Finding the best hotels in Kos...
Checking availability for your dates...
Update your search below
Finding the best hotels in Kos...
Checking availability for your dates...
Kos Town, the capital and main port of the island, is a lively, green town where ancient ruins, medieval walls and modern resorts sit side by side. At the harbour entrance stands the massive Castle of the Knights of St John, built in the fifteenth century partly from stones of ancient buildings, linked to the town by a bridge over a palm-lined avenue. Next to it grows the venerable plane tree of Hippocrates, under which, according to tradition, the father of medicine taught his pupils. Throughout the town, excavations have revealed the ancient agora, a Roman odeon, the Casa Romana with fine mosaics and long stretches of colonnaded streets, all freely woven into the urban landscape. A few kilometres away, on a terraced hillside, lies the Asklepieion, the famous healing sanctuary and medical school, with views across to the Turkish coast. Kos Town is also a flat, bicycle-friendly town with cycle paths along the seafront, a busy marina, a lively bar street and sandy beaches stretching to Lambi and Psalidi. Ferries and day boats connect it with Bodrum and neighbouring islands. It suits families, history lovers, cyclists and groups of friends.
Quick facts
LOCATION
Dodecanese Islands
KNOWN FOR
Knights' castle & the Asklepieion
BEST FOR
History, Archaeological sites, Nightlife, Families, No car needed
Museums & History
Castle of the Knights (Neratzia)
Plane Tree of Hippocrates
Archaeological Site of Ancient Agora of Kos
Casa Romana
Odeon of Kos
Archaeological Museum of Kos
Transportation
Port of Kos
Shopping
Kos Old Town (Eleftherias Square)
By air
Kos International Airport (Hippocrates), near Antimachia in the centre of the island, has many direct flights from Europe in summer and flights from Athens. Kos Town is about 30 minutes away by taxi or transfer.
By ferry
Kos Town’s harbour is the island’s main port, with ferries and catamarans to Rhodes, Kalymnos, Leros, Patmos, Nisyros and Piraeus, and daily boats to Bodrum in Turkey. Day trips to Pserimos, Kalymnos and Plati leave from the harbour in summer.
Getting around
Not needed in town: the harbour, the ancient sites and the old town are walkable, and bicycles are popular on the flat seafront paths. Buses go to the beaches and the airport. A car or scooter helps for a day in the villages of Zia and Pyli and the south coast.
Kos Island