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The Sights of Rhodes

The Old Town. This is where the heart of the island beats. This elegant work of art tells the story of Rhodes, which begins 2 500 years ago. A labyrinth of narrow lanes built in stone, medieval buildings and churches of the 15th and 16th centuries, which are “intersected” by the minarets – a reminder of the Ottoman presence on the island – the Old Town is today inhabited by 6 000 people. The medieval town of Rhodes began to take shape in the 7th century AD, on top of the ruins of the Hellenistic settlement – as can be seen by the ancient sculptures that make a regular appearance. Despite this, the prevailing image is that of the grand Street of the Knights, which has been restored in the form it had in medieval times and which is lined with the inns of the different national groups (tongues) that formed the Order of the Knights of St John. At the top of the Street stands the Castle or Palace of the Grand Master, an Early Byzantine fortress that today houses a museum. Its gate, with the heavy wooden doors and the large towers guarding it, is the image on one of the town’s most famous postcards.

With the arrival on the island of the Knights of St John at some time in the early 13th century, the fortress works and walls were expanded to a length of 4 kilometers, with the addition of countless towers and ramparts. Archaeologists believe that the sanctuary of the god Helios lies beneath the foundations of the Castle, while some argue that this is where the famous Colossus of Rhodes was located.

The museums. A place with such a long history tells the story of its past through its museums. Starting in the Old Town, the Archaeological Museum of Rhodes is housed in a medieval building by the port, which was used as a hospital for the Knights.

The Castle Museum contains exhibits of wall paintings, furniture, sculptures, and mosaic floors from the Hellenistic period. The Modern Greek Art Museum of Rhodes is housed in an elegant neoclassical building in the Old Town and hosts a collection of over 1 000 works by Yiannis Tsarouchis, Nikos Engonopoulos, Dimitris Mytaras, and others. On the east side of the Street of the Knights stands the church of the Panagia of the Castle, which houses the Byzantine Museum of Rhodes town.
Outside of the Old Town, in the village of Emponas, you can find the Ioannis Konstantakakis Folklore Museum, with a collection that includes icon screens, vessels for everyday use, local traditional costumes, manuscripts and more.

Start at Mandraki, the modern town of Rhodes. Perched atop two limestone columns in the port are the deer and the doe, symbols of the island. It is said that the spot where they now stand is where the Colossus of Rhodes stood, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world that depicted the god Apollo.

Along the coastal road you will be able to see all the public buildings that the island inherited from the Italian Occupation of the Dodecanese: the New Market, Bank of Greece, Government House, the Archbishop’s Residence, City Hall, National Theatre and the famous Grande Albergo Delle Rose hotel, one of the most luxurious in Europe in the interwar period. Mandraki is bustling with commercial activity, large hotels, cafés, restaurants and clubs. In amongst all these, some traditional houses stand out.

The hill of Monte Smith pokes out above Rhodes town. This is where the Acropolis of ancient Rhodes was to be found. If you climb up Monte Smith then you will come to an archaeological park: the Stadium of Diagoras, a Hellenistic structure dating to the 3rd or 2nd century BC, where the athletic games of Alioi were held, the great festival of ancient Rhodes in honour of the god Helios. You will also encounter a small marble open-air theatre where musical performances are held today and, of course, the remains of the Acropolis. Ascend the hill in the afternoon for a wonderful view of the sunset.

To the south of the town, Rodini is one of the most ancient parks in Greece. It is believed to have been founded at the same time as the ancient city, and here the visitor can admire, inside the wonderful park with the domesticated animals, the cemetery with the rock-hewn graves, the places of worship of the Sacred Nymphs and the aqueduct.

Lindos. The ancient city of Lindos is one of the most popular ancient places of pilgrimage. Surrounded by the walls of the Knights, it stands 120 metres above sea level. Its symbol is the impressive Doric temple of Athena Lindia, built in the 4th century BC. The village of Lindos spreads out over the hill and is the most popular on the island. The captains’ houses, their gardens decorated with mosaics and pebbles, are emblematic.

The villages. The lion’s share of attention goes always to Rhodes town, but the rest of the island has many quiet places to escape to in areas where there is less tourism. On the west coast of the island is Monolithos, a village built in the shape of an amphitheatre, with dense vegetation and a view over the infinite blue sea. It is crowned by a medieval castle.

Fairly close to Monolithos, on the slopes of the tallest mountain in Rhodes, Mt Attavyros, Emponas is definitely worth visiting. It is the vineyard capital of the island, boasting numerous wineries. You should also take a stop at Agios Isidoros, a village with very few inhabitants but that nonetheless stays faithful to tradition. Near Lindos is the village of Lardos, with its Byzantine castle.

The dense vegetation of cedar and fir trees is enough to warrant a visit to Profitis Ilias, where the Villa De Vecchi, Mussolini’s retreat on Rhodes, still stands, as do two chalets that the Italians built during the Second World War for their officers to rest. If you come this way, then you must not overlook Agia Eleousa, with its, albeit abandoned, architectural wealth from the years of Italian rule.
The Italians also built Kolympia, a village in the east of the island intended as a model farming village. The largest village on Rhodes, with 7 000 inhabitants, is Archangelos, founded by Cypriots who continue to speak in a local dialect. The only miniature horses of Archangelos in the world live in this village, which has been inhabited since the Mycenaean period. In the southeast, be sure to visit the green Vati, surrounded by a pine forest and age-old olive groves.

At the foothills of Mt Kopanas is the traditional village of Lachania, with a panoramic view.

The beaches of Rhodes

Super family-friendly beaches with all necessary amenities or ideal for the solo traveller, the beaches of Rhodes flow into a wonderful sea, blessed by the clean waters of the Aegean. The busiest beaches, where many activities are available, are those on the east and north coasts of the island, including Angathi, Tsampika and Faliraki.

An exception to this arc of beaches is Afantou, which may have organised services but the setting with pebbles and deep waters is well worth making the effort to visit. The neighbouring protected Anthony Quinn Bay took its name from the American actor, who used to own it.

The closer we get to the outskirts of Lindos, the more the bustle dies down. Try Lindos beach, Vlycha, the wonderful bay of Agios Pavlos with its blue waters (perhaps the best swimming experience on the whole island), as well as Lardos beach. You can also find a lovely sea yet with only a few people at Gennadi, while Kiotari, located just before it, will win you over with its large pebble beach, despite the tourism development. At the island’s most southerly edge lies the impressive Prasonisi, a favourite spot for surfers, as well as Traganou, with its green waters and mysterious caves. The small bays around the little church of Agios Georgios are relatively untouched by tourism.

Excursions on Rhodes

Apart from the days you will spend on the beaches of Rhodes, the island also has a rich and diverse natural environment. Starting in the north of the island, you will come to Philerimos, one of the main tourist resorts on Rhodes. It is built on a hill within a verdant route, where the fascinating traces of the ancient, Byzantine and medieval past can be found scattered around.

The most famous landscape of natural beauty on Rhodes is in the northeast of the island, the Valley of the Butterflies (Petaloudes Valley). One of the rarest habitats in Europe, it is an idyllic landscape of plane, myrtle and strawberry trees, an ideal spot for butterflies to reproduce.

For nature lovers, and not only, a trip to the natural landscape of the Epta Piges, 30 km from Rhodes town, is a must. The name of this spot comes from the seven natural springs from which fresh water gushes, which is now channelled through a narrow pipe thanks to an Italian irrigation project in the 1920s.

The Kallithea spa, the famous medicinal baths of the interwar period, is in a space of monumental architecture of great interest. Following restoration works, the once cosmopolitan atmosphere of the baths is again being revived. Pebble mosaics, arches, atriums and the rotunda with its impressive dome are still here to remind us of the thousands of visitors who gathered here from all over the Mediterranean, so as to benefit from the therapeutic properties of the waters.

Food and entertainment in Rhodes

The olive, wheat and wine form the basis of Rhodian cuisine, while pulses and cheeses are also high up on the list. Given these ingredients, it is no surprise that pasta has a central place on the Rhodian dinner table, in various forms (trahanas, hilopites, makarounes), as well as bulgur wheat, which is tasty and nutritious.

As for starters, if you find the following on the menu you should definitely try them: pitaroudia (fritters); glistrides giachni (greens stew); karavoloi (snails in red sauce, with plenty of cumin); goat cooked in a clay pot; entrades (meat and vegetable stew); chicken and bulgur wheat or a variation known as lakani (which uses goat meat in place of chicken); and goat with pulses (chickpeas or beans).

Dolmades are prepared in a special way in Rhodes, as here they wrap them in cyclamen leaves. The Rhodian housewives also use cyclamen to make spoon sweets with a recipe that is unknown in the rest of Greece.

Of the desserts, mantinades look like pancakes drizzled in honey and flower water, while moschopoungia are a strange almond sweet (with a filling of spices, almonds and other nuts and rusk bread).

Rhodes at night is a chapter all on its own. From sophisticated bars to clubs where you can dance until the morning hours, the nightlife of Rhodes differs as much as its days do. Faliraki is famous for more intense clubbing – and not always in a good way – as is Ialysos. The Old Town has plenty of bars to satisfy all tastes along the beach, while if you are looking for something a little quieter, then the solution is in Lindos.

Shopping in Rhodes

As you leave Rhodes, the local products that you can purchase are mainly items from the island’s patisserie tradition (diples, xerotigana, melekounia) and, without a doubt, the popular sparkling wine that is produced on the island.

If you would like to buy something more than a typical souvenir, the Old and New Towns of Rhodes are the places to go. The Rhodians have a long tradition in making jewellery, ceramics, rugs and embroideries. You can find exquisite examples of folk art in the narrow yet atmospheric lanes around the Street of the Knights.

Rhodes can meet the needs of even the most demanding shoppers, with its dozens of elegant boutiques selling major luxury fashion brands as well as jewellery shops.

From the airport to Rhodes town

Rhodes International Airport “Diagoras” is 4 km from Rhodes town. There are regular bus connections, which depart from the bus stop between the old and new airport buildings. Taxis to and from Rhodes Airport are available 24 hours a day. The journey time is no more than 30 minutes and the fare amounts to approximately 25 euros.