become a revitalized “living town” again.
