Karpathos lies far out in the southern Aegean, between Rhodes and Crete, and that isolation is a large part of its appeal. It also means reaching the island takes a little more planning than a quick hop to the Cyclades. There are two ways in: a short flight from Athens to the island’s small southern airport, or a ferry. Either the long overnight run from Piraeus or a shorter crossing from a neighbouring island.
This guide sets out every route to Karpathos in turn: the flights from Athens and the summer charters, the ferry from Piraeus. The crossings from Rhodes, Crete, Kasos and Chalki. It also covers the island’s two ports, how to get from the airport to town, and how to travel around once you arrive. Read it beside the wider Karpathos travel guide to plan the trip end to end.
How do you get to Karpathos?
You reach Karpathos by air or by sea. Direct flights from Athens take about an hour and ten minutes, while ferries run from Piraeus and, more shortly, from Rhodes, Crete and Kasos.
The fastest way to Karpathos is to fly. Domestic flights connect Athens with the island’s airport in the far south in a little over an hour, and in summer some direct charters arrive from northern Europe. For most visitors coming from abroad, a connection through Athens onto a short island flight is the simplest route, avoiding the long sea journey entirely.
The alternative is the ferry, and here the options split by distance. The direct boat from Piraeus, the port of Athens, is a long overnight haul across open sea, while much shorter crossings link Karpathos with its Dodecanese neighbours and with Crete. Which ferry suits you depends on where you start and whether you are combining Karpathos with another island.
Daily links are not guaranteed outside the peak season, and a travel day at each end is worth building into any trip. The sections below take each route in turn. You can pick the flight or ferry that fits your starting point and your dates, and understand how long each one takes.
How do you fly to Karpathos?
Direct flights link Athens with Karpathos airport in about an hour and ten minutes, operated by Sky Express and Olympic Air. The airport sits in the south of the island, around fourteen kilometres from the capital, Pigadia.
The quickest route to Karpathos is the domestic flight from Athens. Sky Express and Olympic Air both serve the route, and the flight takes roughly an hour and ten minutes across the Aegean. Frequency varies with the season, with flights a day at the height of summer thinning to fewer in the quieter months. It pays to book ahead. Especially around the busy August dates when demand peaks.
Karpathos also has flight connections within the Dodecanese and to Crete. Short hops link the island with Rhodes and with Sitia in eastern Crete, the latter often routed via the tiny neighbouring island of Kasos. In summer the airport additionally receives direct international charters from countries such as Germany and the Netherlands, which bring package travellers straight to the island without an Athens connection.
The airport, with the code AOK, lies on the flat southern tip of the island beside the windsurf plain of Afiartis, about fourteen to sixteen kilometres from the capital, Pigadia. It is a small terminal, so arrivals and departures are straightforward, though the strong summer meltemi wind that blows across the adjacent bay can occasionally delay flights. From the airport a short transfer reaches the main town and the southern resorts.
How do you get to Karpathos by ferry from Athens?
The direct ferry from Piraeus to Karpathos runs two to three times a week and takes from around thirteen hours to twenty or more, depending on the route. It is a long overnight crossing of 227 nautical miles.
The direct sea route from Athens leaves from Piraeus, the city’s main port, and covers 227 nautical miles, about 420 kilometres, to Karpathos. Depending on the vessel and how islands it calls at along the way. The crossing takes anywhere from roughly thirteen and a half hours to twenty hours or more. It is very much an overnight journey rather than a quick transfer. Ferries generally run two to three times a week.
Most travellers who take the ferry book a cabin for the overnight leg rather than sitting up in an aircraft-style seat. The boats depart from the Piraeus gates serving the Dodecanese. The same service usually continues to or from Rhodes, so Karpathos sits on a longer island line rather than being a simple there-and-back run from Athens.
The ferry makes most sense for travellers bringing a vehicle, combining Karpathos with other islands on the route, or who simply prefer the sea to flying. For a short holiday, though, the flight from Athens saves the best part of a day in each direction. Many visitors fly in and out and rely on a hire car for the island itself rather than shipping their own.
Can you reach Karpathos from Rhodes?
Yes. Ferries from Rhodes to Karpathos take roughly three and a half to four and a half hours and run about three times a week in high season. Short domestic flights also connect the two islands.
Rhodes is the main gateway to Karpathos for travellers approaching from the north-eastern Dodecanese. The ferry crossing takes between about three hours twenty minutes and four and a half hours depending on the boat. In the high season it runs roughly three times a week. This makes flying into Rhodes and continuing by sea a popular alternative to the long haul from Piraeus, especially for those already touring the Dodecanese.
For speed, short domestic flights also link Rhodes with Karpathos, hopping across in a fraction of the ferry time. These connections are useful for combining the two islands in a single trip, though they run less frequently than the Athens flights and be booked ahead. Rhodes itself has good international connections, so it works well as an entry point to the region.
Travellers often pair the two islands deliberately, spending time on the busier, monument-rich Rhodes before crossing to the quieter, wilder Karpathos. The guide to Rhodes covers that larger island in detail. From Rhodes the ferry also continues to the small island of Chalki and on toward Karpathos, giving a scenic island-hopping route south.
Can you get to Karpathos from Crete?
Yes. Ferries connect Karpathos with eastern Crete, sailing from Sitia in about five to six hours and from Heraklion on routes. A short flight also links Sitia with Karpathos by way of Kasos.
Crete lies to the west of Karpathos, and the ferry is the direct link between them. Boats sail from Sitia in eastern Crete, taking about five to six hours, and services also connect through Heraklion, the island’s main port. This route is handy for travellers combining Karpathos with a stay in Crete, or approaching the Dodecanese from the west rather than through Athens or Rhodes.
The Crete crossings run less frequently than the Rhodes and Athens links, so checking the timetable in advance matters, especially outside the peak weeks when sailings thin out. The boats often call at the small islands of Kasos and Karpathos on the same line, so the two neighbours frequently appear together on a Crete-to-Dodecanese route.
There is also an air option from Crete: a short flight links Sitia with Karpathos by way of the tiny island of Kasos, which sits between them. This suits travellers wanting to avoid the ferry, though the small-plane service is limited and best booked ahead. For most, the Sitia ferry remains the practical way to move between Crete and Karpathos.
How do you get to Karpathos from other islands?
Karpathos connects by short ferry to its nearest neighbours: Kasos in about an hour and forty minutes, and Chalki in around three and a half hours. These crossings tie the island into a southern Dodecanese hopping route.
The closest island to Karpathos is Kasos, its small neighbour to the south-west, reached by ferry in about an hour and forty minutes. The two are often visited together, since they share the same ferry lines and a similar quiet, traditional character. Kasos makes an easy add-on for travellers who want to see an even less-touristed corner of the Dodecanese.
To the north-east, the island of Chalki lies on the route toward Rhodes, roughly three and a half hours away by boat. Chalki, with its handsome harbour town. Is another small island that pairs naturally with Karpathos on a southern Dodecanese itinerary. The ferry between them continues on to Rhodes, linking the whole chain.
These inter-island crossings mean Karpathos need not be a single, isolated destination. With a little planning around the timetables, it can form one stop on a hopping route through the southern Dodecanese. From Rhodes and Chalki in the north-east down through Karpathos to Kasos and on toward Crete, each leg a short and scenic sail.
What are the ports of Karpathos?
Karpathos has two ports: Pigadia, the main harbour in the south-east where the long-distance ferries and most boats dock, and Diafani, a small port in the north used by ferries and the Saria excursions.
Pigadia, the island’s capital, holds the main port on the south-east coast. This is where the ferries from Piraeus. Rhodes and Crete tie up, along with most of the local excursion boats. As the largest town, Pigadia has the ticket offices, taxis, car-hire desks and tavernas that make it the natural point of arrival and the hub for onward travel around the island.
The second port, Diafani, sits in the far north below the village of Olympos. It is far smaller, and ferries on the Rhodes and Dodecanese lines call here as well as at Pigadia, which is useful for travellers heading straight for the north. Diafani is also the main launch point for the short boat trips to the uninhabited islet of Saria.
Which port you use depends on your route and your base. Almost all long-distance ferries centre on Pigadia. Most visitors arrive there, but anyone staying in Olympos or the north check whether a service also stops at Diafani, since it can save the long mountain drive between the two ends of the island.
How do you get from Karpathos airport to town?
The airport lies about fourteen to sixteen kilometres south of Pigadia. There is no regular bus, so most travellers reach town by taxi, a pre-booked transfer, or a hire car collected at the airport.
Karpathos airport sits on the southern tip of the island, roughly fourteen to sixteen kilometres from the capital, Pigadia, on a good road that takes about twenty minutes to drive. Being a small airport, it has limited services. There is no reliable scheduled bus into town, so onward travel needs a little arranging rather than simply stepping onto a public route.
The common options are a taxi, which waits for arriving flights, or a transfer arranged in advance through a hotel or car-hire firm. For most independent travellers the simplest solution is to collect a hire car at the airport, since a vehicle is close to essential for exploring the island anyway. Picking one up on arrival avoids a separate trip to a rental desk in town.
The airport’s southern location puts it near the windsurf bays of Afiartis and the sandy beaches of Amoopi and Diakoftis. Travellers based in the south are only a short drive from their accommodation. Those heading for Pigadia or the north face a longer journey, and anyone bound for Olympos plan on around two hours by road from the airport.
How do you get around Karpathos once you arrive?
A hire car or scooter is close to essential on Karpathos, as buses run only times a day between Pigadia and the main villages. Boats reach the east-coast beaches, and one high road serves the far north.
Karpathos is large and mountainous, and its attractions spread across the whole island, so a hire car or scooter is the practical way to get around. Public buses do run, but only a handful of times a day between Pigadia and the main villages. Which is enough for a single outing but too infrequent to rely on for touring. Car-hire desks cluster in Pigadia and at the airport.
Some of the island’s finest coves have no road at all and are reached only by the daily boats from Pigadia. A beach cruise doubles as transport to the wild eastern beaches. The far north, around Olympos and Diafani, is served by one high mountain road. A roughly two-hour drive from the capital. By the daily boat from Pigadia to Diafani, which many prefer to the long climb.
For a car-free trip, it is possible to combine the buses, the Pigadia excursion boats and the odd taxi, but it limits how much of the island you see. Most visitors treat a hire car as part of the cost of a Karpathos holiday. The guide to things to do in Karpathos shows how the sights spread across the island and why having your own transport helps.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the easiest way to get to Karpathos?
The easiest way is to fly from Athens, a flight of about an hour and ten minutes with Sky Express or Olympic Air to the island’s southern airport. For visitors from abroad, a connection through Athens onto this short island flight is far quicker than the long ferry from Piraeus. Which takes from around thirteen hours to twenty or more overnight.
How long is the ferry from Athens to Karpathos?
The direct ferry from Piraeus, the port of Athens, to Karpathos covers 227 nautical miles and takes from roughly thirteen and a half hours to twenty hours or more. Depending on the vessel and the islands it calls at. It runs two to three times a week and is an overnight crossing, so most travellers book a cabin for the journey.
Does Karpathos have an airport?
Yes. Karpathos airport, with the code AOK, lies on the flat southern tip of the island, about fourteen to sixteen kilometres from the capital, Pigadia. It handles direct domestic flights from Athens in about an hour and ten minutes, short hops from Rhodes and Crete, and some international charters from northern Europe in summer.
Can you get to Karpathos from Rhodes or Crete?
Yes. Ferries from Rhodes take about three and a half to four and a half hours and run roughly three times a week in high season. With short flights also linking the two. From Crete, ferries sail from Sitia in about five to six hours, and a small-plane flight connects Sitia with Karpathos by way of Kasos.
Do you need a car in Karpathos?
For most visitors, yes. Karpathos is large and mountainous, and its beaches and villages spread across the island, while buses run only times a day between Pigadia and the main villages. A hire car or scooter, collected at the airport or in Pigadia, is close to essential, though the east-coast coves are also reached by the daily boat.