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Rhodes, Kos, Patmos and Corfu in September

Posted by (Massachusetts) on

I'm planning a trip for this coming September for Rhodes, Kos, Patmos and Corfu. Despite the fact that almost nobody on this forum seems to ask about those islands, I know they are popular, especially with 'package tours' from northern Europe. So I planned on September thinking they would be less crowded. But now I'm starting to worry I may be restricted by reduced schedules in terms of things like ferries and flights. For example I see that the last flight of the season from Paris to Rhodes on Easyjet is August 29. I can make that work and it looks like I can get between Kos and Italy the third week. I know ferry schedules for next year are not out yet.

So my question is - is it still 'high season' in terms of everything open, frequent ferries, etc.? What about crowds?

My plan is fly into Rhodes and base there about 6 nights, doing day trips to Symi and Chalki. Then move to Kos for a few days, then to Patmos for a couple days and back to Kos so I can fly to Corfu. I don't see any direct flights but I do see some on Agean with a stopover in Athens. Then about a week on Corfu. I was thinking of a day trip or an overnight side trip to Albania during that week. Does that plan sound doable? reasonable?

Posted by
11569 posts

We were on Rhodes and Kos in mid October.
Both were very open and there were many tourists. However it was not overcrowded, just right. We loved visiting the Asclepion up in the hills.

Posted by
2185 posts

Rather than traveling from Patmos to Kos to catch your flight to Corfu, check into the Athens>Corfu flights from Samos or Leros. Both are closer to Patmos than Kos is. We've flown into/out of both. They might provide a few more flight options, as well as the chance to see another island. Leros has a truly beautiful beach called Xerocampos. Samos is a large island with some beautiful towns along the coast as well as inland.

Also, I can recommend an unforgettable day trip from Rhodes to the tiny island of Kastellorizo. I'm not sure if the day trip boats are still running in September. If not, you may need to fly to/from Rhodes>Kastellorizo and spend a couple of days. But it would be worth it. Here's a lovely hotel, and there are other options of course.

Posted by
847 posts

Thanks for the replies

I have to say Samos and Leros were not really on my radar. Originally I was looking for flights to Italy and for that Kos was the only option but now that I've decided to go to Corfu via Athens it does open other possibilities. But I'm a little concerned about the stuff I'm reading about both of those islands - mostly about the refugee problem. If anyone has been to either of them in the past year I'd like to hear first hand if that would impact a tourist visit. I'm leaning more towards Leros. I'm not sure which town would be best to stay in or how many nights would be worth while.

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