Recommendations for three days on Rhodes

I love Rhodes, and we have been at that same time of year! It will definitely be warm enough for swimming. There’s a great bus network on the island so depending on where you want to go you may not even need a car. Beaches we really liked were Faliraki (the closest big beach to the main town), Lindos, and Tsambika Bay. I would definitely devote one full day to the old town. One of my favourite places there was Mevlana Cafe- open since the 1300s! The island’s quite big so not sure how long it would take to circumnavigate- you may want to just concentrate on a few places. Good luck with your planning!

Go to Lindos and see the temple of Athena. The ride to the temple is beautiful. Several tour operators offer tours.

The beaches along the way were beautiful.

As regular visitors to the Greek islands, we spent a few days in Rhodes last May, though it was mostly just to catch ferries to other islands in the Dodecanese. We stayed in an Airbnb in the traditional village of Koskinou, about a 20-minute drive from the Old Town.

As you might expect, the Old Town is overrun with tourists, so we only stayed a few hours. Aside from its historical appeal, it's just a continuous strip of trinket shops and tourist/cruise-ship trap restaurants. We also went to Lindos, of which the same can be said.

A funny memory, at the archaeological site of Lindos I remember photographing a rock whose shapes formed by the shadows were interesting (though surely of no interest to anyone else). Other tourists noticed what I was doing and came over to take photos of the exact same thing! I wonder if this stone will become famous on Instagram thanks to me.:-)

We mostly focused on the opposite coast, which is much quieter. I suggest dedicating a full day to exploring that side of the island.

Keep in mind that the island of Rhodes has two other major Dorian cities besides Lindos: Lalyssos and Kameiros. While Lindos is crowded, probably for logistical reasons and easy access, ancient Kameiros is just as spectacular and free of tourist crowds.

https://www.rhodesguide.com/travelguide/rhodes_monuments.php?ssp=9

But starting from Rhodes Town, you can begin with the Ancient Lalyssos, which have mostly disappeared over time. They are located in the Filerimos Monastery. You can visit the monastery, it's quiet and well-shaded, there is an amazing view of Rhodes Town, and the gardens are full of free-roaming peacocks.

https://manosgoing.com/filerimos-ancient-ialyssos/

Heading further south down the coast, you can stop at the ruined castle of Kritinia, built by the Knights of Saint John (great views of the Aegean Sea).

https://www.kastra.eu/castleen.php?kastro=kritinia

And a bit further south, the village of Monolithos and its castle.

https://www.kastra.eu/castleen.php?kastro=monolith

If you're a wine lover, located slightly inland between the last two spots is the village of Embonas. It's a charming village and the epicenter of the island's wine production. There are plenty of places for tastings. Tasting isn't drinking, but watch out if you're driving!

From there, you can cross the island to reach the south coast (on the Lindos side). Right at the southern tip, there are several quiet villages and beaches like Gennadi, Kiotari, etc.

An extraordinary spot close to Rhodes Town is the "Cultural and Geological Palace of Rhodes". It's a private house/museum run by an incredible guy (Spyros Katsouris) who holds multiple degrees: geologist, writer, poet, photographer, and historian. A true well of culture! The facade of his house is actually a replica of the Parthenon. He will welcome you inside and give you a tour for free. We arrived a little early, he was in his bathrobe eating breakfast, and we had to wait in his living room. The world needs many more people like Spyros. Definitely not to be missed.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/WPL5epVgUKscViEX9

Koskinou, the village where we stayed is also worth a visit with its narrow pedestrian streets, traditional houses featuring colorful gates, and plenty of small tavernas.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/nsgiEMqSXhJUQszr9

I think with all of that, you can easily fill two days!

Our (very personal) trip report on Rhodes:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/S3rV4c91a97jMsEe9

We rented our car from Rodos Cars, they have an office at the airport. The rates were reasonable, and the car was perfect.

https://www.rodoscars.gr

Lots of good recommendations in the previous post. I'd like to add the monasteries of Kalopetra and Moni Thari, and the lovely village of Siana. There's a lot to choose from in only 3 days!

We spent a week staying in the centre of the old town in Rhodes and our experience was quite different to the one described above. Plenty of very nice places to eat that are not “tourist traps,” lots of nice little shops, etc. There’s also a lot of history, historical sites, etc. We were mostly out at the beach during the day and walking around the old town in the evenings so perhaps it’s less crowded then (also could be because we visited in mid September).

This is awesome, and very helpful. Thank you to all who have responded. I'm gonna need a day or two to process all this and sift through the details, but my first take-aways are:

1. There's more than enough around the island to justify hiring a car for more than one day. We're certainly going to spend our first full day in Rhodes town (our arrival afternoon on "day zero", all of day one, and all three evenings, too). But for our 2nd and 3rd full days there, I already see more than enough outside the city to fill two days, so I'll rent the car for days 2 and 3, maybe we make one of those days an all-day excursion, and maybe the other a partial day. But there's clearly more than enough out there to keep us entertained.

   1. Sounds like there's good stuff to see and do all around the island. Maybe we do one day along the east coast, another day along the west coast.

It appears the driving is on faster/better roads along the east side, with the west coast roads being smaller, more twisty and probably slower going (maybe more dramatic views). Looks like I need to get a good map (Michelin etc.). I'll head to Metzger's (a favorite local map store) this week.

Many thanks again!

The roads on the east side (toward Lindos) are like highways, sometimes with three lanes in each direction. The 10 kms or so leaving Rhodes Town, with its commercial areas, gas stations, and other businesses, look more like any ugly European big-city suburb than a Greek island.

The other side of the island has very good roads that are often quite scenic.

It's the small inland roads crossing the mountains that might require a bit more attention, but there's nothing exceptionally difficult, and it's a great chance to pass through some cool spots if you enjoy a rural, mid-mountain vibe.

A good map is a smart choice. Michelin is great. There are also some good ones available from German publishers.

Keep in mind that driving "faster/better" goes against the Greek principle of siga-siga (taking it easy) and, above all, adds nothing of value to the trip (other than burning more fuel). :-)

https://realgreeks.net/culture/siga-siga/