Inspiration for your own tailor-made trip

Island Hopping on the Dodecanese From the Palaces of Rhodes to the Beaches of Symi

Rhodes City - Symi - Lindos

Starting from between £1955 to £2695 per person for 9 days depending on the season of travel, advance booking time and the accommodation and activities chosen

Itinerary Highlights

  • Discover two sides of the Dodecanese Archipelago: the art and architecture of Rhodes and the beaches, villages and vineyards of Symi and Lindos
  • Explore the medieval centre of Rhodes City with a private guide
  • Take water taxis between blissful beaches on Symi to swim, snorkel and relax on the sand
  • Round off the holiday with a guided sunset hike on Mount Profitis Ilias
This nine-day trip to the beautiful Dodecanese Archipelago in the southeastern Aegean Sea is a holiday of two equally lovely halves. It immerses you first in the rich history and grand architecture of Rhodes City, followed by the charming coastal culture of the tiny island of Symi.

Your journey starts in the medieval citadel of Rhodes, discovering historic sites like the ramparts and the Street of the Knights with a private guide, who will also highlight the city’s rich tapestry of Byzantine and Ottoman influences.

Next, set sail and swap the city for a small seaside village on nearby Symi for a few days of R&R. Here, the only thing you need to decide is which beach to visit next, as you hop between pretty bays in a water taxi.

Your holiday ends back on Rhodes, in the pretty town of Lindos, ready for more beach-hopping down the coast, wine tastings in local vineyards and a guided sunset hike through the majestic landscapes of Mount Profitis Ilias.
Symi - Dodecanese - Greece © Vincent Leroux
Symi - Dodecanese - Greece © Vincent Leroux
Symi - Dodecanese - Greece © Pauline Chardin
Symi - Dodecanese - Greece © Pauline Chardin
Lindos - Rhodes - Greece © anathomy/stock.adobe.com
Lindos - Rhodes - Greece © anathomy/stock.adobe.com
Greece © Jana Janina/stock.adobe.com
Greece © Jana Janina/stock.adobe.com
Greece © Eirini Vourloumis/The New York Times-REDUX-REA
Greece © Eirini Vourloumis/The New York Times-REDUX-REA
Dodecanese - Greece © Vincent Leroux
Dodecanese - Greece © Vincent Leroux
Symi - Dodecanese - Greece © Vincent Leroux
Symi - Dodecanese - Greece © Vincent Leroux
Greece © Fiona Torre
Greece © Fiona Torre
Lindos - Rhodes - Greece © gurgenb/stock.adobe.com
Lindos - Rhodes - Greece © gurgenb/stock.adobe.com
Lindos - Rhodes - Greece © Nastya Tepikina/stock.adobe.com
Lindos - Rhodes - Greece © Nastya Tepikina/stock.adobe.com
Greece © Fiona Torre
Greece © Fiona Torre
Lindos - Rhodes - Greece © Remzi/stock.adobe.com
Lindos - Rhodes - Greece © Remzi/stock.adobe.com
Symi - Dodecanese - Greece © Ivan Ushakovsky/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Symi - Dodecanese - Greece © Ivan Ushakovsky/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Rhodes - Greece © Pauline Chardin
Rhodes - Greece © Pauline Chardin

Itinerary

100% customisable for you

Your holiday begins today, so enjoy a relaxing start to your trip with snacks and refreshments in the airport lounge before boarding your four-hour flight to the island of Rhodes.

On arrival, meet your driver for a private transfer to your hotel in the historic heart of Rhodes City. Then spend the rest of the day settling in and getting a feel for your surroundings. Relax and enjoy dinner at the hotel, or, if you’re itching to scope out the city, we can recommend plenty of great dining options on your doorstep.

Today is all about discovering the medieval city of Rhodes. When the Knights of Saint John of Jerusalem conquered Rhodes early in the 14th century, they wanted to stay indefinitely. So, they set about building a simple, elegant and (most importantly) impregnable city. However, Rhodes City didn’t prove to be as impregnable as they had hoped; in 1522 Suleiman the Magnificent of the Ottoman Empire succeeded in taking siege of the city. Accompanied by your private guide, see some of the UNESCO-listed citadel’s most important sites: the ramparts, the Palace of the Grand Masters and the Street of the Knights, which is lined with the ‘inns of tongues’ (once home to knights of varying nationalities). While exploring, snap a photo of the Diagoras monument, which celebrates the feats of an Ancient Greek boxer from the fifth century BC. And don’t forget to sample some local fare to fuel your sightseeing…

This morning, your private transfer will take you to the port of Rhodes, where you’ll hop on a boat across the azure waters of the Dodecanese Archipelago to the idyllic island of Symi. Your home for the next two nights is one of the town’s charming hotels, many of which offer scenic sea views. The rest of the day is yours to enjoy as you like. We recommend savouring a long, lazy evening at the hotel to ensure you have plenty of energy for tomorrow’s adventures.

After a tasty breakfast, it’s time to discover the beauty of Symi. Spend the morning exploring the charming town, with its grand pastel-toned houses facing the sea and traditional fishing boats bobbing in the harbour.

After lunch it’s time to hit the beach and take a dip in the transparent turquoise ocean. You’re spoilt for choice around here when it comes to blissful beaches, so we recommend making use of the small water taxis to jet around the coast. If you like, we can also arrange for you to continue your sightseeing at sea with an optional trip aboard a caique – a traditional fishing boat.

Return to Rhodes today to embark on a journey to the beautiful town of Lindos. Enjoy the peaceful boat ride across the Dodecanese Archipelago before collecting your hire car. The drive to your next hotel should take around an hour, but don’t be surprised if the classic Greek landscapes tempt you into making a few photo stops along the way.

After a warm welcome at your hotel, where you’ll be staying for the next four nights, spend the rest of today relaxing and recharging from your travels. As afternoon turns to evening, tuck into a meal of gorgeous Greek cuisine.

Spend the next two days exploring Lindos and its beautiful surroundings. While it’s tempting to while away the hours on the idyllic Mediterranean beaches, instead make use of your hire car to discover every nook and cranny of this idyllic island corner.

Start the day in Lindos itself, a typically Greek, white-washed village set on a peninsula, alongside an ancient acropolis and a lovely ringed bay, Agios Pavlos.

Further south, the pretty villages of Asklipio and Lachania await. Scenery seekers – head west for pristine landscapes of vineyards, orchards, vegetable gardens, Aleppo pines, Italian cypresses and date palms. Or visit the shady valley that’s home to the beautiful Jersey Tiger moth. Ready for a good glass of wine? Make your way to the village of Embonas to sample varieties from nearby vineyards. There are also ample opportunities for wine tasting along the way, giving you a hint of local flavour.

Spend a leisurely morning and lunchtime savouring the island’s climate and cuisine, before later driving an hour inland for a sunset hike up Profitis Ilias. The mountain is the island’s third highest, and today you can walk its slopes, shaded by holly, pine and olive trees, to reach the village of Salakos. And if you happen across some surprisingly Alpine architecture, you’ve found ‘Elafos’ (the deer) and ‘Elafina' (the hind); twin hotels built by Italian settlers in 1929 and 1932. The Villa de Vecci (home of the island’s former Italian governor) and the Byzantine church can also be spotted along the way. As you climb, watch the sun sink over the Aegean Sea, the Turkish coastline and the neighbouring islands – a glorious, golden end to a special trip.

There’s also the option to make your last full day even more memorable with a sea kayaking tour, discovering pristine, pocket-sized coves with a local guide.

Sadly, the time has come to head back home, so make sure to soak up the last of the gorgeous Greek scenery on your one-hour drive back to the airport. Drop off your hire car and then settle in for a pleasant four-hour flight back to the UK – plenty of time to get planning that next holiday…

Suggestions

Everything in this itinerary is entirely customisable, down to the smallest details. Here are some more suggestions of what could be included


SYMI BY BOAT



Shipyards and sponge fishing made Symi a prosperous island until the beginning of the 20th century and many of its grander houses still show signs of this prosperity. One of the best ways to admire the island and its ornate architecture is on board a traditional fishing boat, known as a caique. Found in the eastern Mediterranean, the rigging, style and size of these caiques have all changed over time, but they are still elegant, slender and steerable boats that are a pleasure to sail. Head out with a skipper for an adventure around the island’s picturesque coastline.



SEA KAYAKING AROUND RHODES



Kayaking is the best way to discover the wild coves, hidden bays and crystal-clear waters that surround the island of Rhodes. After some quick tips and tuition from your instructor, paddle from Kathara Beach to a number of tiny coves spread across the island’s coastline. Breaks for swimming and snorkelling, as well as a picnic lunch on the beach, are also on the agenda.

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Estimated Price

Dependent on the season of travel, advance booking time and the accommodation and activities chosen

The prices shown here are merely a guide, as all of our trips are entirely tailor-made. Tailor-made travel involves multiple moving parts, and prices can vary hugely depending on the season of travel, the lead time before the proposed travel date (last minute deals are pretty much a myth), availability, your choice of accommodation and any additional activities you want to include. That means the only exact price will be the one we quote you, which we can adapt to suit your budget. The estimated starting cost for this trip is between £1,955 and £2,695 per person. The average starting price for this trip is £2,345 per person.

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