The location of our site is minutes away from Aligadi beach which is also known as Turtle beach…..
For over one hundred years the waters here in Cyprus have been visited by the green (Chelonia Mydas) and the logger-head (Caretta Caretta) turtles.
The green turtles only nest in Cyprus, South East Turkey and occasionally Israel.
These fascinating creatures come ashore on the deserted beaches between May and August to nest and Aligadi Beach is classified as a special protected area.
After sunset when it is dark, the adult females sometimes with a carapace of up more than 100cm long, make their way up the beach to find a nesting place. They then lay between 65 and 110 eggs depending on the species.

This can be repeated up to 5 times for each female with a space of 10 to 15 days apart.
When the nesting is complete the exhausted female will return to the sea, it is likely that she will reappear on the same beach again a couple of years down the line.
Up to 30% of all green turtles nest here on the coastline of Northern Cyprus.
Every year a team of researchers mainly from Universities through out the UK are here through the summer to oversee the monitoring and conservation of the turtles, tourists also have the chance to experience this.

Just before sunset you join the students at their base, "The Goat Shed" at Alagadi. First you are given information about the turtles and the project, and then, when darkness falls, you will be taken down to one of the two Alagadi bays. There you will wait while the students survey the beaches. As soon as a female has begun to lay, you are, in slience, allowed to approach the nesting place. (No photoflashes are allowed at this impartant time.)
And there, before your eyes, you can witness this one hundred million year old wonder, as soon these mother-of-pearl shimmering eggs, the size of table tennis balls, are dropped into the nest cavity.
On a lucky night you will be able to experience this unique happening several times before you return to your hotel, tired but happy. Incubation is indeed not by the female turtles but by the warmth of the Cyprus sunshine. After about 50 days the small hatchlings begin to emerge from the surface of their sandy nests.
This is another fantastic experience that takes place in the nesting beaches around Northern Cyprus.
All are welcome to participate in this event as well to witness up to a hundred of these amazing little creatures, not more than 6-7 cm long, fight their way from the nest down to the sea,it is an unforgettable sight. It is sad fact that only one in thousand survive. Even less would survive if it was not for the special conversation project taking place here in North Cyprus concerning this endangered species
.
The best times to observe the nesting is at the end of June and beginning of July. To observe the hatching is the best during end of August and beginning of September.

For more infomation about the turtles here in Northern Cyprus please click on the following link www.seaturtle.org