Kos tickets cover the Asklepieion, the museum and the castle in Kos town, a day at Lido Water Park, and the boats and flights that link the island with Nisyros, Bodrum and Athens. More bookable tours across the country are listed on Greece Tours.
Read on for each ticket type, where to buy it and the timing that suits each one.
What are Kos tickets?
Kos tickets fall into two groups: entry passes for archaeological sites, museums, the castle and the water park, and travel tickets for ferries, boats, flights and local buses that carry visitors to, from and around this Greek island.
Kos is a Greek island in the Dodecanese chain of the southeastern Aegean Sea, and the town of Kos is its main town. The ancient physician Hippocrates is thought to have been born on the island.
A trip here mixes ancient ruins, beach days and boat rides, and Kos tickets cover each of those plans. The list below names the main types, and later parts of this page explain each one:
- Archaeological site entry: the Asklepieion and the Casa Romana.
- Museum entry: the Archaeological Museum of Kos.
- Castle entry: the castle in Kos town.
- Water park entry: Lido Water Park at Mastichari.
- Ferry and boat tickets: Nisyros, Bodrum in Turkey, other islands and Piraeus.
- Flights: seats to and from the island’s airport.
- Local buses: rides between Kos town, beaches and villages.
Group your Kos tickets by day: entry passes for the town and its ruins on one day, then boat tickets for island trips on another. For beaches, villages and tours beyond tickets, start with our Kos island page.
Which Kos tickets can you book online?
You can book Kos tickets online through GetYourGuide for the Lido Water Park, the Asklepieion with an audio guide, the Kardamena to Nisyros ferry and two same-day return ferries from Bodrum to Kos, and each card lists free cancellation.
Each of these Kos tickets states its duration and what it covers on its GetYourGuide booking card:
- Lido Water Park entry ticket: one-day entry to a 75,000-square-metre park at Mastichari, 25 kilometres from Kos town, with an optional transfer.
- Asklepieion e-ticket and audio guide: a time-slot e-ticket plus a self-guided audio tour by Clio Muse Tours, for adults aged 18 and over.
- Kardamena to Nisyros ferry tickets: a boat crossing from the south coast of Kos, with early or late departures.
- Bodrum ferry tickets: two same-day return tickets from Bodrum, each with free time on Kos.
Choose Kos tickets by the plan for the day. An entry ticket opens the gate at one site or park, so the visit runs at your own pace. A boat ticket fixes a departure time, so the crossing shapes the rest of your day.
Before you pay, read five lines on each GetYourGuide card:
- the duration or the time slot
- what the ticket includes and what it leaves out
- the meeting point, the gate or the port
- the age bands and the proof of age asked for
- the cancellation terms
The Asklepieion pass is an e-ticket, so it opens on your phone with no printing. Book ahead of each card’s cut-off time, which the card shows before you pay.
How do Kos tickets for Lido Water Park work?
Kos tickets for Lido Water Park come as one GetYourGuide entry ticket. A transfer to the park is an optional add-on. You pick the number of adults, children, infants and seniors, then check which dates are open.
The GetYourGuide card for these Kos tickets bundles park entry with an optional transfer. The entry part lets you through the park gate. You decide on the transfer when you book. Skip it if you have a hire car or a scooter, and add it if you do not.
Kos tickets for the park sort your group into four age bands. Adults are 12 to 64, and children are 5 to 11. Infants are 4 and younger, and seniors are 65 to 99. Choose each band with care so the booking matches the people who will arrive at the gate.
The card does not list the slides, pools, lockers or opening season. Check those details with the park before you travel. For the rides and the layout, read our page on the Kos water park. Pack these items for a full day in the water:
- Swimwear, worn under your clothes to save time
- One towel for each person
- Sun cream, put on again after each swim
- A zip bag to keep your phone and money dry
How do Kos tickets for the Asclepieion work?
Kos tickets for the Asclepieion include a GetYourGuide e-ticket with an audio guide for the ancient healing sanctuary. GetYourGuide lists it under Kos Town. The card books adults aged 18 to 99, and ages 17 and younger are not permitted on it.
An asclepieion was a healing temple for Asclepius, the Greek god of medicine and a son of Apollo. His staff with a coiled snake inspired the symbol of medicine. Over 300 asclepieia have been found across ancient Greece. The one on Kos ranks beside Epidaurus, Trikka, Athens, Corinth and Pergamon as a leading example. A stay followed set steps:
- Purification first, with cleansing baths and a cleansing diet
- Temple sleep, when patients slept inside and waited for Asclepius to appear in a dream
- A priest who read the dream and prescribed a cure, such as baths or a gymnasium visit
Kos tickets to this site lead you to a place tied to Hippocrates. Herodicus is said to have taught him medicine at the Asclepieion. The sanctuary grew in the Hellenistic age. Three kings, among them Ptolemy III, guaranteed it as a place of refuge. The archaeologist Rudolf Herzog excavated it.
The e-ticket covers entry to the site, and the audio guide adds spoken commentary as you explore. Buying at the gate on the day gets you in. Kos tickets bought online through this card bundle entry with the audio guide and are booked before you arrive. For the full history and layout, see our page on the Asklepion of Kos.
Which museum Kos tickets can you buy?
The main museum entry among Kos tickets is the Archaeological Museum of Kos, on Eleftherias Square in Kos town. One ticket covers the island’s finds from ancient times to the late Roman period, with statues and a mosaic on show.
The museum fills a two-floor building from the Italian period, now a protected monument. Eleftherias Square lies in the centre of Kos town, and you can reach it on foot or by bike. Our Kos Archaeological Museum page walks through each hall.
Inside, the western hall shows statues from the Hellenistic era. The eastern hall holds Roman statues, including a seated Hermes. The 4th-century BC statue of Hippocrates, the ancient doctor of Kos, stands in the northwest hall.
Opening hours change by season. Check the current times before you buy Kos tickets for the museum.
Which castle and villa Kos tickets can you buy?
The castle and villa Kos tickets cover two sites in Kos town. The Castle of the Knights, or Neratzia, guards the harbour. Casa Romana is a Roman house with mosaics. No official source lists a combined ticket, so each site sells its own.
Castle of the Knights (Neratzia)
The Knights Hospitaller built the castle at the entrance of Kos harbour. Locals call it Neratzia, after the bitter orange trees that once grew inside its walls. The builders reused stones from the ancient city, and you can still see them set into the walls.
Until the early 20th century, a moat of sea water cut the castle off from the town. Access is over an arched stone bridge from the square of the Hippocrates Plane Tree. Our Castle of Nerantzia page tells its full story.
The official Kos municipal site has listed the castle as closed for a season of renovation works. Check its status before you plan Kos tickets for the castle.
Casa Romana
Casa Romana is a large Roman house with 36 rooms built around three open courtyards. Its 3rd-century AD mosaic floors show animals, such as panthers and tigers, and underwater scenes. Italian archaeologists excavated and restored the house during the Italian occupation of the island.
Casa Romana and the museum both sit in Kos town, so Kos tickets for the two fit one morning on foot. Read more about the villa on our Casa Romana page.
Open sites in town
The ancient agora, the western excavations and the Roman Odeon lie in the centre of Kos town. The agora was one of the biggest market places of the ancient world. The western excavations revealed rooms with mosaic floors that show fights between wild beasts.
The Odeon stands next to Casa Romana, and visitor sources list it as free to enter. Inside, you can walk its corridors, where panels explain the building. Check entry rules for the agora and the western excavations on the day.
The Plane Tree of Hippocrates stands in Platanou Square, in front of the castle. Tradition says Hippocrates taught his pupils under a plane tree on this spot. The tree in the square today is about 500 years old, and it needs no ticket. Kos tickets for the castle and the agora start a short walk from its shade.
How do ferry Kos tickets to Nisyros work?
Ferry Kos tickets to Nisyros start at the village of Kardamena on Kos. The GetYourGuide ticket covers the boat crossing between Kardamena and Nisyros, with early or late departure times. The card lists a duration of 1 to 10 hours.
The card does not state whether these Kos tickets are return or one way. Check the option you pick before you pay. The listing files the trip as a transfer, not a guided tour. Free cancellation applies, and you must book at least 1 hour ahead.
The ticket comes in four types: adult, youth, child and infant. The card also marks the trip as wheelchair accessible. Kardamena is the only departure point on this listing.
Nisyros is a volcanic Greek island in the Dodecanese, between Kos and Tilos. Its caldera is 3 to 4 kilometres wide. The volcano is active but not erupting, and steam vents called fumaroles rise from its craters. The main town and port of the island is Mandraki.
Your Kos tickets get you across the water, and the island day itself has its own page. Read our Nisyros day trip from Kos page for the full plan.
How do ferry Kos tickets to Bodrum work?
Ferry Kos tickets on the Bodrum route are same-day return tickets that start and end in Bodrum, Turkey. One leaves from the Bodrum cruise port, the other from the Bodrum Castle port. Both include free time to explore Kos on your own.
The two GetYourGuide Kos tickets differ in port, crossing time and length of day:
- Bodrum cruise port ticket: a 50-minute crossing, free time on Kos, then the boat back to Bodrum. The card lists 7 hours in total.
- Bodrum Castle port ticket: a fast ferry to Kos in 40 minutes, free time on the island, then the return trip the same day. The card lists 8 hours in total.
Neither card lists a check-in time. The cruise port ticket closes bookings 1 hour before departure, and the castle port ticket 40 minutes before. Both offer free cancellation and are marked wheelchair accessible. Each comes in adult, child and infant types, with the adult ticket from age 12.
These Kos tickets suit visitors who stay in Bodrum. The port of Bodrum runs ferries to nearby Greek islands, and Kos is its main link. A visitor based on Kos makes the same crossing in the other direction.
Bodrum is a port town in Muğla Province. In ancient times it was Halicarnassus, and its Mausoleum counted as one of the seven ancient wonders. The Knights Hospitaller later built Bodrum Castle from the remains of the Mausoleum.
The trip crosses an international border, so every traveller needs a passport. You pass passport control at both ports. Visa rules depend on your nationality, so check the official rules before you book your Kos tickets.
For a plan that starts on the Greek side, read our Bodrum day trip from Kos page.
Which ferry Kos tickets reach other Dodecanese islands?
Ferry Kos tickets reach Kalymnos, Pserimos, Leros, Patmos and Rhodes. Daily ferries link Kos with Rhodes, Patmos and Leros. The main boat to Kalymnos leaves from Mastichari, a small port on the island, about every two hours.
Kalymnos lies 12 km from Kos. Mastichari is a fishing village and resort 7 km from Kos International Airport. Its port has regular boats to Kalymnos. Ferries to Kalymnos also leave from the port of Kos town. Our Kalymnos day trip from Kos page sets out the full plan.
Pserimos is a small island between Kalymnos and Kos. It belongs to the municipality of Kalymnos. A daily ferry serves it from Pothia, the main port of Kalymnos. Cruise boats in the area also put Pserimos on their route. The Pserimos day trip from Kos page explains that boat outing.
Leros lies less than 2 km north of Kalymnos, linked to it by a chain of islets. Patmos sits further north, and Rhodes lies to the south. The big ferries on the Piraeus line stop at all three, so ferry Kos tickets can cover a full island hop.
- Book ferry and fast-boat Kos tickets online with the ferry company or a booking site.
- Buy a seat at a travel agency near the port if you prefer cash or paper.
- Keep the e-ticket on your phone, or print it if the company asks.
- Arrive at the port early to find the right quay and boat.
- Check the time of the last boat back before you leave Kos.
How do ferry Kos tickets from Piraeus work?
Ferry Kos tickets from Piraeus cover a long overnight crossing to the port of Kos town. Ferries sail the line every day. Passengers pick a deck place, an aircraft-style seat or a cabin, and the timetable changes with the season.
Piraeus is the port of Athens and the largest passenger port in Europe. Its ferries reach the Cyclades, Crete, the North Aegean islands and the Dodecanese. Free shuttle buses inside the port run from the Metro Line 1 terminal station. They stop at the ships sailing for the Dodecanese.
One Blue Star route calls at Syros, Amorgos, Patmos and Leros before Kos, then runs on to Rhodes. A second route passes Astypalaia, Fournoi, Ikaria, Patmos, Leipsoi, Leros and Kalymnos before it reaches Kos. That ship then sails on to Rhodes and Kastellorizo. Night ferries run on this line, so passengers sleep on board and step off at Kos town.
Blue Star sells economy deck places, aircraft-style seats, lounge seats, and inside or outside cabins. A cabin adds a bed and privacy for the night. Choose the seat type when you book your Kos tickets, since the class sets your comfort on board.
Drivers with a car check in 60 to 90 minutes before departure, as Blue Star advises. Foot passengers board with the e-ticket or a printed copy. Our how to get to Kos page compares the ferry with the other ways to arrive.
Where do you buy flight Kos tickets?
You buy flight Kos tickets from airline websites or flight booking sites, using the airport code KGS. Flights land at Kos International Airport “Hippocrates”, near the village of Antimachia. It sits about 24 km from Kos town, on the Kos-Kefalos road.
The airport is named after Hippocrates, the ancient Greek doctor. Fraport Greece runs it, and the Greek state owns it. It handles domestic flights all year and a wave of holiday charters in summer. Our Kos airport page has more on landing at and leaving the island.
Domestic Kos tickets link the island with mainland Greece and nearby islands. Aegean Airlines treats Kos as a focus city. It shares the domestic routes with Sky Express:
- Aegean Airlines: Athens and Thessaloniki all year, plus seasonal flights to Heraklion on Crete.
- Sky Express: Athens, Rhodes, Astypalaia, Kalymnos and Leros.
International Kos tickets cover seasonal flights that peak in summer. German and British airlines carry the largest share of holidaymakers. The list includes British Airways from London Gatwick, easyJet, Jet2, TUI, Condor, Eurowings and Ryanair. Routes change each season, so check the airline’s own schedule before you pay.
Other carriers on international Kos tickets include Transavia, Brussels Airlines, Austrian, Swiss, SAS, Finnair and LOT. BlueBird Airways and TUS Airways fly seasonal routes from Tel Aviv.
Booking sites compare airlines side by side in one search. The airline’s own website shows its full timetable and its baggage terms.
Once you land, a pre-booked car takes you straight to your hotel. Our Kos airport transfers page covers rides you book ahead. Package holiday firms such as TUI and Jet2holidays run their own transfer buses for their guests.
How do bus and taxi Kos tickets work?
Bus and taxi Kos tickets cover the ride from the airport and trips across the island. KTEL Kos runs the public buses. Metered taxis wait outside the airport terminal 24 hours a day, so you always have a way into town.
KTEL Kos is the island’s intercity bus company. Its office is in Kos town, the island’s main town and port, and it opens every day of the week. The company website posts two timetables: one for general routes and one for airport routes.
From the airport, the public bus runs to these stops:
- Kos town
- Mastichari
- Kardamena
- Kefalos
Ask at the KTEL Kos office or check its website for ticket points and departure times. The company posts notices about route changes and holiday cancellations, so read them before you buy bus Kos tickets.
Taxis give you a door-to-door option. A taxi service runs around the clock outside the airport terminal, and fares follow the meter. A taxi suits late arrivals, families and groups with heavy bags.
A hire car is a third way around the island, with no bus timetable to follow. Our Kos car rental page covers renting a car on the island.
A pre-booked transfer is the other choice. You fix the pickup before you travel, and the driver waits for you on arrival. Ferry passengers arrange the same kind of ride from the harbour through our Kos port transfers page.
When do you book Kos tickets?
Book Kos tickets for ferries, boat trips and the water park before you travel in summer. July and August are the busiest months. Buy site and museum entry on the day or online, after you check that season’s opening hours.
Kos has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate, and July and August are its hottest months. Ferry timetables are fullest in summer and shrink outside it. Archaeological sites and museums switch between summer and winter opening hours. A visit time that suits July can be wrong in winter.
The meltemi is the strong, dry north wind of the Aegean Sea. It blows from late spring until mid-September. It is strongest in the afternoon and can die down at night. It can also blow for days without a break. It can reach force 7 to 8 on the Beaufort scale.
The wind can rise in clear weather without warning, and small boats can stay in port on those days. Each operator decides about cancellations under its own rules. Plan your Kos tickets around the season with these steps:
- Check the ferry timetable for your exact dates before you book a hotel.
- Book the ferry first, then the boat trips and the water park around it.
- Put boat trips early in your stay, so a windy day leaves time for a new date.
- Check each sailing again the day before, since a timetable can change at short notice.
For the seasons and the weather on the island, read when to visit Kos.
What do travellers ask about Kos tickets?
Do children pay for Kos tickets to sites?
Rules for children differ by site and by seller. Check the official ticket page of each site or museum before you buy Kos tickets for a family. Carry a passport or ID card for each child. Gate staff can ask for proof of age before they accept a free or reduced ticket.
Can you show Kos tickets on your phone?
Yes, where the seller accepts e-tickets. An e-ticket carries a QR code or a booking reference that staff scan at the gate or the port. Check the email that came with your Kos tickets for the seller’s rules. If it asks for a printed boarding pass, print it before you reach the port.
Can you change Kos tickets for ferries?
Each ferry company sets its own rules for changing Kos tickets and lists them at booking. Before you pay, check the deadline for a change and any fee. Make every change through the seller that issued the ticket. Keep your booking reference ready, since the seller uses it to find your trip.
Are Kos tickets for boats refunded in bad weather?
Refunds depend on the boat operator, which sets its own rules and lists them at booking. Read the cancellation terms when you book Kos tickets for a boat trip. They state what you get when a trip is called off, such as a refund or a new date. Keep the booking email.