Greece · Eastern Aegean
Yacht Charter Dodecanese
Twelve islands along the Turkish coast that joined Greece only in 1947, and still show it.
The Dodecanese run down the eastern edge of the Aegean within sight of Turkey, and they came to Greece last of all — Ottoman until 1912, Italian until 1943, under British administration after that, and formally Greek only in 1947. Three centuries of being governed from somewhere else left them with buildings, food and habits that belong to no other part of the country.
What Italy left
The Italian administration rebuilt Kos after the 1933 earthquake and laid out whole quarters of Rhodes and Leros to plans by Florestano Di Fausto and Rodolfo Petracco. Lakki on Leros is a complete rationalist town — a market, a cinema, a hospital, wide streets and curved white facades, built for a naval base and now simply lived in.
The Italians also excavated. Much of what is visible at the Asklepieion on Kos and in the medieval town of Rhodes was cleared and rebuilt in the 1920s and 1930s, which is why those sites read so completely and why some of what you see is reconstruction.
The islands
Rhodes has the largest inhabited medieval town in Europe; Symi an amphitheatre of neoclassical houses built on sponge money; Kos the sanctuary where Hippocrates taught; Astypalea a Chora on a ridge under a Venetian castle. Patmos has the cave where John is said to have received the Revelation, with the monastery of St John above it.
Kalymnos was the sponge-diving capital of the Aegean and its divers went as far as Florida; today the limestone above the harbour carries several thousand climbing routes and the island lives on that instead. Nisyros is an active volcano you can walk down into, with the crater floor still hot underfoot.
Sailing the chain
The chain runs roughly a hundred and eighty miles north to south, so a week takes a section rather than the whole. Rhodes to Symi to Tilos to Nisyros to Kos is the classic run, and Patmos, Leros and Kalymnos make the northern half.
The meltemi blows hardest in July and August and funnels between the islands and the Turkish coast; the passages are chosen by the day. Shelter is good and the distances between islands are mostly short.
Practical notes
- Ottoman until 1912, Italian until 1943, and formally Greek only in 1947
- Lakki on Leros is a complete rationalist town built by the Italians for a naval base
- Rhodes has the largest inhabited medieval town in Europe; Kos has the Asklepieion
- Nisyros is an active volcano whose crater floor can be walked on, and is still hot
- The chain runs about a hundred and eighty miles, so a week takes a section rather than all of it
Reached from: Rhodes, Kos and the eastern Aegean
Where to dine
A table by the water
Mavrikos
Lindos, RhodesOn the square under the acropolis, and the most serious kitchen in the islands since 1933.
Manos
Gialos, SymiOn the harbour quay, doing the small Symi shrimp that are eaten whole and found nowhere else.
Barba Yannis
AstypaleaIn the Chora under the castle, cooking goat and the island's own cheese and little else.
What to do
Anchorages & excursions
Lakki
A complete rationalist town on Leros, built by the Italians for a naval base and now simply lived in.
Nisyros
An active volcano whose crater floor can be walked on, and is still hot underfoot.
The Cave of the Apocalypse
On Patmos, where John is said to have received the Revelation, with the monastery of St John above.
Kalymnos
The old sponge-diving capital, now carrying several thousand climbing routes on the limestone above its harbour.
The fleet
Yachts available for Dodecanese
Vessels that operate here, from flagship motor yachts to smaller crewed boats. Every rate is quoted on enquiry.
Good to know
Questions we are asked about the Dodecanese
- Why do the Dodecanese look different from the rest of Greece?
- They joined Greece only in 1947. Ottoman rule to 1912 and Italian rule to 1943 left buildings, town plans and food that exist nowhere else in the country — Lakki on Leros is a complete rationalist town.
- Which islands make a week?
- Rhodes, Symi, Tilos, Nisyros and Kos make the southern run; Patmos, Leros and Kalymnos the northern. The chain is about a hundred and eighty miles, so a week takes half of it.
- What does a yacht charter in the Dodecanese cost?
- It depends on the yacht, the season and the crew, so we quote on enquiry rather than publish a figure that would be wrong for most weeks.
Destinations
Nearby destinations
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Tell us your dates and how many of you there are, and we will come back with the right yacht and a full quotation.