Travelling by ferry: A complete travel guide for your ferry booking
Travelling by ferry in Greece: The Dodecanese islands
Find all necessary information for booking your ferry tickets to one or more of the Dodecanese islands below, learn which Greek islands are connected by ferry, get the ferry timetables and ticket prices and make your ferry reservations online in just a few steps.
What are the Dodecanese islands?
The name Dodecanese islands literally means “the twelve islands” in Greek and refers to the larger islands in the cluster. The Dodecanese Islands actually comprise of 15 larger plus 93 Greek islets located in the southeastern Aegean. From their rich historical layers, stunning beaches and vibrant festivals, these islands offer a captivating blend of culture, nature and tradition.
Daily ferry connections link most of these islands to the mainland port of Piraeus in Athens, ensuring year-round accessibility and the more popular destinations like Rhodes, Kos and Patmos offer a well-connected ferry network to their smaller neighboring islands. The duration of the ferry trip from Piraeus-Rhodes and the other Dodecanese islands is quite long and therefore travel is overnight. To ensure a pleasant and comfortable journey, it is recommended to book a cabin when making your ferry reservation.
Is island hopping possible between the Dodecanese islands?
If you are island hopping in Greece, travelling by ferry between the Dodecanese islands is a piece of cake. During the summer months, when ferry schedules are more frequent and ferry services are provided by even more ferry operators, it is also possible to make a ferry booking from the Dodecanese to Crete, some Cyclades islands such as Santorini, Syros and Amorgos, as well as North Aegean islands like Samos and Patmos.
Which Dodecanese islands offer ferry connections to Turkey?
Due to their proximity to the Turkish coastline, summer ferries connect the Dodecanese islands to Turkey on a daily basis making these an excellent option for a day trip. The ferry routes connection Greece to Turkey include Rhodes-Marmaris, Rhodes-Fethiye, Kos-Bodrum, Lesvos-Ayvalik and Samos-Kusadasi making these an excellent option for a day trip.