Guide · On the island

Things to do in Symi when you only have a few hours

A day boat from Rhodes usually leaves you three hours in the harbor town. That is enough for a good taste of the island if you know where to go first. These are the things to do in Symi, in the order that works on a short visit.

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Editorial team, symiboattrip.comUpdated October 18, 2026Reading time 6 min32 sources

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Your short list

01The waterfront: The 1881 clock tower and the statue of Michalaki in Gialos.¹
02The steps: 500 stone steps of the Kali Strata up to Chorio.²
03The top: A 14th-century castle of the Knights of Saint John.³
04The story: A museum in Lieni with 5 rooms of finds and costumes.⁴
05The time: On the 11:00 boat you have Symi from 12:00 to 15:00.⁵

Start on the waterfront of Gialos

Every visit starts at the water. The boats tie up in Gialos, the harbor town, and the first landmarks are a few steps from the gangway: the statue of a young fisherman called Michalaki, and the Clock Tower, standing there since 1881.¹ The municipality calls the stone clock the first sight a visitor sees on arrival, set in the old harbor.⁶

Walk the curve of the quay slowly before you choose a direction. The houses that rise behind it belonged to the island's captains and merchants, who moved down from the hill once the fear of pirates had passed.⁷ Their colors, pediments and pebbled courtyards are the reason the whole of Chora is a protected settlement.⁸

If you arrive with Rhodes Sea Lines, the crew hands out a free souvenir map of Symi just before arrival, with places of interest and a suggested walking route.⁹ Keep it: on a short visit a plan is worth more than a long list, and the map shows you how the lanes connect the waterfront to the steps.

Three hours ashore

A short visit, step by step

12:00

Arrive in Gialos

The 11:00 boat from Rhodes reaches Symi at noon.⁵
First

The waterfront

Michalaki and the Clock Tower, there since 1881.¹
Next

Up the steps

The Kali Strata's 500 stone steps towards Chorio.²
Lunch

Shrimp by the water

The local shrimp, barely cooked with oil and lemon.¹⁰
15:00

Back on board

The boat leaves Symi and cannot wait.¹¹

Climb the Kali Strata to Chorio

The single best thing to do with limited time is to climb. The Kali Strata is a road of 500 wide stone steps from the harbor up to the upper part of the town, and Dodekanisos Seaways notes that the view from the top is best at sunset, when the light falls on Gialos.² On a midday visit the view is still the classic one: roofs, domes and the harbor below.

The steps were once the island's trade route, lined with mansions, and they lead to Chorio, the oldest part of town, gathered around the castle.¹² Two-story houses stand side by side along the way, forming what the municipality calls a natural wall, with glimpses of the sea between them.¹³

Go up early in your visit, before the day warms up, and come down for lunch. You do not have to reach the very top to feel the place; even a third of the way up the harbor opens out below you. Take water, wear shoes with grip, and stop often to let the heat and the view do their work.

The sights

What to see, and where it is

Sight	Where	Why go
Clock Tower	Gialos waterfront	The first sight on arrival
Kali Strata	Gialos to Chorio	500 steps and the view
The castle	Above Chorio	Knights of Saint John
Folklore museum	Lieni, Chorio	Finds and costumes
Windmills	Myloi	Old mills and a tumulus
Panormitis	South-west coast	The great monastery

Places and descriptions from the Municipality of Symi and Dodekanisos Seaways.⁶ ¹³ ³ ⁴ ¹⁴ ¹⁵

Local outings

Train, e-bike or the monastery bus

Short

Sightseeing train

From Gefyraki

Duration: 1 hour
Driver: English
Price: from $10

See details

Symi: Guided Tour with E-Bikes (2 hours)

Active

Guided e-bikes

From Gialos

Duration: 2 hours
Stops: Windmills, Chorio, Pedi
Price: from $20

See details

Panormitis

Monastery bus

Symi Tours, Gialos

Duration: 2.5 hours
At the monastery: 1 hour
Price: from $12

See details

Decision helper

How to spend your hours ashore

Pick what you came for

Climb the Kali Strata

500 steps from the harbor to Chorio.²

Castle and museum

A 14th-century castle and a museum in Lieni.³ ¹⁶

Nos beach

Next to Gialos, with sun beds.¹⁷

The sightseeing train

A ride of 1 hour from Gefyraki.

Stay longer

The bus excursion alone takes 2.5 hours.

Finish your walk to the island, by going up 500 stone and wide steps of Kali Strata that will lead you to the upper part of Symi. The view from this spot is amazing, especially during sunset, as the sun light shines on Gialos.

Dodekanisos SeawaysSource 2

The castle, the windmills and the museum

Above Chorio stands Symi castle, built in the 14th century by the Knights of Saint John on the ruins of a Byzantine castle, with the church of Megali Panagia and remnants of a temple of Athena.³ It is the reward for the full climb, and from its walls the island and the sea towards Turkey spread out in every direction.

At a place called Myloi you find the remains of windmills that once ground grain, and a prehistoric tumulus known as the Pontikokastro.¹⁴ The windmills are also a stop on the island's guided e-bike tour, which starts from a shop in Gialos and climbs to Chorio and on to Pedi.

History lovers should look for the Archaeological and Folklore Museum. It was founded in 1961 and fills a traditional mansion in the Lieni quarter of Chorio, with 5 rooms of exhibits from different periods and traditional costumes.¹⁶ ⁴ On a three-hour visit it competes with lunch, so decide early which matters more to you.

Map

From the harbors of Rhodes to the bays of Symi

The crossing from Rhodes, the island with its beaches and the monastery in the south, then a close look at the harbor and the steps up to Chorio.

Map of the sea between the north-east coast of Rhodes and the island of Symi — Rhodes to Symi

Map of Symi from Gialos and Pedi in the north to Panormitis in the south — Around the island

Street map of the harbor of Gialos, the Kali Strata steps and the upper village of Chorio — Gialos and Chorio

1
Rhodes town (Mandraki and Kolona)
This site's boat leaves from Mandraki Harbor, and Sebeco Lines' speedboat from Kolona Harbor.
In Google Maps ↗
2
Faliraki
Faliraki Sea Lines picks up from four stops on the beach, the first at 10:00.
In Google Maps ↗
3
Kolymbia
A boarding option for this site's tour and the start of a Kolymbia boat to the island.
In Google Maps ↗
4
Gialos
The harbor of Symi, where SP Cruises' boat ties up; the merchants and captains of the island once lived here.⁷
In Google Maps ↗
5
Chorio
The oldest part of town, gathered around the castle and joined to the harbor by 500 stone steps.¹²
In Google Maps ↗
6
Nos
An organized beach next to Gialos, with umbrellas and sun beds.¹⁷
In Google Maps ↗
7
Emporios
The second harbor of the island, with a few houses and a beach with a taverna.¹⁸
In Google Maps ↗
8
Pedi
A seaside village 2 km from Chora; taxi boats leave from here for other beaches.¹⁹ ²⁰
In Google Maps ↗
9
Agios Nikolaos
A sandy beach with shallow, clear water and a taverna.²¹
In Google Maps ↗
10
Agia Marina
A small sandy beach facing a rocky islet with a church.²²
In Google Maps ↗
11
St George's Bay
Agios Georgios Dysalonas: a beach below a sheer cliff on the east coast, reached only from the sea.²³
In Google Maps ↗
12
Nanou
A pebble bay with a taverna, reached only from the sea.²⁴
In Google Maps ↗
13
Marathounda
One of the few beaches on the island that you can drive to.²⁵
In Google Maps ↗
14
Panormitis Monastery
The most important religious monument of the island, on the south-west side among cypress and pine.²⁶ ¹⁵
In Google Maps ↗
15
Clock Tower
The stone clock of 1881 on the waterfront, the first sight on arrival.⁶
In Google Maps ↗
16
Kali Strata
A set of 500 wide steps between the harbor and Chorio.¹³
In Google Maps ↗
17
Castle
Built in the 14th century by the Knights of St. John on the ruins of a Byzantine castle.³
In Google Maps ↗

Open the map in Google Maps

Checklist

Pack for a few hours in the lanes

Wear and carry

Shoes with grip for worn stone steps
Hat and sun cream for the climb
A bottle of water

Keep in mind

The time your boat leaves Symi
The free map from the crew, if you get one
Money for lunch and a sponge or two

Cost calculator

Add a local outing to your day

Pick an outing on Symi and your group size.

Sightseeing train1 hourfrom $10 Guided e-bikes2 hoursfrom $20 Monastery bus2.5 hoursfrom $12 Toli Bay minivan6.5 hoursfrom $12

People 2

Total from$19

per participant from $10

Check availabilityfree cancellation

Totals multiply each boat's lowest per-person fare on GetYourGuide by your group, converted at the European Central Bank rate; the checkout shows the binding sum.

Video

Best Things to Do in Symi - The Most Beautiful Greek Island?

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Sponges, shops and a meal by the water

Back at the harbor, look at the sponge shops with the island's history in mind. Symi once had the largest sponge-fishing fleet in the whole world, and in 1863 a man from Symi brought the diving suit to the island.²⁷ ²⁸ The sponges sold on the quay today are the souvenir that tells that story best.

Then eat. The island's own dish is the Symi shrimp, a rare and very small shrimp from the local sea that locals eat barely cooked with a little oil and lemon.²⁹ ¹⁰ Dodekanisos Seaways also names atherinopita, akoumia (Symi donuts), prickly pear liqueur and cheese pies called tourtes among the local products.³⁰

Lunch by the water is part of the day for most visitors, so leave it enough time. Choose a table early, order the shrimp and something cool, and keep an eye on the clock: the meal is the easiest place on the island to lose half an hour without noticing.

A plan for three hours ashore

Here is a plan for what to do in Symi for 3 hours, the time this site's boat gives you ashore. Spend the first part on the waterfront and the clock tower, then climb the Kali Strata as far as the heat allows. Come down to a taverna for lunch, then walk the far side of the harbor and pick up sponges or a gift on the way back.

Watch the departure time above everything else. On the 11:00 boat of Rhodes Sea Lines you reach Symi at 12:00, and the boat leaves again at 15:00; the operator asks you to be on board by then, because the boat cannot wait.⁵ ¹¹ Set an alarm on your phone for a quarter of an hour before, and walk back early.

If you want more than the harbor, a short local tour can fill the gap. A sightseeing train leaves from Gefyraki in the town for a ride of 1 hour, from $10. A guided e-bike tour lasts 2 hours, which only fits a longer stay or a boat with more time ashore.

Photographs, shade and the quieter lanes

Symi is one of those places where the camera comes out before the boat has docked. The best pictures of the harbor are taken from above, so the climb pays twice: once for the view and once for the photograph. Morning light falls softly on the houses; at midday the colors flatten and the white walls glare, which is another reason to climb early and save the waterfront for later.

Shade is the other thing to plan for. The quay is open to the sun, and the lanes behind it are narrow, cooler and much quieter. Step a single street back from the water and you leave the crowds from the boats behind, with doorways, flowerpots and painted steps to yourself. Those back lanes are also where small chapels and courtyards hide, the kind of detail that rarely makes the brochures.

Finally, be kind to your feet and the island. Stone steps polished by centuries of use can be slippery, so wear proper shoes rather than flip-flops. Carry your rubbish back with you, keep voices down near the churches, and ask before photographing people at their doors. Small courtesies make a short visit feel like a welcome rather than a raid.

Further afield: monasteries and bays

The island's great monastery lies far to the south-west at Panormitis, among cypress and pine, and you reach it from Gialos by caique or by road.¹⁵ A local bus excursion runs from the Symi Tours office in Gialos: 45 minutes by bus, 1 hour at the monastery and a photo stop above Ano Symi on the way back, 2.5 hours in all.

Closer to town, the Monastery of Michael Roukouniotis has murals and two churches, an old lower church and a new upper one.³¹ The island's buses help too: a bus called Lakis runs between Gialos, Chorio and Pedi, and another runs to Panormitis and back.³²

For a day on the beach, Nos lies right next to Gialos, with umbrellas and sun beds.¹⁷ A minivan from the Symi Tours office goes to Toli Bay at 09:30 and returns at 16:00, on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. These trips suit visitors who stay at least a night, since a day boat from Rhodes gives you far less time.

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