Rhodes - Kalymnos - Karpathos - Leros & Megisti
Rhodes
It is the
largest of the
Dodekanes Islands and a place of mass tourism. But nevertheless
it is an island to go.
Rhodos Town gives a good picture of a medievial town which is still inhabited.
Have a visit to the centre early in the morning during summers. It can get quite
hot in the narrow and busy streets. To see the ancient cities like
LINDOS or KAMIROS it is best to hire a car. There
are numerous car outlets in Rhodes. Lindos was the most important Doric
settlement but now it is overcrowded with visitors and a real tourist trap. But
the astonishing view from the Acropolis is a must.
KAMIROS, situated on the north-west coast, is less
visited but offers breathtaking views to the traveller. Following the costal
road you pass SIANA one of the charming little
villages south of Kamiros. Don't forget to try the local honey and tsipouro
there. Beaches are plenty.
Leaving the areas of mass tourism you'll find enough space for you on the
beaches near GENADI or at PRASONISI. There are good sandy beaches. Prasonisi has
a beautiful scenery with waves on one side and calm waters some steps further
on the other side. It is also a surfing hot spot. During summer is Meltemi
season. This is wind from north-west cooling the high temperatures. It starts
about late morning and blows until evening sometimes up to seven Beaufort. It
also causes waves on the north -west coast and flat waters on th south
east coast.
Kalymnos
Situated between Kos and Leros it is surrounded by smaller islands like Peserimos or
Telendos. The island is arid and mountainous with some fertile valleys like
Vatni in the east. Kalymnos is also called the sponge- fishing-island but while
the sponge industry is declining the tourist industry grows. In comparison to
Patmos or Kos , Kalymnos is not overrun by tourists and offers a lot for
travellers.
Kalymnos is on the main ferry routes to Rhodes. The next airport is on
Kos. The capital and main port is Pothia build round the slopes of the
surrounding hills. The harbour is well sheltered and the colourful houses make a
photogenic sight. In summer the town is very hot. If it is 35 ° C on Rhodes
await over 40° C in Pothia with little cooling over night. The city offers good
tavernas but traffic in the narrow streets is busy and the sound of thousands
of motorbikes fill the air. Visit the monastery Moni Panagias Eleoussis There
you will have an excellent view across the city and the island of Kos.
Following the main road out of the city you pass the villages of Horio and
Panormos where the road turns into a one way system. There the road winds down
to Myrtis and Masouri the package holiday resorts on Kalymnos. The two centres
are basically one long street full of hotels and shops. The hill on the landside
is filled with studios and apartments. Some 100 meters across the sea is
Telendos Island. It is a lovely traffic free islet
and you can get there by ship. There are some domatia and one hotel. Travelling
further west the scenic road continues to Emborios with a nice shaded beach and
some tavernas and domatias. The sea is crystal clear and if you want to get rid
of all that hassle - that is the right place.
The area round the village is well known by rock climbers. Kalymnos has also a
good reputation for trekking holidays off the summer season. On the east coast
you find the villages of Vathy and Rina Bay . It
is a fjord cutting deep through high cliffs into a fertile valley. In summer
there are lots of sightseeing tour boats but Rina has only some domatia and
three Tavernas with no beach
Karpathos, situated midway between Rhodes and Crete,
has a lot to offer.
The island is dominated by a mountain range which runs
north to south. The village of Olymbos, long
separated from the south has developed different from the other parts of the
island. The customs of the inhabitants of Olymbos are different from others in
Greece. Even today only a dirt road of 29 km connects Olymbos to the south. So
the best transport to the north is the boat to Diafani the port of Olymbos.
The capital of the island is Pigadia. It is also the
main port. The island's main tourist resort is
Amoopi
with two beautiful beaches. In the south ,near the airport, are some fine
beaches which attract surfers. Some hotels have been brought up the last years.
The Meltemi there has a steady 5-8 Beaufort in summer and surfing is said to be
world class.
Lefkos has 5 sandy beaches and can get quite busy in the high season.
Mesohori,
a pretty village is not a place of tourism
but a nice village to explore. From there the road goes to Spoa where the dirt
track to Olymbos starts. The fine east coast beaches like Kyra Panagia or Apella
can be reached by car or better by excursion boat from the capital Pigadia.
This beaches are more protected from the summer winds and specially Apella
Beach , known from postcards, is well visited. Off the main season , Karpathos
is popular to hikers and offers beautiful tours through a fascinating landscape.
Leros
is an island in the north of the Dodekanes and
offers an impressive landscape. Huge bays, gentle rolling hills, sandy beaches
and crystal clear waters are found there. Up to now it is untouched by
masstourism but greek tourists love to go there.
Leros was strongly influenced by the Italians .
Lakki,
the huge main habour was once the naval base for the Italian Army in WW II. The
town doesn't look like any other port in Greece. The streets are wide, the
buildings are big, but everything looks a little bit run down. When the
ferries arrive there is activity in town but the rest of the day it is quite .
Sitting in the habour restaurant (Leon Limani) you really can watch the time
roll away . On the road to Cape Katsouni -turning left after the habour
entrance- you find some nice beaches and two fish tavernas. The city is also the
location of Greece's largest psychatric institution . Some of the patients are
integrated in normal life and so you may meet them here and there. Xirocampos
is a small resort in the south of the island close to Kalymnos. Some waterside
fishtavernas (two of them good ones), a campingplace and domatia are found there.
In summer you can make a daytrip to Kalymnos by kaiki.
Agia Marina & Platanos Agia Marina is the second
port on Leros. All catamarans and hydrofoil leave there. Booking a ferry, its
good advice to ask in which habour it departs. Platanos is the capital of Leros
and the place extents to Pandeli and Agia Marina . Everything is within walking
distance. The way to the Castle of Panteli starts there. The main square and
most of the shops are in Platanos . Most roads are very narrow so if you just
want to go on to Alinda and Pandeli, use the bypass road higher up. To visit
the castle you can either take the road or climb up some 400 steps . The views
are fantastic. Almost the whole island can be seen up there. West of Agia Marina
is the resort of
Alinda. Most buildings and
tavernas are concentrated along the bay road . The beach is sandy but narrow.
Most of the island's tourist accomodation is there. On the west coast the bay
of Gourna is less developed. There you can find Agia Isidora, another
eyecatcher on Leros. A road with less traffic leads back to Lakki. The north
of the island sees only few tourists. Passing the newly built water basin you
first reach the small airport , a large place where yachts are stored and a
small fishing quay. Next is a big army base and the turn off to the right leads
to Blefoutis Bay with a nice beach and a good fish taverna.
Megisti - Kastellorizio
A tiny and rocky island 120 km east of Rhodes and only 2 km off the
turkish coast. There are no beaches but some rocky inlets like the main harbour.
The water there is crystal clear. The best place for a jump into the water is at
the hotel Megisti.
The only settelment is Kastellorizio Town with some Pensions, Hotels and Domatia.
During the high season ist difficult to get one of the daily flights from
Rhodes.
So book in advance. Otherweise there is a daily ferry connection to Rhodes.
The only remarkable hotel ist the Hotel Megisti which now really needs a
renovation - the building and the staff. There are some other smaller hotels
and new apartments are beeing built.
A couple of restaurants and Tavernas as well as some Bars are all located at the
waterfront in the habour.
There are 2 travel agencies- one on the so called mainsquare . The only road
which is longer than 1 km ist the airport road. Coming in by plane a taxi will wait at
the airport.
What to do: Excursion boats sail for daily trips round the island and to Turkey.
You can go for hikes up to Paleokastro and to M. Ag. Stefano.