What to do on Rhodes – Relax on this beautiful Greek island

Apart from relaxing at the beach and feasting on Greek food, you should spend time in Rhodes’ old and new town. Of course, you also need to visit one of the stunning nature sites. Read this post to find out what to do on Rhodes.

Rhodes town

Rhodes old town doesn’t have the typical white buildings that you find in Lindos or on other islands in Greece. However, there is a pretty fort with a garden that you can explore. The cobblestone streets and brick houses make you feel as if you have landed in ancient times. Take at least half a day to discover different streets, ruins, walk on the fortress wall next to the sea, and have a bite to eat in one of the cafés.

When you are done with the historic part, cross over into the new town and go shopping in stores like Zara, Stradivarius, or Sephora.

Accommodation in Rhodes town

Before my early ferry to Crete, I stayed at Hermes Hotel in Rhodes town for one night. It is centrally located and a good place to stay if you want to visit the town for a day or have that early ferry to catch. They even made me takeaway breakfast.

Go out in Rhodes town

In case you are looking for a place to dance, there is Salsa at Todo Bien Bar in the old town every Thursday evening.

And now, let’s have a look at more things to do on Rhodes:

Seven Springs

This is a cool place in the forest with streams of clear water. There even is a waterfall that goes over a small dam. To get to the waterfall, you either hike over the hill from Seven Springs Restaurant or walk through the water tunnel. The tunnel is 200m long and cuts through the mountain. Be aware that you need your own flashlight. You will walk on loose gravel in the knee or thigh-high water. Therefore, water shoes and bikini bottoms are an advantage.

I was a bit too tall for the tunnel which is about 170 cm high and 70 cm wide. Therefore, it wasn’t so comfortable but nevertheless a cool adventure.

At the end of the tunnel, go left and you will see the pretty water dam. From there, you should turn around and hike back to the restaurant across the hill (6 minutes) because it is too dangerous to follow the path along the water back to the bus road.

How to get there

From Rhodes Town (also stops at Faliraki at 10.50 a.m./2.20 EUR) there is only one bus per day. It takes 45 minutes. From the bus stop, you follow the forest path on the right, up the mountain, and in 10 minutes you reach Seven Springs Restaurant. It’s all indicated on maps.me.

The return bus is at 2 p.m. However, if you don’t eat anything at the restaurant, you will be done by 12.30 at the latest. Hence, you have more freedom if you go there by car or scooter. I simply walked back to the bus stop ahead of time, where I was lucky to be able to catch a ride with a local back to the main road (3 km). There are hourly buses along the coast in either direction. This way, I could hop on the bus to Lindos instead of having to wait until the daily bus brought me out of the gorge.

If you miss the bus in the morning or want to go earlier, you could also take any bus between Rhodes and Lindos that stops at Kolymbia (Benetton Outlets). From there, you walk the 3 km into the gorge.

My bus to Lindos, unfortunately, was 40 minutes late and I had to wait in the sun anyways. From there, it cost 3 EUR and took 40 minutes to get to Lindos.

Lindos

This is a cute small-town on a hill with only white buildings. If you haven’t been to Santorini or Paros, you should definitely wander the streets of Lindos. However, I found the villages on the other two islands more picturesque. Yet, the view across the bay with different hues of blue is definitely pretty.

The entrance fee to the castle at the top is 12 EUR and you will also find a small Acropolis.

The bus back to Faliraki cost 4.40 EUR and took 1h 20mins.

Butterfly Valley

From June to September the Valley of the Butterflies is populated by thousands of butterflies. The entrance to the valley in the forest is 5 EUR for adults and free for children. It is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day. There are two daily buses from Rhodes Town to Petaloudes Butterfly Valley. The journey takes 50 minutes and costs 3.40 EUR. Bus times for Rhodes you find on this website: www.rhodestravelguide.gr/buses/

Check out my Greece travel guide

If you would like to find out more tips for Rhodes and Greece, check out my “I love Greece” travel guide on Amazon. You can buy it in English or in German.