A Lindos day trip from Rhodes brings you to a whitewashed village under a hilltop acropolis on the east coast of the island, all within one day. Browse more tours in Greece before you pick a departure time.
This page covers what the trip is and how it runs, how long it lasts and where it starts, the travel options, the Acropolis of Lindos and its climb, the village lanes, the Seven Springs, the beaches and St Paul’s Bay, and who the trip suits.
What is a Lindos day trip from Rhodes, and how does it work?
Lindos lies on the east coast. A Lindos day trip from Rhodes brings you there and back in one day. You travel by coach or express boat. Then you explore the village on your own during a set block of free time.
Lindos is a fishing village with an archaeological site. It sits in a large bay on Rhodes, which is the biggest island in the Dodecanese. The driver or the boat crew handles the journey. You only plan how to use your free time once you arrive. Both kinds of trip include a map of Lindos.
The coach version picks up in Rhodes Town, Ixia, Ialyssos and Faliraki. Your Lindos day trip from Rhodes also brings directions and tips from the driver. The coach follows the east coast road for about one hour and stops at the main parking area. The village centre is a five-minute walk or two-minute shuttle ride away.
The boat version sails out of Mandraki harbour and reaches Lindos in one hour. The seats are comfortable and individual. One express boat timetable runs on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. Hotel transfers to the boat cover Kolymbia, Afandou, Faliraki, Kallithea, Ixia and Ialyssos.
How long is a Lindos day trip from Rhodes, and where does it start?
A coach tour takes about six and a half hours, plus the pickups. You board your Lindos day trip from Rhodes at a hotel or a stop in Rhodes Town or nearby. The express boat starts at Mandraki harbour.
The coach arrives in Lindos at about 10:45, before the peak crowds. That gives a Lindos day trip from Rhodes an early start. Free time runs until about 14:45. A five-minute photo stop at a panoramic viewpoint comes on the way back. The driver tells the group the exact return time. The trip ends where you were picked up.
Boat passengers gather at Mandraki harbour, opposite the Bank of Greece, by 10:30. The boat departs at 11:00, arrives in Lindos at 12:00 and sails back at 16:00. It docks in Rhodes Town at 17:00. Sailing depends on suitable weather, judged by each boat’s captain and the harbour police. The boat leaves at the stated time without waiting for latecomers.
Free time differs, so check it before you pick a Lindos day trip from Rhodes. One coach tour gives three and a half hours in Lindos with an audio guide. A longer one gives five hours. One boat trip gives three hours in Lindos with two swim stops on the way. Another boat gives four hours.
How does a Lindos day trip from Rhodes travel: by coach, express boat or car?
A Lindos day trip from Rhodes travels by coach, by express boat from Mandraki Harbour, or by your own car. The coach and the boat each take about one hour one way. The drive takes about 45 to 50 minutes.
The coach follows the east coast. It reaches Lindos at about 10:45 and stops at the main parking area. The village centre is five minutes on foot from there. A photo stop at a viewpoint comes on the way back.
The express boat adds a sea view of the coast to a Lindos day trip from Rhodes. One schedule has it leave Mandraki Harbour at 11:00 on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. It lands in Lindos at 12:00, sails home at 16:00 and docks at 17:00. The captain can alter the route to suit the weather and the harbour master.
Boats vary, and your Lindos day trip from Rhodes need not be an express. One travel blog describes a boat trip with two swim stops on the way and three hours in Lindos. The express schedule leaves four hours ashore.
With your own car you set the hours. One travel blog puts the road at 50 km and says it is in good condition. It does not run beside the sea, but it shows the countryside. Cars park outside the village, and you walk down the last stretch.
What is the Acropolis of Lindos, and what does a Lindos day trip from Rhodes show of it?
The Acropolis of Lindos is a rock citadel above the village. Its temple to Athena Lindia reached its last form around 300 BC. Your Lindos day trip from Rhodes can cover its gate, its columns and the walls of the Knights.
Both the coach and the boat leave about four hours in Lindos. One coach page names the Acropolis first among the places to visit. The Acropolis therefore fits a Lindos day trip from Rhodes. Its temple replaced an earlier one on the same spot. Inside you still see an offering table and the pedestal of Athena’s statue.
The sanctuary gate is from the fourth century BC. Its grand staircase leads up to a D-shaped stoa and five doorways. The Hellenistic stoa ran for 87 metres with 42 columns. Carved into the rock below the steps is a Rhodian trireme, a warship, from about 180 BC. General Hagesander’s statue once stood on its bow.
A Lindos day trip from Rhodes also reaches the fortress that the Knights of St John raised. They built on older Byzantine foundations in the early fourteenth century. Its walls follow the cliff. The south side had a five-sided tower that commanded the harbour. The Church of St John, from the thirteenth or fourteenth century, stands on the acropolis too.
What is the village of Lindos, and how do you walk through its lanes?
Lindos lies on the island’s east coast, a whitewashed village built on a hillside above a bay. Its cobbled lanes are closed to cars. Walking between small houses, chapels and shops makes up a Lindos day trip from Rhodes.
Coaches on the Lindos day trip from Rhodes stop at the edge of the village. One tour page lists five minutes on foot from the car park to the centre, or two minutes by shuttle. Another page sets the drop-off at Krana square, and the tour guide shows the way.
The Church of the Panagia, the Holy Virgin, forms the centre of the village. Its tall stone bell tower is easy to spot, and the floor inside is a pebble mosaic. Merchant seafarers built the captains’ houses in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. They feature hohlaki floors of coloured pebbles and carved doorways called pyliones.
The lanes climb and drop, so wear comfortable shoes. The tourist information map has no street names, so the back lanes are easy to get lost in. Before you set off, note the return time that the driver announces for the Lindos day trip from Rhodes.
What are the Seven Springs, and do they fit a Lindos day trip from Rhodes?
Seven Springs, Epta Piges in Greek, is a green oasis of streams and a small lake near Archangelos. Tour pages add it to the Lindos day trip from Rhodes for 45 minutes up to just over an hour.
The springs flow all year and end in a small lake, one to eight metres deep. A path lined with pine and plane trees leads to it, and geese, ducks and peacocks walk through the woods. The area is a protected nature zone, together with the Valley of the Butterflies.
The tunnel stays optional on the Lindos day trip from Rhodes. It is about 186 metres long, and running water flows around the feet. The Italians built it, and the lake waters the fields of the Kolymbia plain. A walking path leads to the lake too, for anyone who fears dark, narrow spaces.
Coaches stop on the main road, and a stone-paved path leads ten minutes on foot to the springs. One tour page lists 45 minutes at the springs and three hours in Lindos. Another lists just over an hour at the springs and three and a half hours in Lindos.
On the Lindos day trip from Rhodes, one tour page puts a 30-minute drive between the stops. Another page reverses the order and starts in Lindos.
What can you do at the beaches of Lindos and St Paul’s Bay on a Lindos day trip from Rhodes?
Swimming, snorkelling and a drink by the water all belong on a Lindos day trip from Rhodes. Lindos Beach and St Paul’s Bay are sandy coves close to the village. You can hire a sunbed at either.
Lindos Beach lies beneath the town. The walk down takes about 10 minutes, and the walk back up is a bit harder. The beach sits in a cove under a cliff, so it is not windy. The water stays calm for swimming and suits children.
A Lindos day trip from Rhodes offers more than one beach. A smaller beach called Pallas lies to the right of the main one. The main beach rents out kayaks and paddle boards, and bars and tavernas stand beside the sand. Carry flip-flops for the sand.
Walk south from the village for 20 minutes to reach St Paul’s Bay. Its water is clear and blue, and the swimming is good. The bay is where Saint Paul supposedly crashed on the island and brought Christianity with him. The chapel of Agios Pavel stands to its right.
Sea caves lie at the eastern tip of the bay. A Lindos day trip from Rhodes lets you swim there from the beach. Walkers can cross the rocks in shoes. Bring snorkelling gear, and take care if you jump from the rocks.
How steep is the climb to the Acropolis of Lindos, and who suits a Lindos day trip from Rhodes?
Expect a steep climb to the Acropolis of Lindos. The rock stands about 116 metres above the sea. The walk up from the village takes 20 to 30 minutes. A Lindos day trip from Rhodes suits anyone who can pace themselves on steps.
One tour description counts about 300 steps to the top of the rock. The path is steep, so go at your own pace. Carry a bottle of water, because the climb, the queue and the site can get hot.
A Lindos day trip from Rhodes offers two ways to ease the effort. You can hire a donkey at the entrance of the town, and the village calls these animals its taxis. A shuttle bus carries visitors from the arrival stop to the main square.
The ascent to the fortress is inaccessible to travellers with limited mobility. Inside the fortress there are no walking barriers or handrails. At the top, the views reach over the harbours and the coastline.
Couples, groups and families all join a Lindos day trip from Rhodes, as an express boat page says. Visitors with little time on the island fit it too, because coach pages call the trip time-saving.
The free hours are yours to spend. Climb the rock, wander the lanes, eat lunch or relax on a sandy beach.
What else do travellers ask about a Lindos day trip from Rhodes?
Which season suits the Lindos day trip from Rhodes, and how hot is the village?
The climate in Lindos is Mediterranean, with mild winters and particularly hot, dry summers. Rain falls in winter. Its yearly average is 22 degrees Celsius, making it Greece’s warmest area across the year. South-east Rhodes records more than three thousand hours of sunshine a year.
A blog that visited in winter found about 16 degrees by day and needed only a jacket. In summer, another blog advises an early start for the Lindos day trip from Rhodes. Mornings bring cooler weather and fewer crowds.
Which shoes and clothes suit the steps and stone lanes during your Lindos day trip from Rhodes?
Choose comfortable, sturdy shoes. One coach page describes inclines and narrow, cobbled walkways in the village. A travel page calls sturdy shoes essential in the steep, winding alleys.
Add a hat, sunglasses and sunscreen, as two blogs advise. The winter blog wore proper shoes to avoid slipping in the rain and carried an umbrella. Pack snacks as well, in case you wait in the queue for the Acropolis.
When does the Acropolis of Lindos open and close, so you can plan the Lindos day trip from Rhodes around it?
Summer opening runs from 8:00 to 20:00, says the Greek National Tourism Organisation. Its winter period starts on 1 November and ends on 31 March. Then the site opens at 8:00 and shuts at 15:30, with the last entry at 15:10.
In winter it closes on Tuesdays. Another tourism page says the site is open every day in the high season. It adds that hours change in winter and on public holidays. Choose any day except Tuesday for a winter Lindos day trip from Rhodes.
Where do you eat lunch in the free hours that the Lindos day trip from Rhodes allows?
You eat lunch in your own free time, not at a fixed stop. One coach page lists lunch beside the Acropolis, the shops and the beaches. Its list of included items names no meal.
Lindos has restaurants and tavernas with English menus, plus souvlaki shops and crepe houses. Three supermarkets stand within 100 metres of each other on the main street. One blog fitted lunch into three hours but felt rushed and suggests at least five hours.
Where is the hotel pick-up, and where is the meeting point, for the Lindos day trip from Rhodes?
Pick-up happens at set points, not always at the hotel door. One coach page lists hotel gates, bus stops, a taxi rank and Eleftherias Square. It adds two Old Town gates and the cruise ship harbour.
You return to the same spot, and the cruise harbour drop-off is at about 16:00. Another tour page names select hotels in Faliraki, Ialisos and Antistasis. It says you can change the return time by arranging it in advance. On the boat, be at the quay ten minutes before sailing from Lindos.