
We rented a house there for a summer after the war in 1974, and Paphos was a small fishing village where you could share your dinner with the pelicans on the pier--it isn't quite like that anymore! If you travel north along the coast you'll still find plenty of small friendly villages, nice places to eat and interesting wildlife rather than wild nightlife.
My family lived in Cyprus for several years. When I had the chance to take my own children to visit 5 years ago I chose to go to the north instead, which I have to say is by far more interesting in every way, far less touristy, every bit as friendly, not at all crowded and much cheaper. The Crusader castles are fantastic, the landscape is beautiful and very lush, the Karpaz peninsula has wild donkeys, sea turtles, empty white beaches, and the architecture on th Turkish side of Nicosia, a mix of Ottoman, Venetian and Lusignan styles, should be a World Heritage Site.