Church of Saint Lazarus

How to visit Larnaca's Church of Saint Lazarus: the free church, the €1 Byzantine Museum, the tomb in the crypt, and how long you actually need.

Written by the Departly editorial team Reviewed against GOV.UK on 8 Jun 2026

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Where

Larnaca, Cyprus

Opening hours

The church is open daily from 08:00; in summer (March–October) it stays open to 18:30, while in winter (November–February) it closes for a midday break, opening 08:00–12:30 and 14:30–17:30. The Byzantine Museum keeps tighter hours: 08:30–12:30 and 15:00–17:30, closed Wednesday and Saturday afternoons and all day Sunday. Hours flex around services, so confirm on agioslazaros.org.cy if your visit is tight.

Tickets

The church is free (donations welcome). The Byzantine Museum is €1 (about 85p), or €10 for groups of ten or more. There's a small €2 (about £1.70) charge if you want to take photos inside.

Time needed

30–45 minutes covers the church, the crypt and the little museum at a relaxed pace. Allow more only if there's a service on and you'd rather wait it out.

In short

Visiting Church of Saint Lazarus

The Church of Saint Lazarus is free to enter and sits a two-minute walk back from the Finikoudes seafront, so there is no reason to skip it — but it's a short stop, not a half-day. Go inside for the gilded 18th-century iconostasis, then pay the €1 (about 85p) for the small Byzantine Museum and duck down into the crypt to see the empty tomb. Watch the winter midday closure (the church shuts roughly 12:30–14:30 November to February), and time it with a coffee on the promenade rather than building a whole morning around it.

How to visit, and what you actually pay

Be clear on this first: the church is free. You walk straight in off Agios Lazaros square, two minutes back from the Finikoudes seafront, and you can see the whole interior — the dark, gold-plated iconostasis carved between 1773 and 1782, the five-domed Byzantine stone shell that Emperor Leo VI raised around 898 — without spending anything. Steps beside the altar lead down to the low crypt, where the marble sarcophagus that gives the church its reason to exist sits in a cramped, candle-lit chamber. It’s an empty tomb — most of Lazarus’s relics went to Constantinople long ago — but ducking down into it is the part people remember.

The only thing you pay for is the Byzantine Museum, tucked into the cells of the porch on the south side, and it’s €1 (about 85p). For that you get a small room of district icons, gospels and ecclesiastical silver — worth the coin, not worth a special trip. There’s also a €2 photo permit if you want to shoot inside. Mind the hours: the church opens daily from 08:00 and runs to 18:30 in summer, but in winter it closes for a midday break (roughly 12:30–14:30), and the museum is stricter again, shutting Wednesday and Saturday afternoons and all day Sunday.

Is it worth it?

Yes — but calibrate. This isn’t a blockbuster cathedral you queue and pay for; it’s a genuinely old, atmospheric working church that happens to be free and central. Give it 30 to 45 minutes: church, crypt, a glance round the museum, done. The honest move is to fold it into a Finikoudes morning rather than treating it as a destination — see the church, then walk out to the palm-lined promenade for a frappé, or eat in the old-town lanes that radiate behind the square, where the tavernas are better value than anything on the seafront strip.

Go on a weekday morning if you can. It dodges the winter midday closure, catches the museum open, and keeps you clear of the Sunday services and the Saturday-evening crowds, when the nave fills and sightseeing politely stops.

Planning the rest of your trip? See the Larnaca city guide.

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Church of Saint Lazarus FAQs

How much does it cost to visit the Church of Saint Lazarus?

The church itself is free — you can walk in, see the iconostasis and visit the crypt without paying. The only charges are the €1 (about 85p) Byzantine Museum in the south porch and a €2 photo permit if you want to take pictures inside. Donations to the church are welcome but not expected.

Is the Church of Saint Lazarus worth visiting?

Yes, as a short free stop — it's the one sight in Larnaca's old town worth going inside for, and it's two minutes from the seafront. The carved, gold-plated iconostasis and the tomb in the crypt earn the half-hour. Just don't expect a grand cathedral or build a whole morning around it; it's a quick, atmospheric visit, best paired with a Finikoudes walk.

Can you see the tomb of Lazarus?

Yes. Steps beside the iconostasis lead down to a low, cramped crypt holding the marble sarcophagus where Lazarus was buried. Most of his relics were taken to Constantinople in the 9th century, though human remains found under the altar after the 1970 fire are kept in the church. The tomb itself is empty, but it's the reason the church is here.

When is the Church of Saint Lazarus closed?

It's open daily from 08:00, but in winter (November–February) it shuts for a midday break, roughly 12:30 to 14:30 — the most common trip-up. The museum is stricter still, closing Wednesday and Saturday afternoons and all day Sunday. Services can also briefly close the nave to sightseers, so a weekday morning is the safe bet.

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