KOS
ISLAND GREECE
Kos Island
You're never far from sparkling
waters and sun-drenched beaches
on Kos. The island is small, but
perfectly formed, leaving you
within 11 kilometres of the
coast wherever you are. So
whether you want to bask in the
glory of the island's
archaeological heritage or
lounge in the sun, a refreshing
swim is never far away. Its
extensive coastline may be the
biggest draw-card for most
visitors, however it has a long
and proud history that has left
a rich legacy.
Most Greek islands claim to be
the home of something and Kos is
no different. Hippocrates, who
lived here, is said to be the
father of modern medicine and
the ruins at Asklepieion are
those of a healing centre built
on his teachings. In Kos town
you'll find monuments and ruins
around every corner. Perhaps the
most famous is the 14th century
Castle of the Knights which
dominates the town. The size of
Kos means exploration isn't too
difficult, the best way to see
the sights is by bike and with
over 4,000 to hire you shouldn't
have trouble finding one.
The beautiful harbor at Kos City
is a popular place to park a
yacht. The harbor is filled with
sights and sounds both day and
night as revelers party on boats
just off the coast, and in bars,
restaurants and clubs located on
the harbor itself. Of course,
there are locals here too, and
small fishing boats make up the
majority of the sea traffic. The
island of Kos is inhabited by
nearly 180,000 people, many of
them still living the
traditional lives of Greek
fishermen.
For those who desire a quieter
Kos vacation, the town of
Kefalos is filled with the
traditional and picturesque
white washed-blue roofed houses
with flank cliff-side roads.
This slightly inland town on the
western end of the island is
still home to several beach-side
resorts, though it is less
popular with the college-aged
crowd and was, just a few years
ago, a simple fishing village.
Kos town itself is a lively city
and is home to possibly hundreds
of hotels and villas. In the
middle of summer, the city is
filled with young European
tourists on break from school
and work and the nightclubs and
parties are going non-stop. In
the winter, life continues in
Kos, but at a much slower pace.
Of course, if at any time you
tire of Kos, there are many
Greek islands and the Turkish
coast (such as Bodrum resort)
nearby, each with their unique
charm and beauty and easily
accessibly by ferry as a day or
weekend trip. Kos has long been
loved by Greeks and the rest of
the world, and the tradition
continues. Like the many peoples
and civilizations before you,
you are sure to fall in love
with Kos upon your entrance to
its magnificent harbor; you may
never want to leave.
Holidays in Kos Island GREECE
Holidays on Kos feature a long
narrow island close to the coast
of Turkey with 25 miles of fine
beaches and a typically Greek
hot sunny climate. Kos is
particularly popular with
British holidaymakers looking
for a package holiday to the
Greek islands. Most holiday
places are based in the two
major resorts of Kardamaena and
Kos town. Hotels are
concentrated in beach resorts
like Lambi and Psalidi on the
popular east coast. Quieter
holidays are offered in the
smaller resorts of the north
coast. Most of the beaches offer
exciting watersports and
professional scuba diving
courses. Kos island offers
enjoyable mix of beach bars,
Greek dancing, live music and
discos, animated bars and
tavernas serving Greek food and
local wine alongside staple
tourist favourites. The
liveliest nightlife is found at
Kardamena, with Kos town a close
second. Nightlife in resorts
like Kefalos will more likely
revolve around quieter
waterfront tavernas. Away from
Kos beaches, you can find plenty
of ancient remains and history,
like the 14th century Castle of
the Knights. The humble bicycle
has become a uniquely important
part of holidays in Kos, with
thousands of bikes for hire and
plenty of cycle lanes and flat
countryside. Plenty of
excursions offered through olive
groves and mountains to visit
hot springs and charming small
villages like Lagoudi and Zia.
Boat trips are available to the
neighbouring islands of Kalymnos,
Patmos and unspoilt Nissyros.
Fast cat connections to Bodrum
Turkey are also on high demand.
Information about Kos
Island beaches
The beaches of Kos are no
secret. Every foot of the 180
miles of mostly sandy coastline
has been discovered.
Even so, for some reason, people
pack themselves together in
tight spaces. You can spot the
package-tour sites from afar by
their umbrellas, dividing the
beach into plots measured in
centimeters. Tingaki and
Kardamena epitomize this
avoidable phenomenon. Following
are a few guidelines to help you
in your quest for uncolonized
sand. The beaches just 3 to 5
kilometers (2 to 3 miles) east
of Kos town are among the least
congested on the island,
probably because they're pebbled
rather than sandy. Even so, the
view is splendid and the nearby
hot springs worth a good soak.
In summer, the water on the
northern coast of the island is
warmer and shallower than that
on the south, though less clear
due to stronger winds. If you
walk down from the resorts and
umbrellas, you'll find some
relatively open stretches
between Tingaki and Mastihari.
The north side of the island is
also best for windsurfing; try
Tingaki and Marmara, where
everything you need can be
rented on the beach. A perfect
day exploring the northwestern
tip of the island would consist
of a swim at Limnionas Bay
followed by grilled red mullets
at Taverna Miltos.
Opposite, on the southern coast,
Kamel Beach and Magic Beach are
less congested than Paradise
Beach, which lies between them.
Either can be reached on foot
from Paradise Beach, a stop for
the Kefalos bus. The
southwestern waters are cooler
yet calmer than those along the
northern shore; and, apart from
Kardamena and Kefalos Bay, the
beaches on this side of the
island are less dominated by
package tourists. Note that
practically every sort of water
sport, including jet-skiing, can
be found at Kardamena. Finally,
for surfing, the extreme
southwestern tip of the island,
on the Kefalos peninsula near
Ayios Theologos, offers an ideal
stretch of remote shoreline.
Kos Island sites and attractions - Kos
Island highlights ...
Kos is undisputedly one of the
most beautiful islands of the
Aegean Sea, lying in the centre
of the Dodecanese chain, south
east of continental Greece and
north west of Rhodes. It is the
third largest of the Dodecanese
(a Greek word meaning "Twelve
Islands") islands after Rhodes
and Karpathos. Kos is a major
province within the Dodecanese
Prefecture and is the
administrative capital of
Nisyros, Giali, Pergoussa,
Kandeliousa, Pahia and Strogili.
Kos island is part of a chain of
mountains from which it became
separated after earthquakes and
subsidence that occurred in
ancient times. These mountains
include Kalymnos and Kappari
which are separated by an
underwater chasm 40 fathoms
deep, as well as the volcano of
Nisyros and the surrounding
islands. There is a wide variety
of rocks in Kos which is related
to its geographical formation.
Prominent among these are the
Quaternary layers in which the
fossil remains of mammals such
as horses, hippopotami and
elephants have been found. The
fossil molar of an elephant of
gigantic proportions was
presented to the Paleontology
Museum of the University of
Athens.
The shores of Kos island are
washed by the waters of the
Karpathian Sea. Its geographical
location is between latitude 36
degrees and 50 minutes north and
longitude 27 degrees and 10
minutes east. Its coastline is
112 km long and is caressed by
long immaculate beaches of
golden sand. The main religion
practiced is Orthodoxy and as
such, Kos has one of the four
Cathedrals in the entire
Dodecanese. There is also a
Roman Catholic Church on the
island as well as a Mosque
catering to the Muslim community
of Kos. The Synagogue is no
longer used for religious
ceremonies as the Jewish
community of Kos was practically
wiped out by the Nazis in World
War Two. It has however been
restored and is maintained with
all religious symbols intact and
is now used by the Municipality
of Kos for various events,
mainly cultural.
Kos Island Nightlife - Clubs, Cafes &
Restaurants
Kos nightlife is no more
difficult to find than your own
nose. Just go down to the harbor
and follow the sounds of music.
The port-side cafes opposite the
daily excursion boats to
Kalimnos are best in the early
morning. Platanos, across from
the Hippokrates Tree, has live
music, often jazz; and just
across from Platanos is the
beginning of Bar Street, which
needs no further introduction.
The lively Fashion Club, Kanari
2, Dolphins Square, has the most
impressive light-and-laser show.
On Zouroudi there are two
popular discos, Heaven and Calua,
with its swimming pool. If you
want to hit the bar scene, try
the Hamam on Akti Kountourioti,
Beach Boys at Kanari 57, or The
Blues Brothers on Dolphins
Square. Another option is an
old-fashioned outdoor movie, Kos
style, at the Open Cine Orfeas,
Odos Vas. Yioryiou 10, showing
relatively recent films, often
in English.
Climate and weather in Kos
Island GREECE
The sunny island of Kos in the
north eastern Aegean Sea enjoys
a typically Mediterranean
climate, attracting
holidaymakers to its shores
throughout the hot dry summers.
The average annual temperature
on Kos is 25C, with the spring
and autumn months bringing warm
sunny weather, and winters
staying fairly mild and gentle,
with plenty of rainfall. The
summer season begins around May,
when temperatures in Kos are a
pleasant 21C, reaching 25C by
June. July and August tend to be
extremely hot, and rainfall is
practically non-existent during
the height of the summer. Highs
of over 30C are common, however
temperatures average out at 28C,
and the evenings do tend to cool
down, with temperatures dropping
to 22C at night. Like most of
Greece and her islands, the
island is blessed with plenty of
sunshine, with the height of the
summer sometimes seeing up to 12
hours of sun a day. For a break
from the oppressive heat, many
visitors find the spring and
autumn the best time to visit
Kos, when the temperatures
ranges between 16C and 20C,
there is plenty of sunshine and
the sea is still warm enough to
swim in. Winters on Kos are
mild, with temperatures dropping
to around 10C during January and
February. Showers can be
expected between October and
May, with December being the
wettest month, and rainfall
decreasing dramatically after
March. The sun continues to
shine during the winter, with
Kos still receiving roughly 4 or
5 hours a day during this time.
|
Kos Island |
Air |
Sea |
|
January |
13°
C |
17,9°
C |
|
February |
15°
C |
17°
C |
|
March |
17°
C |
16.9°
C |
|
April |
21°
C |
17°
C |
|
May |
26°
C |
19.5°
C |
|
June |
30°
C |
22.5°
C |
|
July |
31°
C |
24°
C |
|
August |
30°
C |
25°
C |
|
September |
27°
C |
25°
C |
|
October |
20°
C |
23°
C |
|
November |
17°
C |
20°
C |
|
December |
15°
C |
19°
C |
Getting to Kos island - flights
& ferries - Getting around ...
There are ferries from Piraeus
that leave daily usually in the
afternoon. The islands on the
same route as Kos are Patmos,
Leros, Kalymnos and Rhodes.
These islands can be reached
daily from Kos. There are
occasionally boats to Syros and
to Samos and Thessaloniki. There
are daily boats to Bodrum in
Turkey leaving at 17:00 each
afternoon and returning at 10:00
next morning. This travel takes
only 20 minutes. You may book
online on https://www.blueguide.com.
In the summer you can take a
hydrofoil to Rhodes, Samos,
Ikaria and Fourni. There are
excursion boats which go to
various beaches on the island as
well as to the islands of
Kalymnos, Pserimos, Plati,
Nisyros and Giali.
Kos is connected throughout the
year with Athens by Olympic
Airway flights. The flights
takes 50'. There are also many
other flights, both on other
Greek airlines and on charter
flights from all over the world,
whose destination is the airport
of Kos. There are three flights
a day between Athens and Kos.
You can take a taxi to the
airport or the Olympic Airways
bus leaves the Kos office two
hours before the flight. By sea
there are numerous daily
connections from Piraeus (the
main port of Greece) and from
several islands in the
Dodecanese like Kalymnos,
Nisyros, Patmos, Leros and
Rhodes. There are also the
hydrofoils to Rhodes, Patmos,
Leros, and Samos. For additional
information and for up-to-date
timetables and schedules for
ferry boats and hydrofoils,
please contact info@blueguide.com.
Roads are reasonably good
between the resorts with the
main road from Kos Town to the
airport and Kefalos being the
only one you could reasonably
call busy. Taxis are plentiful
and found mostly around the
harbour area beneath the minaret
or across from the castle. Some
of Kos taxi drivers speak
English but some don't. Taxis
fares are fixed but is often a
good idea to negotiate a price
before getting in. There are a
couple of tourist trains
operated by KTEL. A green one
does a round trip of Kos Town
and the blue one ferries people
to the Asklepieion. They are
pricey and slow but it is the
only public transport to the
Asklepieion from Kos Town.
Kos Town buses (DEAS) run routes
around the town while KTEL buses
take you everywhere else. Buses
are frequent to the main
resorts. The main bus station is
in Kos Town, on Kleopatras
Street. Tickets are bought on
the bus although you get up to
30% off if you buy at the bus
station. There are 10 buses
daily to Tigaki, six to Kefalos
via Paradise beaches, five to
Mastichari and Pyli, three daily
to Zia. Buses go from Kos Town
every 30mins to Psaldi and Agios
Fokas, Mesaria and Platani.
Latest schedules are posted at
Kos Town harbour and the bus
station. Timetables are
available free of charge, both
in Greek and in English. Most
DEAS town buses operate from the
bus stop on the south side of
the harbour.
Quick facts - Kos Island Overview
Kos sits bang in the middle of
the Dodecanese chain of Greek
islands that hug the Turkish
coast. Kos is about 45km long
its width varies from 2km to
11km. It is a popular resort
with the British and it has gone
for mass-market tourism in
majority. Much has been ravished
by package tourism, though it
still has something to offer the
more discerning visitor. The
coast of Kos is swept by
magnificent sandy beaches and
the island has some of the most
interesting archaeological sites
in the Mediterranean. The
combination of sand and
sightseeing give Kos a uniquely
broad appeal though most
visitors will probably prefer
beaches to history. And, for an
all-in beach holiday Kos must be
considered one of the best of
the Greek islands. Isolated
hotel complexes are now a more
characteristic feature than
villages or resorts, especially
around Kos Town and Kardamena.
While the island is too big to
seem overcrowded, some visitors
would have preferred hotel
builders to stick to one
particular area of the island as
fewer empty coastal areas are
left to be enjoyed.
A long, thin island - almost
64km end to end - Kos is also
mostly flat and low-lying. In
general the scenery is not
outstanding by Greek standards.
The main scenic interest is
found in the more mountainous
south of the island while the
north is a flat, featureless and
rather monotonous plain. Kos has
remained one of the most popular
package holiday destinations for
many years. Tourist numbers are
up seven per cent since 2000 at
around 700,000, swamping the
local population of 22,000.
British visitor numbers hover
around the 217,000 mark.
Kos town and Kardamena are the
two biggest resorts but hotels
have sprung up behind most
beaches and some, especially
along the flat northern
coastline have been built in
some pretty desolate spots. The
flat plains have made cycling
uniquely popular on Kos and
there are some 5,000 cycles for
hire at the height of the
season. Excursions are popular
and plentiful on Kos, not only
around and across the island but
to neighbouring islands such as
Pserimos and also to Turkey. Kos
is mostly flat and ideal for
cycles. It is also one of the
few, if not the only island to
have dedicated cycle lanes over
much of the island. The only
road that is busy is the one
from Kos town to Kefalos, all
the others have little traffic
and are safe for cycling. Don't
try to heave your bike onto a
bus, they won't let you. Bike
hire is available in many places
with prices from 4euro to 12euro
a day, cheaper if you hire for
several days. Cycles come with
locks so you needn't worry about
security but beware - they all
look the same. it's a good idea
to tie a coloured ribbon on it
so you can spot which one is
yours.
LOCATION OF THE PORT IN
KOS ISLAND
Kos ferry port is situated in
Kos town, in the north-east of
the island, and is a lively and
bustling port providing fast cat
and ferry connections to many of
the other Dodecanese islands and
Turkey.
Daily fast cats are linking the
port of Kos with Bodrum port in
Turkey, book in advance online.
Daily routes are linking the
port of Piraeus with Kos and
from Kos Island also is also
connected by ferry boats with
the Dodecanese Islands (Kos and
Rhodes), the Islands of the
Northeastern Aegean (Ikaria and
Samos) and Turkey.
GEOGRAPHICAL COORDINATES OF
KOS ISLAND PORT
36°51′N 27°14′E
KOS
ISLAND USEFUL TELEPHONES
Kos Port tel. +30 224 2028059
Our Office tel. +90 252 417 11 28
Kos Harbour Master tel. +30 2242
0 26594-6
Kos Customs tel. +30 2242
2022218
Kos Coast Guard tel. 108
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