Severe winter storm “Byron” lashed Cyprus overnight on 9 December, prompting the Meteorological Department to raise its warning from yellow to orange and triggering a chain reaction across the island’s transport network. Rainfall topped 55 mm in parts of Nicosia and the Troodos foothills, flooding underpasses that feed Larnaca and Pafos airports. Ground crews kept both airports operational, but holding-patterns and covered-bridge boarding added up to two-hour delays for several European services.
Civil-defence teams pumped out water on the Limassol–Pafos motorway while police urged motorists to avoid mountainous routes after multiple landslides. Cruise operators shifted shore excursions inland, and the Deputy Ministry of Tourism sent SMS alerts—an unprecedented winter measure—to some 180,000 registered foreign visitors.
![Storm ‘Byron’ Causes Flight Delays and Road Closures Across Cyprus]()
If the storm has thrown a wrench into your travel plans, VisaHQ can help smooth out the paperwork. Through its Cyprus portal (https://www.visahq.com/cyprus/), the service allows visitors to secure emergency visa extensions, check transit-hub requirements, and arrange fast courier pickups so that documentation issues don’t add to weather-related stress.
Corporate mobility managers are advising travellers to build extra buffer time into itineraries, ensure drive-time restrictions are respected for rental cars and double-check that insurance covers weather-related delays. The hospitality sector, already gearing up for Cyprus’ 2026 EU Council presidency, rolled out complimentary in-house entertainment to limit refund claims.
Climatologists warned that eight of Cyprus’ ten wettest December days have occurred since 2015, calling for a mobility-resilience plan that elevates key road arteries and flood-proofs airport electrical rooms.
Civil-defence teams pumped out water on the Limassol–Pafos motorway while police urged motorists to avoid mountainous routes after multiple landslides. Cruise operators shifted shore excursions inland, and the Deputy Ministry of Tourism sent SMS alerts—an unprecedented winter measure—to some 180,000 registered foreign visitors.
If the storm has thrown a wrench into your travel plans, VisaHQ can help smooth out the paperwork. Through its Cyprus portal (https://www.visahq.com/cyprus/), the service allows visitors to secure emergency visa extensions, check transit-hub requirements, and arrange fast courier pickups so that documentation issues don’t add to weather-related stress.
Corporate mobility managers are advising travellers to build extra buffer time into itineraries, ensure drive-time restrictions are respected for rental cars and double-check that insurance covers weather-related delays. The hospitality sector, already gearing up for Cyprus’ 2026 EU Council presidency, rolled out complimentary in-house entertainment to limit refund claims.
Climatologists warned that eight of Cyprus’ ten wettest December days have occurred since 2015, calling for a mobility-resilience plan that elevates key road arteries and flood-proofs airport electrical rooms.
