Didier, one of our readers and founder of the Dodeca.online website, shares his passion for the islands of the Dodecanese, an archipelago of Greek islands not far from the Turkish coast. In this article, he introduces us to the islands of Patmos and Lipsi.
Discover Patmos
The island of Patmos is shaped like a seahorse. It is sometimes called the “Jerusalem of the Aegean“.
Life on Patmos is organized on the eastern side of the island around the two central villages of:
- Skala, the port. In the center of the island, you’ll come to Skala, the island’s main square.
- Hora, which overlooks the whole island and offers a fantastic panorama of Patmos as a whole, as well as neighboring islands such as Lipsi and Ikaria.
How to get to Patmos?
Boat schedules and bookings on Ferry Hopper.
Tourism on Patmos
Patmos has 1,500 inhabitants in winter and 15,000 in summer. With sumptuous yachts. Most of the beach establishments, restaurants, stores and galleries are run by seasonal workers from Athens, France, Italy and the UK. So much so that it’s sometimes hard to find the traditional Greek touch. But of course, Aegean softness is everywhere.
August is a very touristy month, with lots of cars. Not the best time to visit Patmos. The island is also suffocated by the passage of cruise ships.
Patmos is best visited in the pre-summer months. There are many die-hards who come to spend several months of spring and summer on Patmos. Real regulars who have been coming for many years. As a result, there’s a lot of residential development with typical Patmos architecture, but also with some houses that border on the excessive. You’ll hear English and French spoken more easily than Greek. Tourism on the island is organized more for this wealthy clientele of regulars than for a damask or even transient clientele.
On Patmos, you can dine, go to the beach, have a drink with friends… And the island is marked by its religious heritage. With numerous monasteries scattered around the island. In fact, Patmos was the site of St John’s exile from Roma. There, in the eponymous cave, he wrote the Apocalypse according to Saint John. The cave is a major pilgrimage site between Skala and Hora.
Hora and Skala, the main villages on Patmos
In Hora, the monastery of Saint John overlooks the town and the island. The narrow streets are a pleasant place to stroll, with many galleries. Almost all the houses and mansions in Hora are owned by foreigners. As for the Greeks, the patmiotes, they tend to take refuge in the north of the island.
At the port of Skala, you’ll find stores, restaurants, bars and nightlife.
The two villages of Hora and Skala are the tempo of the day on Patmos. We have brunch in the morning until around midday at either Skala or Hora, then around midday – one o’clock we head for a beach bar set up until dusk. Before returning to Skala and Hora for dinner or a drink. A very bobo lifestyle…
The beaches of Patmos
So if you want to get off the beaten track, rent a scooter and off you go.
Patmos has some wonderful unspoilt beaches:
- Psili Ammos in the south of the island,
- Geranou tou Livadi on the seahorse’s head to the north
- in the same area, the twin beaches of Kambos offer magnificent days at sea
- the AspriBeach beach, just opposite Skala, is peaceful and bucolic
- the sunset over Lefkes beach is absolutely unique. Depending on the season, the sun is right in the middle of the bay. The baroque ambience of the Cantina de Lefkes makes for a memorable sunset aperitif.
- To the far north, you can also enjoy the pebble beach of Lampi. The pebbles are protected and it is forbidden to take them. The tavern on the beach is very traditional. You can enjoy a wonderful lunch at Taverne Leonidas overlooking the beach. The setting is grandiose.
For lunch or dinner, don’t hesitate to leave Skala or Hora and head either south to Grikos, a magnificent bay popular with yachtsmen, or north to Kambos, a small Greek village.
The islands around Patmos
Departing every morning from the port of Skala, you’ll find numerous caiques to take you on excursions to the islands around Patmos: Lipsi, Aspronisi (whose name means “the white island”), Marathi, Arkiou and Makronisi.
Some of these islands have taverns and memorable cuisine. Not to be missed!
Lipsi Island
In the islands near Patmos, special mention goes to Lipsi. It’s an island where many Italians have settled. A single village where everyone converges in the evening to dine in the taverns on the port.
There are two main beaches in Lipsi, including Plati Ghialos to the north, with its crystal-clear waters, taverna and ducks on the beach, making it a peaceful place not to be missed. To the south, the beach – less pretty and very narrow – is very popular with yachtsmen, with its jet-set tavern. But beware of the prices in this “luxury tavern”!
There are also a number of coves on this charming island that we recommend you take advantage of.
Lipsi’s bakery is exceptional (but the welcome is less so!).
If you’re in Lipsi on August 23, the festivities all over the island are unique.
Article written and edited by Didier Pesson of Dodeca.online
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Finding accommodation in Patmos and Lipsi
If you are looking for a hotel, apartment or house to rent :
- In Patmos, you can find accommodation on the following websites Booking and Airbnb.
- In Lipsi, a nice selection of rooms, studios or houses on Booking and Airbnb.
And for more information on Patmos, take a look at our articles:
- Things to see and do on Patmos
- The most beautiful beaches on Patmos
- Vacations on Patmos: where to sleep, how to get there, getting around
Enjoy your reading!
