Symi keeps a network of old stone footpaths, the kalderimi, that once tied the town to farms, chapels, monasteries and hidden bays. These paved mule tracks crossed the bare interior long before the coast road, and walkers now follow them to cross the island on foot. The routes climb from the upper town, run over … Read more
The Monastery of the Archangel Michael Roukouniotis is the oldest monastery on Symi, an island in the Dodecanese between Kos and Rhodes. Known in Greek as Taxiarchis Michail Roukouniotis, it stands in the hills southwest of Chorio, the upper village above the harbour. The complex honours the Archangel Michael, the Taxiarch and commander of the … Read more
Agia Marina is a small beach on the northeast coast of Symi, set near the fishing bay of Pedi. A tiny islet lies a short distance offshore, and a white chapel of Agia Marina stands on the rock. Swimmers reach the islet by wading through shallow water or by a short swim across the channel. … Read more
Symi built its nineteenth-century wealth on sponge diving and the sponge trade. The small Dodecanese island sent a large fleet across the Aegean and down to the North African coast to work the seabeds for natural sponges. Profits from the trade paid for the neoclassical mansions that ring the harbour and the upper town, and … Read more
Nanou is one of the largest beaches on the east coast of Symi, set at the mouth of a green valley of pine and tamarisk. Grey pebbles line the long shore, and the water drops away fast into deep, clear blue. Most visitors arrive by taxi-boat from Gialos, the main harbour, on a ride of … Read more
Marathounta is a quiet pebble bay on the southeast coast of Symi, set well back from the harbour town. The wide cove opens toward the sea, framed by dry hills where goats graze above the shore. A single taverna stands back from the pebbles, the one building on the bay, with sunbeds and tamarisk shade … Read more
Toli is a remote sandy-pebble bay on the northwest coast of Symi, set in a wide inlet backed by bare hills. Coarse sand and pebbles line the shore, and the water runs clear, calm and sheltered from the open sea. A rough unpaved road drops to Toli from Chorio, the upper village, better with a … Read more
Agios Nikolaos is a sandy beach on the east side of Symi, set across Pedi bay from the fishing village of Pedi. The cove ranks among the rare genuinely sandy beaches on this rocky Dodecanese island. Shallow, calm, clear water fringes the sand, which draws families with young children through the warm season. A small … Read more
Agios Georgios Dysalona is a small pebble beach on the east coast of Symi, set beneath a sheer rock cliff. The cliff rises about 300 metres straight from the sea, framing a narrow band of grey pebble at the waterline. No road reaches the cove, so a taxi-boat or excursion boat from Gialos carries every … Read more
Symi is a small Dodecanese island between Rhodes and the Turkish coast, and its calendar splits sharply by season. The best time to visit Symi falls in late spring, across May and June, and in early autumn, across September and October. These windows pair warm sea, hot but manageable days, calmer water and thinner crowds. … Read more
Symi sits in the Dodecanese near Rhodes, and its accommodation gathers in a handful of distinct areas rather than one long resort strip. Gialos, the harbour of Symi Town, forms the main base, walkable to tavernas, ferries and shops. Chorio, the upper town, holds quieter guesthouses reached by the stepped climb of the Kali Strata. … Read more
Nos beach is the closest beach to the harbour of Symi Town, the swimming spot for visitors staying in Gialos. The pebble cove sits north of the port, reached by a flat coastal path in ten to fifteen minutes on foot. No boat or bus stands between the quay and the sand, since the walkway … Read more