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Rhodes Town

Discover Rhodes Town

Why Book Your Rhodes Town Holiday with GotoBeach?

Rhodes Town is where the whole island began, and it still steals the show. Wrapped inside three miles of medieval walls sits the UNESCO-listed Old Town — a living warren of cobbled lanes, the cathedral-like Palace of the Grand Master, the arrow-straight Street of the Knights and a moat you can walk right around. Around it spreads the elegant modern town, with the palm-lined Mandraki harbour where the Colossus once stood, a clutch of city beaches and some of the best dining on the island. Fly into Rhodes Airport (RHO / Diagoras) on the north-west coast and you're in town in around 15 minutes, so you can drop your bags and be strolling the walls before the afternoon light fades. Book Rhodes Town when you want history, atmosphere and sand all within walking distance.

Every Rhodes Town package we sell carries full ATOL financial protection under licence #11211, and your ATOL Certificate arrives the moment you book — you can read how your ATOL financial protection works before you part with a penny. The hotel on this page has been hand-picked and inspected in person against our 22-point criteria, not chosen from a brochure, so you are booking a property someone from our team has genuinely walked through.

"Rhodes Town is my answer for anyone who thinks they'll get bored on a beach holiday," says Eleni Trachalakis, our Greece Operations Manager, who spent years as a Thomas Cook rep looking after British guests across the Dodecanese before joining GoToBeach. "You can swim off Elli beach in the morning, wander a genuine medieval city in the afternoon and have dinner in a courtyard taverna older than most countries. It never runs dry." Eleni re-checks the Rhodes Town hotels each season, walking the routes to the beach and the Old Town gates herself, so the property on this page is one she would happily book for her own family.

 

Photos of Rhodes Town

Hand Picked Deals

Top Hotels in Rhodes Town

Acandia Hotel
Acandia Hotel

Rhodes Town / Greece

Bed&Breakfast

£ 1146.47

Canvas by Mitsis Petit Palais
Canvas by Mitsis Petit Palais

Rhodes Town / Greece

Bed&Breakfast

£ 1021.71

Africa Hotel
Africa Hotel

Rhodes Town / Greece

Bed&Breakfast

£ 699.85

See more

Discover Rhodes Town

Top hotels in Rhodes Town

Inspected in person · 22-point criteria

Rhodes Town is a city rather than a resort strip, so our programme here is small and carefully chosen — one standout property that puts you within reach of the Old Town, the harbour and the beach, rather than a long list padded out for its own sake.

Rhodes Town, Rhodes

Canvas by Mitsis Petit Palais

City & Beach
★★★★

A polished, contemporary Mitsis property in the heart of the modern town, a short stroll from Elli beach, Mandraki harbour and the medieval walls. Bright rooms, a rooftop pool with town-and-sea views and generous board options make it an easy base for a holiday that mixes swimming, sightseeing and long evenings out. Ideal for couples and culture-minded families who want the city on the doorstep.

🏖 Short walk to Elli beach · Old Town nearby

View Canvas by Mitsis Petit Palais

One property is the honest answer for a base this central. If you'd like more hotels to choose between — and many of our guests do — the bigger line-ups sit just along the coast: browse the upscale spa hotels at the smart bay of Ixia a few minutes south-west, or the family beach resorts at lively Faliraki down the east coast. You can also see the full island line-up on our Rhodes holidays overview, and for the polished, all-in style many town visitors pair with a night or two of sightseeing, our top hotels in Greece is a natural next step.

Discover Rhodes Town

What makes Rhodes Town special is that it is two towns in one. The Old Town is a complete walled medieval city built by the Knights of St John, one of the best-preserved in Europe and still fully lived-in — you shop, eat and get pleasantly lost among honey-coloured stone, Ottoman fountains and Byzantine churches. Step through a gate and you're in the New Town, all belle-époque waterfront, designer shops and the graceful Mandraki harbour, guarded by its bronze deer where the legendary Colossus is said to have stood. Between them lies more genuine history than most people cover in a fortnight.

It suits a particular kind of traveller especially well: couples who want atmosphere, dinners and evening strolls over nightlife, and families curious enough to enjoy a castle, a moat and a beach in the same day. And you're never trapped in the city — the whole island opens up from here, with Lindos, the Valley of the Butterflies and the beaches of the east coast all within an easy drive. If you're weighing up where to base yourself first, our guide to Rhodes resorts sets the town in context, and Eleni's Rhodes holiday guide goes deeper on the coasts and villages.

Rhodes Town beach & seafront

The town's main beach is Elli, a broad, popular stretch of sand and fine shingle on the north-eastern tip, backed by a smart promenade of cafes and hotels and looking out towards the Turkish coast. It comes fully equipped — sunbeds, parasols, showers, water sports and even a diving platform — and it's within an easy walk of the Old Town, so a morning swim and an afternoon of sightseeing fit neatly into one day. The water is clear and shelves gently enough for a comfortable paddle, though the northern tip catches more breeze than the sheltered east-coast bays.

Walk round to the western side and the beach turns pebblier and windier, popular with the town's windsurfers, while the palm-fringed Mandraki harbour gives you a gentler, promenade-style seafront for an evening amble past the fishing boats and the old windmills. For softer, family-friendly sand you can hop down the east coast to Faliraki and Kolymbia in well under an hour, but for a stay that mixes city and sea, Elli does the job beautifully.

Things to do around Rhodes Town

Give the Old Town a proper day. Start early, before the cruise crowds, with the Palace of the Grand Master and its mosaic floors, then walk the cobbled Street of the Knights to the archaeological museum housed in the medieval Knights' Hospital, and finish with a circuit of the walls and the dry moat that rings the city. In the New Town, the Mandraki harbour, the Aquarium on the northern point and the belle-époque market are all easy strolls, and the whole waterfront comes alive at dusk for the evening volta.

When you're ready to roam wider, Rhodes Town is the perfect launchpad. Drive or take the bus south to the clifftop acropolis at Lindos, one of the great views in the Aegean; visit the Valley of the Butterflies inland in summer; or take a day boat from the harbour to the island of Symi with its pastel houses. To plan beyond the walls, Eleni's Rhodes holiday guide maps out the island, and if you're still choosing between destinations her Rhodes versus Kos comparison weighs the two side by side.

When to go to Rhodes Town

Rhodes is one of the sunniest islands in Greece, and the town's mix of sights and sea makes it worth visiting across a long season — here's how the months actually feel, and when our specialist would book.

When Air Sea Our take
April–May 21–25°C 18–20°C Warm, green and quiet; the sea is still cool but the Old Town is at its loveliest for walking — great value before the crowds.
June 28–29°C 23°C Reliable summer sun with a sea that's finally warm. A sweet spot before the school holidays land.
July–August 31–33°C 25–26°C Peak heat and buzz, eased by the northern breeze — sightsee early and mornings, swim off Elli in the afternoon.
September 28–29°C 25°C Our pick: warm sea, softer heat and thinner crowds in the lanes once schools go back. The best all-round month.
October 24–25°C 23°C A gentle wind-down — still swimmable and sunny, and perfect for couples exploring the walls and the moat.

If you can pick your week freely, June and September give you the best balance of warm water, comfortable heat and quieter streets — ideal for a holiday built as much around the Old Town as the beach. In July and August the city is at its liveliest and hottest, so plan your sightseeing for the cooler mornings and keep the middle of the day for the sea; book early, as the best central rooms go fast.

The practical parts

Getting there

You fly into Rhodes Airport (RHO / Diagoras) on the north-west coast, and the transfer into Rhodes Town is one of the shortest on the island at around 15 minutes by road. Plenty of UK airports run direct summer services to Rhodes, and every GoToBeach package includes your flights and your airport-to-hotel transfer at both ends.

Passports & entry

Greece is in the EU and the Schengen area, so British passport holders can visit for up to 90 days in any 180 without a visa. Your passport must have been issued less than 10 years before the day you enter and be valid for at least three months after your planned departure. The EU's new EES and ETIAS systems are being phased in, so entry rules can change at short notice — always recheck the official guidance before you travel.

Money

The currency is the euro. Cards are widely accepted in hotels, restaurants and larger shops, but carry some cash for market stalls, small tavernas, taxis and the Old Town's craft shops. Tipping isn't obligatory but is appreciated — rounding up the bill or leaving a euro or two for good service is the local norm.

Health & insurance

A free UK GHIC covers state medical care in Greece on the same terms as locals, but it's not a substitute for travel insurance — you'll still want comprehensive cover for repatriation, private treatment and cancellations. We can point you towards arranging suitable travel insurance when you book. The summer sun is fierce, so pack high-factor sun care for long days on the walls.

Getting around

Rhodes Town is walkable, and the Old Town is pedestrianised, so you'll cover the sights on foot. Frequent KTEL buses run down both coasts from the town's terminals, linking Faliraki, Kolymbia, Lindos and the south, with taxis easy to find. Hire a car for a day or two only if you want to reach Lindos, the inland castles and the far south under your own steam.

Food & eating out

Rhodes Town is the island's best table — courtyard tavernas in the Old Town, fresh fish and seafood by the harbour, slow-cooked lamb and the local pitaroudia chickpea fritters. Away from the busiest lanes you'll find family-run spots where Greeks eat; as a rule, follow the crowd of locals rather than the menu with photos and you'll eat very well.

Map of Rhodes Town

Frequently Asked Questions About Rhodes Town

Common questions and answers for planning your Rhodes Town holiday.

Handpicked packages featuring the best destinations across the Rhodes Town

Further reading from our specialists

Deeper diver from the team, all based on recent resort visits.

Rhodes vs Kos

Two Greek islands, two very different holidays

Rhodes Holidays

Where beach days meet ancient streets.

Official guidance & sources

Entry and health rules for Greece can change at short notice, especially as the EU rolls out its new EES and ETIAS systems, so always check the official advice when you book and again shortly before you fly. These are the sources we trust.