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The Best VPNs For Cyprus

The Best VPNs For Cyprus

Last updated on May 10, 2021

The beautiful island of Cyprus located in the Mediterranean Sea has a lot to offer tourists from glistening beaches and warm weather to historical sites dating back thousands of years. Although the government will have you believe that the “Internet is completely free of any specific regulation”, the citizens will tell you differently. ISPs have installed middle-boxes which are able to censor, monitor and perform traffic manipulation.

DNS hijacking applied by the Cypriot government is also an issue. When you travel to any country, the last thing you would want or expect is not to be able to visit your preferred websites. To get around such restrictions you need a VPN that will reroute your traffic and ensure carefree and anonymous browsing. It is the only way you can be sure that your current location is hidden, meaning not even your ISP will be able to monitor what you do online.

Best VPNs for Cyprus

#1 ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN has over 3,000 servers in 160 locations around the world, specifically in 94 countries. Having jurisdiction in the British Virgin Islands means that your internet movements are impenetrable by anyone, including government officials, ISPs or third-party hackers.

The British Virgin Islands are located far from any of the 5/9/14 Eyes Alliance ensuring you are safe from ExpressVPN handing over your data because they have none.

This VPN company supports pretty much all devices and platforms including that of Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, Linux as well as your router. Although Netflix might be blocked in Cyprus you will have no issues getting around these blocks. All you need to do is connect to a location like the US and you will have full access to your Netflix library. Other platforms like YouTube TV, Hulu, Sling TV, and MLB TV, iPlayer, ESPN, and BBC are also readily available.

Something many VPN companies promise is great speed, but most of them have trouble in their delivery. If you have previously connected to a VPN you will have likely noticed a drop in connection speed, your internet slowing down and your downloads taking forever. This isn’t the case here.

Although you’re limited by the network you are connected to, ExpressVPN will ensure a minimum reduction in speed given that they’re the fastest VPN on the market.

Securing your connection is something you need to watch when selecting a great VPN. Offering a plethora of options including DNS protection, OpenVPN support as well as a Network Lock will enable maximum security. The Network Lock acts like a kill switch that is a VPN necessity. Should your VPN connection drop, the Network Lock will end all your online activity so it cannot be traced by your ISP or anyone else for that matter.

Setup will take a few minutes of your time. All you need to do is select the plan you want, enter your email as well as your billing information. Next, you will receive an activation code that you use on the downloaded software.

There are three simultaneous connections available per subscription meaning you can secure your laptop, smartphone, and tablet all at once.

With a simple, one-click startup interface, there is not much that can go wrong. A large on and off button will show whether you’re connected or not and next to that there is a list of countries that you can choose to connect to. Simple as that.

If you do need help with something ExpressVPN has friendly and responsive staff on call day and night who will be able to walk you through whatever issue you may be facing. There is also an option to contact the support team via email if you do not wish to use the live chat service.

Getting bogged down with contracts can be tricky and frustrating, which is why ExpressVPN offers a thirty-day money-back guarantee. Within those thirty days, you can cancel your subscription at any time with no questions asked.

As you can see there are plenty of reasons as to why we think ExpressVPN is the best option for Cyprus. Here are more features that make ExpressVPN unbeatable:

Unlimited bandwidth
Ultra-fast streaming speeds
Compatible with Android TV (Box) and Fire TV
Apps available for every device
Hides your streaming activity
No connection logs
No activity logs
P2P possibility
Ping times that are minimally affected
ExpressVPN works extremely well in high censorship countries
Military-grade encryption
Large international server network
30-day money back guarantee
Outstanding customer service
99% uptime guarantee
Up to three simultaneous connections

ExpressVPN also offers a special deal, get 3 months free and 49% savings with their annual subscription plan!

Want to find out more? Check out the full review here.

#2 Surfshark

Coming in at second place is one of the newcomers that have entered the VPN ring of late. One thing that sets them apart is the fast-paced growth they have achieved in a small amount of time. With 800 servers and growing around 50 countries, Surfshark means business when it comes to your online protection and security.

Surfshark offers “ultra-fast speed” to anyone who signs up with them. This may be due to being a fairly new VPN and not being saturated with as many users as their competition, but nonetheless, when it comes to connection speeds Surfshark has proven to be exceptional.

Just like ExpressVPN, Surfshark has jurisdiction in the British Virgin Islands promising complete anonymity when it comes to your online movements. They do not collect incoming or outgoing IP addresses, browsing activity, used bandwidth, downloads or purchasing information, VPN servers you use, the session information or connection timestamps.

On top of that, they offer a MultiHop feature which will allow you to connect to multiple countries at one time, taking your ID protection to another level. In case your VPN connection does drop, there is also a kill switch in place to stop your internet activity completely.

Surfshark is P2P friendly, so torrenting will not be a problem, but neither will streaming. You have access to as many as eight different Netflix libraries with this VPN provider including, the US, UK, France, Japan, Netherlands, India, and Italy.

The interface is simple to use, with all the functions explained in an easy-to-understand manner, so you don’t have to worry if you’re a first time VPN user. Being in a completely different location means that assistance needs to be on hand, no matter what time of day it is. Luckily, Surfshark just like ExpressVPN offers 24-hour assistance, 365 days a year.

Leaving the best for last, it should be noted that with a Surfshark subscription you can have unlimited simultaneous connections which means that you can protect both yourself and your family whilst away.

Here are some more reasons why we love Surfshark for Cyprus:

Great download speeds
Zero logging
Unlimited bandwidth
Unlimited platform protection
Unlimited Server Switching
Some servers work with Netflix
Strong encryption
Torrenting allowed
CleanWeb feature
Unlimited devices
Whitelister feature

Want to find out more? Check out the full review here.

#3 CyberGhost

CyberGhost has its headquarters in Romania. This is another location that can promise complete anonymity as Romania has rendered its laws unconstitutional meaning the European Data Retention Collective is inapplicable in this state.

Having 3,000 servers in 58 countries, CyberGhost is perfect for those traveling to Cyprus and in need of a VPN.

Compatible with a variety of platforms including Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and your router, you can also piggyback off your CyberGhost connection to another device, which is handy when traveling.

With seven possible connections available to be used at the same time, you should have no trouble securing all your devices. CyberGhost also offers a 45-day money-back guarantee when you sign up with their three-year plan. This is more than most VPNs offer, but we’re sure you won’t need it.

Your privacy is something that is very important to CyberGhost as is clearly outlined in their logging policy;

“We do not log real IP addresses, we do not log assigned servers, we do not log login or logout times, we don’t merge any real data (like purchase data) into account data, we do not log traffic data (e.g. which websites are visited) nor any information sent via a CyberGhost server.

CyberGhost VPN neither observes nor records content like messenger chats, telephone calls, video chats, or other communication forms, nor stores IP addresses (not the ones the users are heading to, and not the ones users have, when logging into the CyberGhost VPN network). Furthermore, it’s not possible to record, which account logged into which server at what time or to connect a real person to a certain CyberGhost VPN account.”

With optimized servers for Netflix, BBC-iPlayer, Hulu, YouTube, and Crunchyroll, you can check out which server will suit your needs. This can be done online and the results will show you the chosen location as well as the ping, user load and the distance.

Here are some more reasons as to why CyberGhost may be the right choice for you:

Strict No Logs Policy
High speeds
Automatic Kill Switch
Simultaneous connections on up to 7 devices
Easy to use
256-bit AES Encryption
Unlimited bandwidth and traffic
OpenVPN, L2TP-IPsec and PPTP protocols
Apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, Routers

Want to find out more? Check out the full review here

#4 NordVPN

These guys have over 5,000 servers in 60 countries and are one of the most popular VPN choices around. Never being at a loss for a connection might be a reason why.

Another reason this popular VPN is a favorite is their DoubleVPN feature which will encrypt your traffic twice, camouflaging it to ensure it is twice as safe. If you have terrible connection speeds to start off with it might be an idea not to use this feature as it will slow down your connection even more.

Protecting yourself from malware and those pesky ads can be an issue, but with CyberSec you can be sure that this will not be a problem. There are two different kill switches to choose from, so can be sure you will be safe even in the most restricted areas.

If you have never used a VPN before, it may be intimidating at first, but this isn’t the case with NordVPN. A simple interface means that you can get started without any trouble at all.

Advanced users can also sleep easy knowing that there are plenty of advanced settings you can tinker with including choosing security protocols and allowing custom DNS, amongst many more.

You can use your NordVPN connection with as many as six devices simultaneously which should be more than enough for your stay in Cyprus. They take payment methods such as American Express, Visa, MasterCard, and Maestro, but if you were thinking of using PayPal, this is not an option. In that case, you should consider a different VPN service provider that works with PayPal such as ExpressVPN.

Want your information to stay private? Not an issue. Within their privacy policy, you can see Nord will not share any of your information stating,

“We do not store connection time stamps, session information, used bandwidth, traffic logs, IP addresses or other data. From the moment a NordVPN.com user turns on the NordVPN.com software, their internet data becomes encrypted. Any online traffic coming from their user’s device is no longer visible to ISP, third-party snoopers or cybercriminals.”

These are some more reasons as to why NordVPN is a great option for Cyprus:

Over 5000 servers in 62 countries
IP Leak protection
Double VPN
CyberSec
Onion over VPN
Simultaneous connections on up to 6 devices
Automatic Kill Switch
30-day money back guarantee
Set-up and installation takes just minutes
24-hour customer support

Want to find out more? Check out the full review here.

Internet Privacy Laws and Regulations in Cyprus

It is somewhat tough to comprehend internet freedom in Cyprus especially when you take their political situation into consideration. Other than the Republic of Cyprus there is also the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, the United Nations Green Line buffer zone as well as the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia that continue to be under British control for military objectives.

It’s all very complicated.

However, a group of volunteers from the hack66 Observatory in Nicosia collected and analyzed connectivity measurements on a variety of websites and services.

A Betting Law was introduced in 2012 by the Republic of Cyprus, and according to this report,

“The law implies that the ISPs are obliged to apply a blocking system that will prevent users and ISP clients from accessing betting services providers who are not licensed (do not hold a Class B license) or service providers who possess, operate infrastructure or provide online casino services in Cyprus… According to the RoC Betting Law of 2012, noncompliance is punishable with a term of imprisonment not exceeding five years or a fine not exceeding three hundred thousand Euro or to both such sentences.“

There is also the issue of DNS hijacking which entails DNS service providers to block access to particular domains as a form of censorship.

There are a lot of unanswered questions when it comes to internet usage in Cyprus, many of which are the result of the political climate in this country.

Using a reliable VPN you will be well away from any Cypriot ISPs that are monitoring its users’ online activity. Hiding your location means that you will have access to any geo-blocked content you wish to access.

Streaming Services

If you are heading outside of Cyprus either on holiday or for business purposes there is no reason as to why you should miss out on all the latest news and television programs that you are used to. Without a VPN, accessing the online streaming services will come up with a message such as:

ERROR 404

Η σελίδα που ψάχνετε δεν βρέθηκε!

Η σελίδα που ψάχνετε δεν βρέθηκε είτε λόγω του ότι δεν υπάρχει πλέον είτε λόγω λανθασμένου URL που χρησιμοποιήσατε. Παρακαλούμε επιλέξτε μια από τις κατηγορίες του βασικού μενού πλοήγησης.

With a VPN you can get around these geo-blocked error messages and watch all your favorite channels including:

The Bottom Line

Traveling to Cyprus should not mean that your internet availability is restricted in any way. With a reliable VPN, you can always check out your favorite websites and engage in online communication without fear of being monitored by ISPs, the Cypriot government or third parties of any kind.

An excellent VPN will provide you with reliable speeds that will not noticeably slow down your initial internet connection. It will also provide a fair amount of servers that aren’t overpopulated as well as providing those servers in locations that matter to you.

Simultaneous connections are also something to think about so that all your devices including laptops, tablets, and smartphones are covered. Make sure that your chosen VPN service provider is also able to equip you with a kill switch should anything go wrong with your connection.

ExpressVPN delivers on all accounts and is our choice for the best VPN for Cyprus.