Fig Tree Bay is a sandy beach in

Protaras Protaras (Greek: ''Πρωταράς'') is a predominantly tourist resort which comes under the administrative jurisdiction of Paralimni Municipality in Cyprus. In ancient times, where Protaras is now located, stood the old city-state of Leukolla. ...

of Paralimni in Cyprus. In 2011, TripAdvisor declared it to be the third best beach in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, though it dropped to 13th place in 2013.

Overview

As with all beaches in Cyprus, access to the public is free, whilst the hiring of sunbeds and umbrellas is chargeable. A municipal car park provides parking within a short walk. The beach stretches for 500 metres, and the waters are clean enough for the beach to have been awarded blue flag designation. The beach takes its name from the

fig tree ''Ficus'' ( or ) is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes and hemiepiphytes in the family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few species extending ...

s located close to the coast. There is an uninhabited

islet An islet is a very small, often unnamed island. Most definitions are not precise, but some suggest that an islet has little or no vegetation and cannot support human habitation. It may be made of rock, sand and/or hard coral; may be permanent ...

easily reached by swimming through the shallow waters, the location of which provides a good shelter for the rest of the beach. The islet is covered with low-level local vegetation. In contrast to other local beaches, such as nearby Nissi, Fig Tree Bay has become a popular destination for families. Water sports such as

water-skiing Water skiing (also waterskiing or water-skiing) is a surface water sport in which an individual is pulled behind a boat or a cable ski installation over a body of water, skimming the surface on two skis or one ski. The sport requires suffic ...

windsurfing Windsurfing is a wind propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the aerospace and surf culture of California. Windsurfing ga ...

, and

parasailing Parasailing, also known as parascending, paraskiing or parakiting, is a recreational kiting activity where a person is towed behind a vehicle while attached to a specially designed canopy wing that resembles a parachute, known as a parasail ...

are available. From April to October, lifeguards and lifesaving equipment are available on the beach from 9am to 6pm. In 2010, during structural improvements to the beach, an

ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...

tomb was unearthed.

In popular culture

The song "Fig Tree Bay" from English musician

Peter Frampton Peter Kenneth Frampton (born 22 April 1950) is an English musician and songwriter who was a member of the rock bands Humble Pie and the Herd. As a solo artist, he has released several albums, including his major breakthrough album, the live ...

's 1972 album '' Wind of Change'' is about the beach.

References

{{Reflist Beaches of Cyprus