10 Best things to see & do in Rhodes

Rising in a dramatic setting, up a 116m high clifftop and a stiff climb from Lindos village, the Lindos Acropolis dedicated to the goddess Athena is the best-preserved archaeological site in the Dodecanese. Votive inscriptions are clearly visible,  and the monumental staircase is in perfect shape. (Fire that consumed the main temple in 392 BC).

Maybe the most picturesque of bays on the island, this is the cove that St. Paul was shipwrecked on during his proselytising voyages. Up towards the Acropolis you can discern the Cave Of The Virgin that served as a secret Christian place of worship, complete with 3rd-century inscriptions.

A UNESCO World Heritage site and the best walled medieval town in Greece, Rhodes Old Town is pock-marked by monuments built by the Knights of St. John who ruled the island for 200 years after the Crusades.

Visitors enter this time bubble through the moated gates of St Amboise, St Athanasios or St John, ambling along the cobbled Street of Knights full of 15th- and 16th-century buildings, and marvel at the superbly preserved Knights Hospital.

A 600-care nature reserve where Jersey tiger moths congregate between June and September to mate (and subsequently starve themselves to death). They nestle in droves on branches of the indigenous gum tree forest and fly about in their black- and orange-tinted wings creating a surrealistic spectacle.

For an authentic Greek tavern experience, try the Kozas’ family taverna at the outskirts of Stegna, on one of the island’s most beautiful beaches. It’s renowned for its fish, and no wonder, for its network of eleven fishing vessels ensures that the place is well-stocked for seafood, especially lobster.

This convivial family taverna opened its doors to the public in 1960 and has stuck to its tried-and-tested formula of no-frills traditional Greek fare and fresh seafood ever since. Its location at the tip of a sandy beach and just 800m from the archaeological site of Kameiros, is also unbeatable.

Whitewashed, donkey-ridden and narrow-laned, this Rhodian village could have just been plucked out of the Cyclades and magically transported below the acropolis. Dignified mansions overlook the streets and finely frescoed churches crown the cul-de-sacs, for trading Lindians survived passing invaders and prospered throughout their history.

The headquarters of the Grand Masters of the Order of St. John is an exceptional fortress-cum-palace, mainly because of the daring Italian facelift in the 1930s. The makeover was criticised by historians, but for many art lovers, the final gothic/art-deco fusion works surprisingly well.

This Italian 1930s ghost town in the centre of the island is an out-of-the-way curiosity. Built from scratch for Italian settlers in the mid-1930s, the piazza laid out like a hippodrome and garishly arcaded administration buildings are a bizarre blot on the landscape.

This small, compact museum – the best in Rhodes – is well laid out and full of interesting exhibits. Don’t miss the dainty statue of Bathing Aphrodite – so modern, it could’ve been fashioned by Bernini – and the head of God Helios that served as a prototype for busts of Alexander the Great.