A fast catamaran needs about 2 hours and 20 minutes to cross from Bodrum to Rhodes Town, and one GetYourGuide listing wraps that into a 10-hour day. Two booking sites disagree on whether the direct sailing runs now, so check your date before anything else.
Once you land, the Old Town is a short walk from the quay, while Lindos is a 1 hour 15 minute bus ride each way. Crossing from Turkey is one way into Greece, and the Greece Tours homepage opens the full list of destinations.
Can you do a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum?
Yes, it works as one long day on a fast catamaran, if that sailing is on sale for your date. A GetYourGuide listing sells a 10-hour day trip from Bodrum. Booking sites disagree on whether a direct sailing runs, so confirm your date first.
A Rhodes day trip from Bodrum covers a long stretch of sea. The first ferry-booking site puts the distance between the two ports at 70 nautical miles, about 130 km. A Bodrum tour page quotes 159 km. Wikipedia says Rhodes lies 18 km from the southern shore of Turkey, a far shorter gap than either figure.
The first site gives the fastest crossing as 2 hours. A tour page puts the catamaran journey at around 2 hours and 20 minutes. The GetYourGuide listing lasts 10 hours in all.
Take two crossings of 2 hours each away from those 10 hours. A Rhodes day trip from Bodrum then leaves about 6 hours for transfers, border checks and the island. That sum is plain arithmetic, not a figure any listing states.
Check that the sailing exists before you plan a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum. The second ferry-booking site says no ferry operator runs a direct Bodrum to Rhodes route at present. The first site says the route ran in a past summer and marks its new timetable as unconfirmed.
Wikipedia’s Rhodes city article names Marmaris and Fethiye as examples of Turkish towns with frequent routes to Rhodes. It does not name Bodrum. The Bodrum article says the port serves nearby Turkish and Greek islands, with Kos the main one. Tour pages and one GetYourGuide listing still sell the crossing as a ticket.
The indirect route splits the day in two. The second site lists Bodrum to Kos at 20 to 30 minutes. It lists Kos to Rhodes at 2.5 to 3 hours.
That site puts the whole trip at 4 to 5 hours, wait included. Two one-way trips of that length fill 8 to 10 hours. The direct catamaran spends about 4 hours at sea. A Rhodes day trip from Bodrum on the Kos route leaves far less time ashore.
Wikipedia gives the island’s length as 79.7 km and its widest point as 38 km. Rhodes city sits at the north-east tip. The crossing therefore ends at the top of a long island.
How do you cross from Bodrum to Rhodes for a day trip?
You sail on a fast catamaran from the port of Bodrum and land in the north of Rhodes. Bring your passport and reach the port early. The tour pages bundle the pickup, the day ticket and the return transfer.
One tour page describes the vessel as a fast catamaran with a coffee bar and toilets on board. The first booking site says the catamarans carry no vehicles and have no cabins. It names air-conditioned lounges and snack bars as the basic services on a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum.
Wikipedia places Bodrum at the mouth of the Gulf of Gökova. The first site says the ferry port lies about 2 km from the city centre. You reach it by car, taxi or dolmuş minibus. Shops, a café and an information booth stand near the quay.
One tour page says its pickup comes at 08:00 or near that time and drives you to the port. Another page lists a daily 8:00 AM departure for the crossing. Both point to a morning start.
The first site says boats from Bodrum arrive at Chora, also called the Rhodes Tourist Port. It is within walking distance of the Old Town. The second site calls its arrival port the Commercial Port, right next to the Old Town.
Wikipedia adds that the Central Port handles scheduled services to and from Turkey. A boat from Bodrum lands in the north of the island, and the Old Town is a walk away. Your Rhodes day trip from Bodrum begins on that quay.
The first site wants you at the port at least 1 hour before boarding. Bodrum’s port gets busy in summer. The second site’s page on Greece to Turkey crossings tells foot passengers to arrive 60 minutes before departure.
That page says boarding gates close around 15 to 20 minutes before departure. It also says every passenger passes passport control and customs checks at both ports.
One tour page lists what its Rhodes day trip from Bodrum package covers. That is the pickup, the day return ticket, port taxes and insurance. For one operator, the first site says online tickets are collected on paper at the company’s desks in the port.
After the day on Rhodes, the return transfer picks you up at Bodrum Harbour. It takes you back to your first pickup point. A tour that bundles the transfers makes the Rhodes day trip from Bodrum a single booking.
Which Rhodes day trip from Bodrum listings can you book?
One GetYourGuide listing sells the crossing: a fast catamaran ticket from Bodrum to Rhodes that lasts 10 hours. It offers free cancellation and pickup. It shows no reviews yet and carries a new-activity label.
The title calls the product a ticket. The listing text invites you to explore the city, sunbathe on beaches or see the ancient ruins. It prices each traveller separately, in adult, child and infant bands.
The listing marks pickup as available and free cancellation as included. Its review count reads zero, so no earlier traveller has rated it. Open the calendar before you plan, because its dates decide your Rhodes day trip from Bodrum.
The GetYourGuide feeds for Bodrum show no second listing for this crossing. The Bodrum listings that name a Greek island all name Kos, in return ferries of 8 to 11 hours. They are a different trip, with a different island at the end.
Tour agency pages sell a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum outside GetYourGuide as well. One page offers it as a day return ticket with pickup. Another lists it as a ferry day trip with a two-way transfer, a ferry ticket and insurance.
Compare the pickup time and the return time on each page before you pay. The pages list different inclusions, so read each one to the end. The Rhodes day trip from Bodrum itself is what you do between the two sailings.
When the crossing is not on sale for your date, our Bodrum tours page lists other trips from the resort. The listing then becomes a fallback, not the plan. A same-day crossing needs a confirmed timetable.
What fits into Rhodes Old Town on a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum?
Five stops fit into a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum. They are a gate, the Street of the Knights, the palace, the mosque and the Jewish Quarter. Wikivoyage says the whole Old Town needs at least a full day.
A boat day takes a slice of the Old Town, not all of it. The town sits inside a wall 4 km long, and over 6,000 people live inside it. Wikivoyage says the main way to get around is on foot. That suits a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum, because the walk starts at the harbour.
Around 200 streets and lanes in the Old Town have no name, says Wikivoyage, so getting lost is easy. On a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum, keep to this order. Each stop has one fact to look for.
- Gate: Eleven gates open into the walls. The Marine Gate was the main entrance from the harbour, so use it or the gate nearest your quay.
- Street of the Knights: The Italian authorities asked one architect to plan the rebuilding of both this street and the palace.
- Palace of the Grand Master: A large plaque near the entrance still carries the name of Mussolini.
- Mosque of Suleiman: It has been closed for worship since two thousand fourteen and opens for special occasions. A fountain with an octagonal base and eight columns stands in front.
- Jewish Quarter: The Kahal Shalom synagogue was completed in fifteen seventy-seven and is the oldest synagogue in Greece. The building holds the Jewish Museum of Rhodes, which tells the story of the community.
- Exit gate: The Gate of Saint Catherine is also called the Windmills Gate, and it opens toward the harbour mole. Of the 13 windmills that stood on the mole east of the commercial harbour, one is left.
Each stop has a long story, and the Rhodes Old Town page tells it. The boat day only needs the order and the clock.
Euro City Guide says the walls are up to 12 metres thick in places. Look up at them from the gate before you walk in. A Rhodes day trip from Bodrum starts with that view.
One Bodrum tour page places the Square of the Jewish Martyrs close to the Gate of Saint Catherine. That makes the Jewish Quarter a natural last stop. Inside the synagogue, the floor is a mosaic of black and white local stones. The museum opened in nineteen ninety-seven.
Where can you eat on a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum?
Three places work for lunch on a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum. They are Sokratous Street, the square at the end of Sofokleous Street and Alhadeff Street. Wikivoyage lists tavernas on all three, from seafood tavernas to meze houses.
Sokratous Street is the busy tourist street of the Old Town. Euro City Guide says gyros shops cluster near the main market area there. Wikivoyage names a courtyard cafe behind the Spanish inn on Ippoton Street. The cafe sits in a fourteenth-century mansion and is an oasis away from that bustle.
A seafood place in a tiny lane by number 17 on Sokratous Street has outdoor seating on a cosy backstreet. Wikivoyage says it serves fish, salad and wine, and the dorado is the dish to try.
At the end of Sofokleous Street, another seafood taverna has tables on a local square. Its grill is built into the wall, and the fish is caught locally. Wikivoyage points to the grilled octopus and the homemade tzatziki.
Euro City Guide says Sokratous Street links Hippocrates Square to the Mosque of Suleiman. A meal on that street fits between the mosque and the Jewish Quarter on a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum.
Ask for Rhodian food by name when you sit down. Wikipedia lists pitaroudia, a chickpea dumpling, and lakani, goat meat with chickpeas. It also names matsi, a hand-made pasta, and amygdalota, white almond cookies. On a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum, pick one dish and one sweet.
Wikipedia calls souma and koriantolino the main alcoholic drinks of Rhodes. Souma is a colourless drink made by distilling grapes. Wikivoyage adds Mythos beer and ouzo, and it says the tap water is drinkable.
A Turkish coffee house on Sokratous Street keeps a piece of Ottoman Rhodes alive, says Wikivoyage. It sells coffee and other drinks, plus snacks, but not much food. It makes an atmospheric break on a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum.
Is Lindos realistic on a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum?
Lindos does not fit into a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum. It lies about 40 km south of Rhodes city. The bus ride takes 1 hour 15 minutes each way, says Wikivoyage. A round trip is 2 hours 30 minutes.
Start with the sea. One Bodrum tour page puts the crossing at around 2 hours and 20 minutes. You cross twice on a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum, so the water takes about 4 hours 40 minutes. Add the bus, and travel alone fills about 7 hours 10 minutes.
A catamaran day ticket from Bodrum lasts 10 hours. Take away 7 hours 10 minutes of travel and under 3 hours remain. That time must cover the walk to the bus, the climb in Lindos and the way back to the boat. Wikivoyage puts both Rhodes bus stations just outside the Old Town wall, near the waterfront.
The bus is not an express. Wikivoyage says buses on the east coast run slow because of frequent stops. The 1 hour 15 minutes is the figure to plan with.
Wikipedia says Lindos lies on the east coast, in a large bay facing the small resort of Charaki. Wikivoyage counts about 700 inhabitants. Its cobbled lanes are closed to cars, and only donkeys and mopeds pass. Wikivoyage calls the climb to the acropolis definitely an effort.
At the top, Wikipedia lists the Doric temple of Athena Lindia. It also lists a Hellenistic stoa that was 87 metres long with 42 columns. That is a visit of its own. The clock leaves no room for it on a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum.
Wikivoyage’s Lindos page says Rhodes Town alone is well worth at least a whole day. Spend the boat day on the Old Town walk above. Keep Lindos for a day that you spend on Rhodes itself.
What do passports and border checks involve on a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum?
You show your passport on the way out and again on the way home. Greece sits inside the Schengen Area and Turkey sits outside it, so each leg meets an external border.
A Rhodes day trip from Bodrum meets the Schengen external border rules. Wikipedia says a border guard checks every person who crosses an external border, inbound or outbound. Those checks happen at roads, airports, seaports and on trains.
Wikipedia’s list of border checks splits entry from exit. On entry, officers check the purpose of the stay and the funds for it and the way home, with exceptions. On exit, officers skip those two checks. That list applies to visitors who are not EU, EEA or Swiss citizens.
You meet both lists on the day: entry when you land on Rhodes and exit when you sail home. Carriers must also check your travel documents before boarding, Wikipedia says. One operator page says your passport is stamped out of Turkey and stamped again when you return.
Visitors from outside the EU and EFTA also meet the Entry/Exit System at the Greek port. Wikipedia says it stores your name, birth date, fingerprints and a face scan. It replaced passport stamps at Schengen borders. On your first pass, an officer takes your photo or scans your fingerprints. Later entries only need an identity check.
Wikipedia reports waits of up to five hours at certain border points since the system began. It adds that travellers can register early, in certain cases, at self-service points or in the Travel to Europe app. The app works only where it is offered in the country of arrival or departure.
Self-service kiosks at certain crossings serve people who passed through less than three years ago and hold biometric passports. Travellers who are not EU, EEA or Swiss citizens also need a passport with enough validity.
For a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum, Wikipedia gives two passport rules for short stays. The passport must stay valid for at least three months after you leave the Schengen Area. It must also be issued within the last 10 years. A justified emergency can waive the first rule.
How do you pay and stay connected on a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum?
Bring euros: Rhodes pays in them, while Bodrum pays in Turkish lira. Check your phone plan before you sail, because Turkey sits outside the EU roaming rule. In summer both shores show the same time.
The euro is the sole currency of 21 EU member states, and Greece is one of them. Turkey’s currency is the Turkish lira, symbol TL, which divides into 100 kuruş.
On a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum you spend euros ashore, so get them first. One operator page says to buy euros at a bank or change office in Bodrum the day before. It adds that cash machines take cards and exchange desks change money into euros.
A Rhodes travel guide says banks in Rhodes town offer exchange services. To exchange cash at a bank, take your passport. The guide adds that almost all hotels have an exchange office on their front desk.
Turkey stays on UTC+3 through the whole year, Wikipedia says. Greece runs on UTC+2, then adds an hour for summer time. Greek summer time begins on the last Sunday in March and stops on the last Sunday in October. Across those months, both shores run on the same time. In the other months, Bodrum is one hour ahead of Rhodes.
Roaming works differently. Wikipedia says the Roam like at Home rule abolished all roaming charges within the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. Turkey is not on that list, so ask your mobile provider about roaming on Rhodes before you go.
Sockets are the same on both sides. Wikipedia’s table gives Greece and Turkey type C and type F sockets. Both have a 230/400 volt supply at 50 hertz. Your phone charger from Bodrum plugs into Rhodes sockets.
What questions come up before a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum?
Can children join a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum?
Yes, children join a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum, and each seller sets its own age groups. One operator page counts ages 7 to 12 as a child and 0 to 6 as an infant. The same page says families, singles and groups all take the trip.
At a first entry, Wikipedia says, officers take fingerprints from travellers aged 12 and over. Ask the seller which age group your child falls into before you pay.
Do EU citizens face the same checks on a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum?
No. The Entry/Exit System does not apply to EU and EFTA citizens, or to holders of a Schengen residence permit. Citizens of Andorra, Monaco, San Marino and the Vatican City are exempt too. Other visitors register on a first pass, unless they hold a long-stay Schengen visa.
Wikipedia says external crossings can keep one lane for EEA and Swiss citizens and other lanes for all travellers. Pick your lane at the Greek port before you join a queue.
Can you pay by card on a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum?
Yes. A Rhodes travel guide says shops and hotels take Visa, MasterCard and other well-known cards. Cash can still get a better price than a card, so carry euros too.
The same guide says ATMs are everywhere. Use one when you need more euros on a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum.
Do you need a visa for a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum?
It depends on your passport. Wikipedia says citizens of around 60 nations can enter the Schengen Area without a visa. Nationals of certain other countries must hold one. A ferry-search site tells non-EU visitors to check the visa rules.
A visa is not a travel document, Wikipedia says, so you carry your passport as well. Check your own rule for a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum before the day, not at the port.
Can you stay overnight after a Rhodes day trip from Bodrum?
The ticket in the sources is a day return, and the pages that sell it describe no night on Rhodes. Ask the seller before you plan one. Wikipedia says visa-free visitors have a limit of 90 days for each 180-day period.
A night on Rhodes is a different trip. Our guide on how to get to Rhodes lists the other ways in, by sea or by air.