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Greece · Dodecanese

Rhodes

Three hundred days of sun a year, a medieval walled city you can stay inside, and a whitewashed village under an acropolis. It's the sunniest of the big Greek islands — and the one where the coast you choose decides the week.

4h 20m direct · RHONo visa for UK passportsApr–Oct seasonGuide price from £389pp

The short version

East coast or west coast — it isn't a small difference

Rhodes runs north to south with a mountain spine down the middle, and the prevailing meltemi hits the western side. The west — Ixia, Ialyssos — is breezy with pebbly beaches, which is why it's the windsurfing coast. The east, from Faliraki down to Lindos and Kiotari, is sheltered and sandy. Both are sold as 'Rhodes' at the same price, and one of them is a very different holiday from the one most people are imagining.

Whitewashed buildings on a hillside above the sea

The one everyone photographs

Lindos, and why you might not want to stay in it

A white village stacked below a clifftop acropolis, and genuinely as good as the pictures. But no cars go in, the lanes are steep cobbled steps, and in August it's shoulder to shoulder by ten in the morning. Wonderful for two nights or a day trip; hard work for a fortnight with a pushchair or a dodgy knee. We usually put people in Pefkos or Kiotari nearby and send them into Lindos early.

People walking a narrow street in an old town

The north

You can sleep inside a medieval city

Rhodes Old Town is the largest inhabited medieval town in Europe, walled, cobbled and UNESCO-listed — and there are small hotels inside the walls. It's an entirely different holiday from a beach resort: no pool, no sea view, but you walk out of the door into the fourteenth century. Worth three nights on the front of a beach week, and fifteen minutes from the airport.

An aerial view of a lagoon below cliffs on Rhodes

Pick your stretch

North to south, and which coast

Listed from the airport southwards. Transfer times are from RHO, which sits at the northern tip — the south of the island is a good hour and a quarter away.

North · 15 min from RHO

Rhodes Town

The medieval old town, the harbour, and the two beach strips either side of it. The only base where you don't need a car or an excursion to have something to do in the evening.

Inside the walls: Small hotels in the old town. Atmosphere over facilities — no pools, no sea view, and the best evenings on the island.
Ixia & Ialyssos: West side. Big hotels, pebble beaches, and reliable wind — the windsurfing coast, and breezy if you just want a lounger.
Kallithea: East side, sheltered, and home to the restored 1920s Italian spa. Smart, small, and close to town.
Faliraki: Ten minutes further. Two halves again — a good long sandy family beach, and a separate strip that's the island's nightlife.

An aerial view of people swimming in clear sea

Middle · 30–50 min

The east coast

The sheltered side, and where most of the good sandy beaches are. Quieter the further south you go, and the resorts get further apart.

Afandou: A long sandy-pebble beach and a golf course, with very little built on it. Calm.
Tsambika: One of the best beaches on the island, below a clifftop monastery. Mostly day-trippers rather than hotels.
Stegna & Haraki: Small fishing-village bays. Low-key, family-run, and a car helps.
Anthony Quinn Bay: Not a resort — a small rocky cove near Faliraki with the clearest water on Rhodes. Go early.

An aerial view of a castle above the sea

South · 1h–1h 15m

Lindos & the south-east

The postcard end. Lindos itself, and the quieter resorts either side of it that most people actually stay in.

Lindos: The village and its two bays. Beautiful, steep, car-free and busy. Best as a short stay.
Pefkos: Ten minutes south. Low-rise, sandy coves, and the sensible base for seeing Lindos properly.
Kiotari & Lardos: Big beachfront all-inclusives on a long stretch of quiet coast. Little around them, which is the point.
Prasonisi: The southern tip, where two seas meet. Kitesurfers only, and an hour and a half from the airport.

Our speciality

Rhodes and Türkiye in one trip

The ferry from Rhodes to Marmaris or Fethiye takes about an hour, and almost nobody sells the two together. It turns a beach week into a two-country holiday, and the Turkish side costs noticeably less.

Rhodes4 nightsOld town and the east-coast beaches.
Ferry · 1h 30m
Fethiye5 nightsÖlüdeniz, the Twelve Islands boat trip, Turkish prices.
Ferry · 1h 30m
Rhodes1 nightBack for the flight home from RHO.

You'll need your passport for the crossing and there's a small port tax each way. We book the ferry with the holiday and check the current Turkish entry rules against your passports before you travel.

When to go

One of the sunniest places in Europe

Rhodes gets around 300 days of sunshine a year and a season that runs a little longer than the rest of Greece — some hotels stay open into early November. July and August are hot and busy; May, June, September and October are the value months.

JanClosed

FebClosed

MarQuiet

Apr20°

May24°

Jun29°

Jul33°

Aug33°

Sep29°

Oct25°

NovClosing

DecClosed

Sea temperature runs from 19°C in May to 25°C in September. The meltemi wind is strongest in July and August and hits the west coast hardest — another reason to book east in high summer.

Worth leaving the resort for

What we'd actually book

A white boat on blue sea below a rocky mountain

Symi

An hour by boat. A harbour of neoclassical mansions in ochre and cream, and the best day trip in the Dodecanese.

Lindos acropolis

The climb is steep and unshaded. Go at opening or an hour before closing, and skip the donkeys.

Butterfly Valley

Petaloudes. Thousands of Jersey tiger moths in a shaded gorge, June to September only. Quiet and cool.

Kallithea Springs

A restored Italian art-deco spa on the rocks. Swim off the terraces; it's better than it sounds.

Tsambika

Climb the 300 steps to the monastery for the view, then spend the afternoon on the beach below.

Prasonisi

Where the Aegean meets the Mediterranean across a sand spit. Kitesurfers on one side, calm on the other.

The west-coast drive

Kamiros, Kritinia castle and the wine villages of Embonas. A full day, and you'll barely see another hire car.

Anthony Quinn Bay

Rocky, small and startlingly clear. Named after the actor, who bought the land. Arrive before nine.

The practical bits

Things that catch people out

One airportRHO, at the northern tip. Fifteen minutes to Rhodes Town, an hour and a quarter to Kiotari.

Time zoneTwo hours ahead of the UK, all year.

CurrencyEuro. Cards widely accepted; village tavernas often cash only.

Which coastEast for sheltered and sandy, west for windy and pebbly. This matters more than the hotel.

Sea temperature19°C in May, 25°C by September. Warmest at the end of the season.

Car hireUseful for two or three days. The island is 80km long and the south is genuinely remote.

Sun bedsCharged on most organised beaches, around €10–15 a pair with an umbrella.

PassportsEU rules: three months' validity beyond your return, under ten years old on entry. We check both.

An aerial view of a castle overlooking the sea

Before you book

Five things worth knowing

Book the east coast unless you sail. Ixia and Ialyssos are windy most afternoons. Brilliant if you windsurf, wearing if you wanted a still beach day.

Faliraki is two resorts. A long, genuinely good family beach at one end and the island's party strip at the other. We'll make sure you get the one you meant.

Lindos is a visit, not a base. Unless you specifically want car-free cobbled steps for a fortnight. Pefkos next door gives you the same coast with parking.

The south is a long transfer. Kiotari and Lardos are lovely and an hour and a quarter from the airport. Worth knowing with small children.

The season stretches. Rhodes opens earlier and closes later than most Greek islands. Late October here still works when Crete is winding down.

Next step

Tell us your dates and we'll pick the coast

Send your dates, party and rough budget and we'll come back with the right side of the island, the right resort, and the payment plan written out in full.

Your money is protected. Trip Tides is a travel agent — we book your holiday with a travel company, and that company is named on your quote and confirmation. Your contract is with them. If your holiday is a package including flights, put together by an ATOL holder, you'll get an ATOL certificate naming that company. We confirm in writing what protection applies before you pay.

Rhodes packages

Flights, accommodation and transfers as one package. Every one can be reshaped — different dates, different board, a different airport, or a stopover on the way.

7 nights in Rhodes

All inclusive · May–Oct

Return flights and private transfers
All inclusive throughout
Financial protection confirmed in writing before you pay

from £459per person

Get a quote

10 nights in Rhodes

All inclusive · May–Oct

Return flights and private transfers
All inclusive throughout
The extra nights cost proportionally less — fixed costs don't change

from £589per person

Get a quote

14 nights in Rhodes

Half board · May–Oct

Return flights and private transfers
Half board throughout
Best value per night, and worth it on a longer flight

from £699per person

Get a quote

Guide prices, per person, based on two sharing, including return flights, accommodation and transfers. They indicate what a holiday of this type has typically cost and are not an offer or a quotation. Your price depends on dates, party, board basis, departure airport and availability, and is confirmed in writing before any payment is taken.