CYTA is the major provider of telecommunication services in Cyprus. Phone calls are fairly cheap, with reduced rates for local and international calls during off peak hours. Non-Cypriots can apply for a landline or a mobile line by applying at a CYTA office with their passport and evidence of residence in Cyprus. Tenants will be required to pay a refundable deposit, although members of the armed forces are exempt from this. Bills are payable monthly by cash, cheque or direct debit.

Public telephones which accept coins or phonecards can be found in all towns and tourist areas and many villages.

Cyprus has a number of Internet Service Providers (ISPs), and ISDN/ADSL access is available. A typical monthly charge for ADSL is CYGBP23 per month, plus voice call charges.

The postal service to and from Cyprus is fairly reliable, but post being sent to north Cyprus must be addressed to 'Mersin-10, Turkey' and not 'Northern Cyprus'. Airmail letters take a few days to reach western European countries.

Ten daily and five weekly newspapers are published in Cyprus, two of which are in the English language - the Cyprus Mail and the Cyprus News (weekly). Many UK, other European and Arabic newspapers can be bought in Cyprus a day or two after publication.

There are state-run as well as private TV and radio stations, and services from Greece and Turkey are also broadcast across the island. Most of the state broadcasting is in Greek or Turkish. There are daily programmes in English on the Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation's Radio 2. Many commercial radio stations broadcast in English.

There is a military cable/satellite TV package available, as well as other satellite services showing CNN, BBC, SKY etc.

Added 01/03/06 by Cemal - "There are many internet providers in northern Cyprus. One of which is Extend broadband, offering a connection of up to 2meg with various plans to suit demand and pocket. With a solid backbone and a fiber optic connection to Turkey they are the best of the bunch. Their coverage is only in the kyrenia area at the moment but I'm told they are expanding to cover lefkosa and famagusta. The service is run by an expat ex-forces logistics expert so I doubt you will find the standard "but this is Cyprus" answer when you have an issue to be resolved".