The island of Rhodes offers castles, mosaic pathways, ancient ruins, cascading waterfalls, even a park filled with rare butterflies. There’s something for everyone on this popular Dodecanese island paradise.

Most visitors to the hilly island begin in the main harbor town, also called Rhodes (or Rhodes Town). The Ancient Greeks built it in 408 B.C. Mandrake Harbor is best known for the legend that the 93-foot-high Colossus statue stood astride it, guarding it. The statue lasted only 60 years, collapsing in an earthquake, and some 900 camels were needed to cart it away.

Today statues of a deer and a buck, symbols of Rhodes Town, have the honor of protecting Mandrake Harbor. The windmills are the most photographed area of the harbor. If you notice that local cats appear rather plump, it’s not your imagination. Peek behind the famous windmills and you’ll find a collection point for donations of coins and bills for cat food purchases. Today the town‘s population exceeds 40,000. Its famous medieval Street of the Knights leads directly to the Grand Master’s Palace and you can walk the pebbled way to admire the marbled coats of arms marking each knight’s inn. The Knights of St. John used Rhodes as their base from 1309 to 1522 A.D. It takes some legwork, but exploring the palace wouldn’t be complete unless you hiked through the old moat, today complete with an open-air theater.

Nearby you’ll find the Archaeological Museum (closed Mondays) and also the ruins of the Temple of Aphrodite, dating from 300 B.C. To see the aquarium or casino (where you must be at least 23 years old to enter), you‘ll have to travel to the northern part of Rhodes Town. While there, stop by Villa Cleobolus, where Lawrence Durrell lived from 1945-47.

If you’re a sports fan, maybe you can plan your visit around the NatWest Island Games XII. If shopping is your passion, busy Socrates Street is the place to head. This is where cruise passengers come ashore to stock up on jewelry and furs. You’ll find women at looms making handwoven rugs, potters working their wheels or painting vases and vendors hawking marble or leather. You‘ll find trendy boutiques, designer shops and dozens of eateries.

Rhodes Island draws in plenty of tourists and has been pegged “the Aegean Mallorca.“ You can count on finding plenty of souvenirs – such as books about Rhodes, sea shells, sponges (imported), local wine or retsina and decorative plates edged in gold.

Each arched pathway leads to something worth seeing, be it the Hippocrates Square or another fine taverna. Select a visit to a church, or perhaps the old synagogue or a mosque.

How to get there:

Connections by sea: from Peiraias, ferry to Rhodes (250 nautical miles, 18 hours). The ships for Rhodes from Peiraias usually depart from gates E1 (Vasilieadi shore) and E2 (Ietioneia shore).

Connections by air: from Athens to Rhodes (50 minutes). Rhodes’ airport is located near Kremasti, 12 km from the capital.