A Kos 3 islands boat trip is a full day at sea from Kos harbour to Kalymnos, Plati and Pserimos. Browse more tours in Greece if you want a day on the water with a different route.
This page covers the route, the three islands, the boats, Vathi, Plati, Pserimos, lunch, the season and the ferry comparison.
What is a Kos 3 islands boat trip, and how does it work?
Your Kos 3 islands boat trip fills one day at sea. The boat sails from the harbour of Kos to Kalymnos, Plati and Pserimos, three Dodecanese islands. Each island gets a stop, and the day mixes swimming, a village walk and a lunch.
Only two Dodecanese islands cover more ground than Kos: Rhodes and Karpathos. A Kos 3 islands boat trip uses its closest neighbours. Kos sits south of Kalymnos and Pserimos. Plati, a small islet, lies close to Pserimos. Short distances between them make a round trip in one day possible.
The plan is simple. The boat leaves Kos in the morning and visits the islands one after another. It returns to the departure point in the late afternoon. The same boat carries you to all three islands, so there is no change of boat to plan.
Two operator pages describe the same mix of stops for this trip. During any Kos 3 islands boat trip, Kalymnos is the sightseeing stop, set in the harbour of the sponge divers. Plati and Pserimos are the swimming stops. You can dive from the boat at Plati, and Pserimos has a sandy beach.
The day is easy to arrange once you are on Kos. The official tourism website of the island says travel agencies and tourism offices there book day trips to nearby islands. It adds that they help travellers choose the route between the islands.
That same website lists the three island tour of Kalymnos, Pserimos and Plati among the popular outings from Kos. It also says no other island in the Dodecanese offers such island hopping. One Kos 3 islands boat trip lets you sample that choice in a single day.
How long is a Kos 3 islands boat trip, and where does it start?
A Kos 3 islands boat trip takes the better part of a day. One operator page gives 10:00 for leaving Kos and 17:00 for the return, seven hours in all. It starts and ends at the main harbour of Kos, in Kos town.
Hours for your Kos 3 islands boat trip vary with the boat. The official tourism website of Kos lists day outings to nearby islands. They begin at 09:00 and end at 17:00 or later. Another operator lists boarding, departure and return times for each of its vessels, shown on every trip page.
Plan on about an hour at each stop. Two operator pages give that time for the islands, which makes about three hours ashore or in the water. Sailing between the islands and lunch on board fill the remaining hours of the day.
The sea legs are short. The official tourism website puts Pserimos at 7.8 nautical miles from the island. Wikipedia places Kalymnos 12 km from Kos. So this Kos 3 islands boat trip spends its day at the stops, not on a long crossing.
The start is the main harbour of Kos, which the official tourism website also calls Mandraki. The same website lists the three island tour among the trips widely offered at this harbour. Kos town holds the main port of the island, so the day begins in a town of hotels and restaurants.
The day ends where it began. One itinerary closes with a return to the original departure point. One operator page lists the return at 17:00 in one line and about quarter past five in another. Plan for the late afternoon, around five. Each Kos 3 islands boat trip follows that same loop.
Which three islands does a Kos 3 islands boat trip visit, and in what order?
A Kos 3 islands boat trip calls at Kalymnos, Pserimos and Plati. Operators set the order, and it changes from boat to boat. Two pages sail to Kalymnos, then Plati, then Pserimos. Three pirate-boat pages all end at Plati with a swim.
Kalymnos is the biggest of the three and lies 12 km from Kos. Pserimos sits between them, 7.8 nautical miles from Kos. Plati is a small islet near Pserimos. The official tourism site of Kos names the same three islands as the Kos 3 islands boat trip. Wikipedia lists Pserimos and Plati inside the Municipality of Kalymnos.
Two operator pages sail to Kalymnos first, to Plati second and to Pserimos last. Both name the first stop as Vathi, a village on Kalymnos with a natural fjord. Plati is the swim stop in the middle, where both pages have you dive in from the boat. Pserimos closes the day with a sandy beach and small taverns.
Pirate-boat trips follow other orders. One page, for a pirate-themed vessel, starts at Pserimos, then Kalymnos. A second page starts at Kalymnos, then Pserimos, with lunch on board before the last stop. A third page lists Pserimos, Kalymnos and Plati. So a Kos 3 islands boat trip changes order with the boat.
Stop times differ too. The pirate-themed page gives Pserimos 50 minutes, Kalymnos 1 hour 30 minutes and Plati 1 hour. The second pirate-boat page gives Kalymnos and Pserimos an hour each. Read the page of your boat before booking, because each Kos 3 islands boat trip runs its own plan.
The three islands differ in size. Wikipedia gives Kalymnos 109 square kilometres and Pserimos 11 square kilometres. Plati is only an islet. The pages treat Kalymnos as the town stop, and Pserimos and Plati as swim stops.
What kind of boat do the trips use, and what is on board a Kos 3 islands boat trip?
Two kinds of boat sail the Kos 3 islands boat trip: a wooden pirate-style boat and a cruise vessel. The pirate-style boat has bars, a waterslide and an open deck. The cruise vessel has two decks, sunbeds, a lounge and showers.
Two pages describe a pirate-style boat. One calls it a specially designed pirate-themed vessel. The other calls it a large wooden pirate boat and says it carries up to 230 passengers. On that page the large open deck has room to sit and to walk around.
The same page lists two bars, restrooms that disabled guests can use, plus space for strollers and wheelchairs. Snorkelling gear is not part of this Kos 3 islands boat trip. Bring your own or get it on board. A waterslide goes out at the last stop, so swimmers can slide into the sea.
A cruise vessel is the other kind of boat. One operator page lists two open decks with a sunbed for every guest, a large air-conditioned lounge and a bar. It adds toilets with showers, changing rooms, Wi-Fi and music. The page calls the ship big for its small number of passengers.
Other pages say less about the boat. One page calls it a wooden boat and lists a barbecue on board. Another page lists a bar with drinks and snacks. In all, four operator pages list a bar, and both the pirate-style boat and the cruise vessel have one. Expect a bar on any Kos 3 islands boat trip.
Each Kos 3 islands boat trip handles seating in its own way. One pirate-boat booking page shows the real deck plan and lets you tap the seat you want. The cruise vessel page lets you reserve a sunbed instead.
What is Vathi on Kalymnos like on a Kos 3 islands boat trip?
Vathi is a small village on the east coast of Kalymnos, known for its narrow, fjord-like inlet with azure water. Boats on the Kos 3 islands boat trip route sail into that inlet, and the stop lasts about an hour.
Arriving by water is the first treat for anyone on this Kos 3 islands boat trip route. The valley of Vathi opens up slowly as the boat moves in. Passengers can photograph the gulfs and caves around it. At the edge of the valley stand orchards of orange and tangerine trees. A small natural harbour called Rina shelters the water.
Swimming at Vathi works differently within the Kos 3 islands boat trip schedule, because the village has no real beach. Stairs along the harbour and the pier let visitors step or dive into clear, emerald water. One cruise makes Vathi a swimming stop. Another calls it a sightseeing stop in the harbour of the sponge divers.
Ashore, the walk is the main thing. The streets are peaceful and the alleys are traditional. Seaside tavernas serve fresh fish and seafood. Visitors try local sweets and homemade orange juice. Caiques, which are small fishing boats, use the quiet harbour of Rina. The island is mainly barren, except for two fertile valleys, and Vathi has one of them.
The church of Panagia i Kyra Chosti, from the eleventh century, lies a short walk from the harbour. The Vathi area also holds the ruins of a prehistoric acropolis. Daskalio Cave can only be approached by sea. With one hour ashore, Kos 3 islands boat trip passengers choose between church, alleys and a swim.
What is the sponge story of Kalymnos, and what does it add to a Kos 3 islands boat trip?
People call Kalymnos the island of the sponge divers. Sponges were the main income of its families and carried the island’s name across the Mediterranean. That story gives the Vathi stop of this Kos 3 islands boat trip something to look for.
The sponge story is older than any Kos 3 islands boat trip. Since ancient times, brave divers collected natural sponges from the sea. Early divers used a harpoon and no equipment. Divers worked the sea floor off nearby Pserimos, one of the cruise stops, and travelled to North Africa. Of all Aegean islands, Kalymnos was the leading sponge producer.
The sunny day at sea looks easy, yet the trade behind it was hard. In the nineteenth century, Greek divers began to wear diving suits fed with air from the surface, called scaphandro. Decompression sickness killed and injured divers at a very high rate. The folk dance Mihanikos still shows that harm.
Along the Kos 3 islands boat trip route the story becomes real. One cruise takes passengers to a sponge factory in Vathi. There they learn how local divers collect sponges and see how the sponges are processed into their final form. Another cruise only calls at the harbour of the sponge divers.
Today the Kos 3 islands boat trip route meets a smaller trade. Divers still pick sponges singly, by hand. In the mid-eighties a disease hit the eastern Mediterranean and wiped out large numbers of sponges. Kalymnos now faces a lack of sponges. Sponge Week, an annual festival a week after Easter, pays tribute to this “Kalymnian gold”.
What is the swim stop at Plati like on a Kos 3 islands boat trip?
Between Kalymnos and Pserimos lies Plati, an islet with no residents. The vessel drops anchor near the shore, the engines fall silent, and guests swim in clear, turquoise water. This open-sea dip is one of three stops on the Kos 3 islands boat trip.
The islet is tiny, but the Kos 3 islands boat trip uses it for a swim. A Greek reference page gives its area as 0.726 square kilometres. It places Plati south-east of Kalymnos and west of Pserimos. It notes small, very clean beaches, reached by small boat from Pserimos. Operator pages call the islet uninhabited. One adds coves.
Operators describe the entry into the sea in slightly different ways. One page says guests dive, slide or step straight into the sea. Another says you dive from the boat. A third calls the stop short, yet long enough to swim over to the islet. Plati and Pserimos are both swim stops of the Kos 3 islands boat trip.
The water is the reason for this stop. One operator page says the sandy bottom shows through blue and turquoise water. Another calls it crystal-clear Aegean water. A third says the islet is known for its inviting blue waters. The Kos island tourism site calls diving into the turquoise waters of Plati a memorable experience.
Stop times differ by operator. One page calls the Plati stop short. Another gives each of the three stops about an hour and calls that plenty of time. A third lists Plati at one hour. Check the stop time of the Kos 3 islands boat trip you choose. Then plan the swim around it.
What is Pserimos like on a Kos 3 islands boat trip?
Pserimos is a small island in the Dodecanese chain, set between Kalymnos and Kos and not far from Turkey. It has a village, a sandy beach and small taverns near the port. The Kos 3 islands boat trip gives you about an hour here to swim, walk and have a coffee.
All three stops of the Kos 3 islands boat trip lie inside the Kalymnos municipality. A Greek reference page lists Pserimos at 14.6 square kilometres, about twenty times the size of Plati. It says Pliny called the island Pserema. The census counted 84 inhabitants. One operator page says it fills up more in summer.
The beach comes first on the Kos 3 islands boat trip. One operator page describes a shallow, sandy beach for swimming, with a cafeteria or taverna. Another says you walk from the port to a beach with small taverns. Wikipedia lists tourism as the main industry, with visitors drawn by the beaches, and notes that certain taverns offer rooms.
Away from the sand, one operator page lists a Greek coffee and a walk to Panagia, the island church. It adds a staircase up to a panoramic view and locals who sell sponges, spices and flavourings. The Greek reference page puts the village at the inner end of a west-coast bay. A primary school also runs there.
Stop lengths at Pserimos differ. One page lists 50 minutes, another one hour, and a third about an hour of free time. Plan the island around the beach plus one walk, whichever Kos 3 islands boat trip you pick. One page adds beachfront cafes and shops, and one cruise lists the Blue Lagoon behind Pserimos, reached only by boat.
How do lunch and drinks work on a Kos 3 islands boat trip?
Operator pages describe Kos 3 islands boat trip lunch as a barbecue or buffet on board. Another option is a meal at a tavern on Kalymnos. Drinks from the bar are separate from the lunch and ordered on the day.
Two operator pages put lunch after the stop at Vathi on Kalymnos. One says a buffet is ready when guests return to the boat. The other says its barbecue is served after Vathi. A third page sends guests to a seaside tavern on Kalymnos. So the Kos 3 islands boat trip you choose sets whether lunch is afloat or ashore.
The menus are short. One buffet lists pork or chicken souvlaki, salad, tzatziki and bread. A barbecue on a second page offers chicken, souvlaki, Greek salad and bread. A third page names a Greek lunch where guests pick chicken souvlaki or the vegetarian option. A fourth page, for a wooden boat, names a barbecue on board, without a menu.
Meat-free plates are listed. One buffet offers beans and dolmades instead of meat. A second page offers a vegetarian menu, and a third adds gluten-free meals on request. A fourth page lists meat and vegetarian options for its Kos 3 islands boat trip. It also says lunch depends on the option picked, so read the tour page before booking.
Drinks stand apart from lunch, whichever Kos 3 islands boat trip you pick. One page says the bar sells drinks and snacks. Another lists cocktails and soft drinks at the bar. Two pages name snacks beside the drinks. Three pages list drinks as not included. One page adds a happy hour with cocktails on board while guests swim at Plati.
Do dolphins show up on a Kos 3 islands boat trip?
Operator pages present dolphins as a hope, not a certainty. One expects wild dolphins at nearby fish farms, and another speaks of a great chance. So dolphins are a bonus of the Kos 3 islands boat trip, not something to count on.
One operator page for this Kos 3 islands boat trip gives the clearest plan. After lunch, its boat visits the nearby fish farms. The page says the smell of the fish attracts wild dolphins. It adds that guests see them jumping out of the water on the majority of trips. That is the operator’s own claim, not a rule.
Other pages say less. One tour page names a great chance to see dolphins. A guest review there says the dolphins made the day. A cruise page tells a guest story of playful dolphins leaping through clear water. It says that first sighting set the tone for the whole Kos 3 islands boat trip.
The Aegean does hold wild dolphins. A Greek marine research group monitors five kinds of whales and dolphins there. Its list covers the sperm whale, Risso’s dolphin, the short-beaked common dolphin, the common bottlenose dolphin and the striped dolphin. Its boat surveys monitor a resident population of short-beaked common dolphins between Samos and the northern Dodecanese, using photo identification.
A scientific review of the Greek seas records twelve whale and dolphin species, seven of them permanently present. Wikipedia says common dolphins have been seen riding the bow waves of boats. It adds that breaching and leaps are common, and that they eat fish and squid. Operators hope to show that jumping during their Kos 3 islands boat trip.
Which season and sea conditions suit a Kos 3 islands boat trip?
Warm months with little rain suit a Kos 3 islands boat trip, from late spring into early autumn. Wikipedia files the climate of Kos as hot-summer Mediterranean. In August the sea is at its warmest, an average of 26.1 degrees Celsius.
A Kos 3 islands boat trip needs warm, dry air. Wikipedia carries a weather table for Kos that gives mean daily highs by month. They read 25 degrees Celsius in late spring, 30.4 in July and 31 in August. In the table, July and August have no rain at all, June has 13.8 millimetres and October 36.3.
Water heats up slower than air. A sea-temperature page for Kos gives 17.3 degrees Celsius for April, 19.7 for late spring and 22.8 for June. July reaches 24.9, August 26.1 and September 25.6. October still holds 23.2. The coldest months are February and March, at 16.9 degrees Celsius. The warmest swims fall in August and September.
Wikipedia gives the meltemi a season that starts in late spring and ends in mid-September. Beaufort force 7 or 8 marks its strongest spells. Skies stay clear while it builds, with no warning. Across the southern Aegean the wind blows from the northwest and peaks in the afternoon. The Kos 3 islands boat trip feels livelier then.
Wikivoyage calls spring and autumn on Kalymnos more comfortable than summer, but more variable in temperature. It puts July and August highs in the mid-thirties Celsius. Late in October, colder winds come in from the north and the temperature drops sharply. In the shoulder months, a Kos 3 islands boat trip trades hot air for a cooler day.
How does a Kos 3 islands boat trip compare with a ferry trip to Kalymnos or Pserimos?
In one day on one boat, a Kos 3 islands boat trip links Kalymnos, Plati and Pserimos. A ferry trip takes you across to a single island on a timetable. The ferry fits one stop, and the cruise fits all three.
Kalymnos is the easy ferry target. The official Kos tourism site says catamarans link Kos with Kalymnos and calls the island ideal for a day trip. It adds that catamarans are faster than the regular ferry boats. Wikipedia puts Kalymnos 12 kilometres from Kos. A Kos 3 islands boat trip covers more ground than that single hop.
Wikivoyage says the principal Kalymnos ferry departs Mastichari roughly every two hours, depending on the season. A ferry booking page says about three sailings run each day all year. Its average crossing is 34 minutes. Boats arrive at Pothia. Mastichari lies on the north coast, 22 kilometres from Kos Town. The two pages give different daily sailing counts.
Pserimos sits 7.8 nautical miles off Kos, says the Kos tourism site. It calls the island popular with island hoppers. Wikipedia names a daily ferry from Pothia on Kalymnos as its link. A booking page gives that crossing as about 20 minutes. A Kos 3 islands boat trip puts Pserimos on the same boat as Kalymnos and Plati.
A ferry follows a timetable, and the booking page says timetables change with the season. Sailings thin out off season. A cruise follows the operator’s day. The Kos tourism site gives island day trips a window of 09:00 to 17:00 or later. A Kos 3 islands boat trip adds Plati, a swim stop where you can dive from the boat.
What else do travellers ask about a Kos 3 islands boat trip?
Which clothes and gear suit the Kos 3 islands boat trip?
Three pages describing the Kos 3 islands boat trip list swimwear, sunscreen and a towel. Three pages add a hat, and two add sunglasses. One page calls sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat essential to stay comfortable in the Greek sun. One page also asks for a change of clothes, and another asks for comfortable shoes.
A camera shows up on two lists. Snorkelling equipment is not provided on one cruise, though guests can bring their own. One page lists swimwear for the swim stops and calls them optional, so swimming is your choice. Another operator keeps it simple: a ticket, a swimsuit and a big smile, with the crew handling everything else.
Can children, non-swimmers and seasick travellers join the Kos 3 islands boat trip?
Pages call the Kos 3 islands boat trip suitable for children. One describes the boat as comfortable and suitable for families. Another page says there is no strict age limit, but children must be with an adult. Infants have to sit on laps. That page adds that the cruise is stroller-friendly, though not wheelchair accessible.
One page notes the steps at boarding and landing, which older visitors must manage. Another lets non-swimmers remain on the boat while the others swim. One operator lists full passenger insurance coverage for the cruise. On seasickness, one listing does not recommend the day for severe cases. Another asks people prone to it to take precautions before boarding.
Is a hotel pickup offered, and when does boarding begin on the Kos 3 islands boat trip?
Pages list a hotel transfer to Kos harbour and back as a feature of the Kos 3 islands boat trip. One page says a voucher gives the meeting point and pickup time. Another page lists a version without transfer, where guests reach the port themselves. If the ride runs late, one page asks guests to wait at the meeting place.
At the harbour, one operator asks guests to board at the latest 30 minutes before departure. It also gives information and tickets at the vessel every afternoon after half past five. Another page asks guests to arrive 45 minutes early to choose a seat. A third points out that departure is fixed, and the vessel does not wait for latecomers.
Which documents and items are allowed on the Kos 3 islands boat trip?
Identity checks apply on one Kos 3 islands boat trip, because the local port authority requires them. The operator wants a clear picture of your passport or driving licence beforehand. Its boarding pass arrives by email as a QR code, and guests pick a seat on the deck plan. Another operator confirms a booking when its confirmation email arrives.
Rules on food and drinks differ. That first operator bans guests from carrying their own drinks on board. Two other pages suggest packing your own water, and one adds snacks. Each operator sets its own rule, so ask before you pack a bag. Another page says staff check you in once you have your ticket.
How does the Kos 3 islands boat trip change if the sea turns rough?
Pages call the Kos 3 islands boat trip weather dependent. One operator keeps the right to cancel, postpone or change any trip in adverse weather. It names risks to passengers and crew as another reason. Another page says trips can be cancelled for sea conditions. It adds that guests are offered a new date or a refund.
On three pages, guests who cancel 24 hours or more ahead receive a full refund. One operator says later changes are not always possible. A written confirmation from that operator validates any change. If you miss the boat, it helps you move to another date. It gives no refund if you decline a new date.