Rhodes

Rhodes is also incredibly “user-friendly” in that the most spectacular historical sights on the island are also very easy to access. Of course, one of the things for which Rhodes was most famous in antiquity is no longer around—the Colossus of Rhodes was a monumental statue of the sun god Helios that stood guard at the entrance to Rhodes’ Mandraki harbor for 54 years until it was toppled by an earthquake in 226 BC. Until that time, it had stood some 108 feet high making it one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Where you see a pair of bronze statues of two deers (their names are Elefos and Elafina, by the way) on either side of the harbor entrance is where each foot of the Colossus is said to have stood. The 15th-century fortress of Agios Nikolaos, at the end of the jetty, is an iconic spot to view all the daily pageantry of the harbor.

In the lower town outside the walls, there is an array of architecture from the Ottoman era. There are ancient houses and hammams (public baths) to see, the Clock Tower, well-preserved Byzantine chapels and minarets, Square of the Jewish Martyrs with its Seahorse Fountain, as well as the Mosque of Suleyman the Magnificent. Another gorgeous hidden gem is the Panaghia Bourgou, a partly collapsed but still gracious Gothic monument. Elsewhere in the mix. there is even Italianate architecture—having snatched it from the Turks, Italy was in charge of Rhodes during the first part of the twentieth century. All this heritage in such a compact place is truly a marvel, and an unrivaled array of bustling cafes, restaurants (try Marco Polo for its sophisticated menu and sweet garden) and shops make the experience of visiting even more enjoyable.

The real showstopper in Lindos however is its acropolis, which you reach after a steep 15-minute hike. Many ancient treasures are perched on the summit, with natural ports on either side. The acropolis was founded by the ancient Dorians and it houses the fourth-century B.C. sanctuary of Athena Lindia: its monumental entrance, as well as a Hellenistic temple and stoa (arcade), have been partly reconstructed. There are also ruins of a theater with 26 tiers of seats, a colonnaded shrine to the god of wine, Dionysus, the round Tomb of Cleobulus and a rock-cut relief of a trireme navy vessel from 180 BC. Civilizations overlap to mesmerizing effect atop the Lindian Acropolis. The Hellenistic Greek citadel was fortified by the Romans and Byzantines and yet again by the Knights of St. John (you can still see what remains of the knight’s castle). The walled ruins have as their backdrop the shimmering blue of the Mediterranean Sea—it’s a breathtaking vista straight out of a pirate movie, only better because it’s not a film set, it’s all spectacularly real!