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I am travelling to Republic of Cyprus. I am planning to rent a car in Larnaca and travel to Northern Cyprus as well. I have called several big rental companies (Hertz, Sixt, Europcar) and learned that while it is allowed to drive to Northern Cyprus, neither of those rental companies provide insurance for the rental car. I would have to buy a third-party insurance at the border. In case of an accident or car breakdown I have to organize towing the car from the Northern Cyprus part back to the Republic of Cyprus. And since the insurance is not valid in the Northern Cyprus, I am personally fully liable for any car damage.

  • Has anyone else travelled with a rental car from Republic of Cyprus to Northern Cyprus? Any issues with that? Any recommendations / suggestions on how to handle the insurance? What is the approx price of the insurance?
  • Has anyone experienced any car breakdown / accidents with a rental car from Republic of Cyprus in Northern Cyprus?
  • In general, how safe it is to drive a car from Republic of Cyprus to Northern Cyprus? I assume the car plates are different.
  • Are there any alternatives? Such as taking a bus from Republic of Cyprus and renting a car in Northern Cyprus instead?
Maksim Sorokin
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2 Answers2

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I am answering my own question since I have already done the trip. Unfortunately I cannot shed the light to all the answers, but at least I can answer some of them.

I have rented the car through Europcar. I experienced no issues neither crossing the border nor driving in the Northern Cyprus. I have bought insurance at the border and I think the price was approx 30 euros.

As the comment to this answer points out, it is a good idea to still check up with the rental agency if the driving is allowed. I remember calling Europcar branch I was renting the car from. And they confirmed that they do not restrict driving in the North.

I did not experience any issues driving /parking -wise with cyprian plates. However, as far as I recall driving in bigger cities (e.g. Girne) is a bit more chaotic than in Republic of Cyprus.

Maksim Sorokin
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The insurance you buy at the crossing point is third party only, the rental car damage is not covered. Moreover I have not met a single person who actually used the insurance paid at time of crossing the border. They pay third parties damage in cash and get out of legal trouble.

travel_bunny
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