A Short Break on Symi - 3 Day Itinerary | The Mediterranean Traveller

Recently I took a short trip to the Greek island of Symi, which is possibly one of the most beautiful islands I’ve ever set foot on. It’s a popular day trip destination from Rhodes, but it definitely deserves a few days if you can – and I’m going to show you why.

I was looking for a short break in Greece earlier in the year and found some cheap flights to Rhodes. Symi is linked by frequent ferries to Rhodes (it has the most connections of all the nearby islands). The journey only takes an 1 hour and is pretty cheap as far as ferry prices go these days, with most tickets around €15 one way.

I’m allergic to stress so I spent a night in Rhodes Town at either end of the trip, but if I went again I wouldn’t bother. I met plenty of regulars who do the travel all in one day, just make sure you have money for a backup hotel room in case of ferry issues. Or book a room on Booking.com that has free cancellation (please don’t do this to a small family hotel though, save it for the big boys). The last ferry is around 5:30pm.

In my backpacking days I always used to stay at STAY Hostel in Rhodes Town, one of my favourites, so I was happy to see they now have a sister hotel – STAY Hotel in the New Town, it’s a 20-minute walk to Kolona Harbour where I caught the the Sebeco ferry to Symi (I’ll put ferry info at the bottom of the post as the port locations are a little complicated). It’s a good basic hotel if you just need somewhere for a stopover.

A quick orientation: Ferries will arrive directly at the main town in Symi which is called Gialos (pronounced with a soft g, more like Yialos, but you might also see it referred to as just Symi). Up on the hilltop behind it is Chorio, or Ano Symi, the older upper part. Over the hill is Pedi which is easy to reach by bus, and in the other direction along the coast is Nimborio which you can reach by water taxi or on foot. Most first-time visitors stay in Gialos and explore by bus and boat.

Day 1 – Boat Trip on the Poseidon

When I was researching Symi, the Poseidon boat trip stood out as the number one recommendation from people that know the island well so I booked it from the booth at the harbour as soon as I arrived.

I take a lot of boat trips on my travels because it’s one of my favourite things to do, and this ranks up there with the very best. The Poseidon is a large gulet-style boat which has plenty of mattress space up on the deck, and a bimini for shade, so you can get your sun lounging in all day. There were quite a few island regulars on board who seemed to know each other, and I bumped into several of them for the rest of my time on the island.

Lunch is ashore on a tiny uninhabited island with a private BBQ space reserved for the Poseidon. The food was great, there was plenty of wine, traditional music, and a population of friendly goats. Also I must say that Symi is the best-smelling island I’ve visited – you can smell the herbs from the sea, it’s intoxicating (or was that the wine…).

The itinerary has different swim stops every day but I think all of them visit Agios Georgios Dysonas (sometimes called St George) which is a stunning cliff beach with dazzling turquoise waters. There’s time for a quick swim, and we were there just before the sun went behind the cliffs. If you want to visit for longer you can take a water taxi, just be aware doesn’t have any facilities or food.

The water is the most incredible colour though. It really is a must-see.

If it’s full or you want to take another boat trip then Maria Traditional Boat also comes highly recommended.

Back in Gialos (the main harbour), recharge your phone or camera in time for the golden hour because it’s incredibly beautiful here. You can’t see much of the sunset itself because the hills are so steep, but the whole town glows pink as the sun goes down. This is why you need to stay at least one night. For me, it’s more beautiful than the Santorini sunsets. And once the sun has gone down, the lights of Gialos sparkle in the dark.

Gialos is a U-shaped harbour with steep sides so you get great views from either side of it. After 5pm the daytrippers have all gone home and it belongs to the locals again.

It’s not huge, and I would say the shopping isn’t amazing for such a classy places (most of the shops seem squarely aimed at the masses of daytrippers) – but there is a good leather store, some jewellery and boutiques, and a bio shop selling olive oil and honey products in the backstreets.

Make sure to allow yourself ample time for wandering and taking photos. There are a couple of bars on the east side of the harbour perfect for a sundowner. For dinners in Gialos, Tholos is highly rated but you’ll need to book. I liked Taverna Trata, Tarsanas, and O Lyris.

Day 2 – Pedi and the surrounding beaches

Symi is a small island, it doesn’t have many settlements. The next largest place after Gialos is Pedi which is on the opposite side of the steep hill to the east of the harbour.

There are hourly buses to Pedi. They go up the hill along the Kali Strata road, past the windmills, through Chorio, and down to Pedi. The bus is 2.50EUR. So if you’d like to explore Chorio (or Ano Symi) then it’s a good idea to combine it with Pedi. Unless you really want to visit the Archaeological Museum, I recommend visiting for dinner because there are some great tavernas here – Georgio & Maria, Taverna Zoe, and Niki’s Cookhouse, then you can walk back down in the evening when it’s cooler.

Pedi definitely has a slower pace of life. There’s one cafe, a beach bar, and two tavernas here. There are regular water taxis to the beaches at Agios Nikolaos and Agia Marina which both have fantastic swimming, sun lounger rental, and a cafe/taverna. You’ll need cash for these beaches. I think I paid around €5 for the water taxi to Agios Nikolaos. It’s possible to walk along the coast but it was far too hot when I was there.

Day 3 – Water Taxi Day

There are enough places you can reach by water taxi from Gialos to keep you busy for a week:

Nimborio
Nanou
Agios Georgios Dysonas
Marathounta
Panormitis
Toli

Other than Gialos, the main attraction on Symi is Panormitis Monastery. I must confess I didn’t visit myself, although apparently it is very impressive, but I’m a beach person and wanted to fit as many in as possible. But if you do want to visit, there are water taxis and buses.

If you really enjoyed Agios Georgios Dysonas on the boat trip then you can either revisit it or head to Nanou or Marathounta which are similar. Toli is a quiet and wild beach, not as scenic as the others but the taverna there has a great reputation.

Water taxi timetables vary according to the season and how busy it is, but most routes have a couple of trips out in the morning and then back in the late afternoon. Prices are around €8-25 return depending on the distance.

I chose to spend my last day relaxing in Nimborio, which is a small village west along the coast from Gialos. I’d walked there one previous evening for sunset (around 45 minutes from Gialos) and loved it, but in the summer it’s too hot for that walk during the day. The boat decants you right next to its two tavernas.

I opted for Taverna Metapontis as the sun loungers at Amalthea Suites looked plush and expensive, but to be honest the food wasn’t great, and they quoted me a certain amount for minimum spend but then changed it when I went to pay. If you just want basic + beers then it’s fine. Amalthea seemed to have a better vibe but it does get busy by lunch.

The setting of both is fantastic though, especially if you like snorkelling and swimming in deep pebbly areas. There’s also a beach bar called Giala at the other end of the village which has more of a beach.

Where to Stay on Symi

A waterfront villa in Pedi. — There are some amazing houses right by the water in Pedi.

Most first-time visitors to Symi will want to take advantage of the ample number of places in the harbour with a view. But there are two things you need to bear in mind before booking anywhere:

Symi is mountainous and lots of the backstreets in Gialos are steep.
Pedi is completely flat and there’s accommodation very close to the water, including a popular hotel there called Pedi Beach Hotel.
Pools aren’t really a thing here.
Hotel Nireus in Gialos has a few sun loungers and steps directly into the water.
Don’t count on bus services beyond Gialos, Chorio or Pedi, and beware of booking hotels down narrow unpaved roads that taxis can’t reach.
If you’re here a long time you can easily rack up a fair spend on water taxis, boat trips, and sun loungers!

I found a good deal on a last-minute room at Odyssia Apartments, in a part of town called Harani which is a 15-minute walk along the coast from the main harbour. I was a bit worried beforehand in case it was a slightly sketchy walk past at night but it was perfectly fine. There are a few restaurants here but it’s more peaceful than the main harbour, and is a short walk to a small beach.

The view from my apartment was immaculate – I’m not sure I’d want to stay anywhere else.

Odyssia has a restaurant on the ground floor and it was two flights of stairs up to my apartment which seemed a reasonable trade-off for the view. It’s a traditional family studio with a kitchenette and extra beds on the mezzanine level, it even has proper wine glasses (a rarity!) however it’s worth mentioning that there’s a (locked) door through to the next-door apartment which isn’t very soundproof. One night there was a very chatty Greek American lady in there and I could hear every word she was saying 😂

Lots of the beautiful mansions in Gialos have been renovated as upmarket holiday rentals that you can book either as the whole place or just a room:

And finally, if you’re looking for somewhere quiet and romantic then I was very taken with Nimborio (also spelt Emporio or Emborio). You’d have to get a taxi or ride a scooter into Gialos in the evenings though, but if you’re happy to hunker down then it’s very scenic. There are rooms at Amalthea Luxury Suites but also a number of really nice holiday rentals including On The Rocks which is right on the water.

Getting to Symi

The numerous ferries to Symi make it easy to plan BUT you need to know that they use different locations depending on the vessel, and this isn’t necessarily noted anywhere when you buy your ticket.

In Rhodes

Sebeco and Dodekanisos Express / Pride leave from Kolona Harbour which is right next to the Old Town.
Sea Dreams King Saron leaves from Mandraki Port which is next to the New Town.
The bigger car ferries Panagia Skiadeni, Blue Star and SAOS leave from Akandia Commercial Port which is a 15-minute walk from the Old Town.

In Symi

This is where the ferries usually dock but it’s best to double-check as weather conditions may mean changes.

Sebeco has its own dock right next to the bus stop in the main harbour.
Dodekanisos Express/Pride, Panagia Skiadeni and the Sea Dreams King Saron dock by the clock tower in the main harbour.
Panagia Skiadeni stops to unload freight at the New Port and then heads to the Clock Tower in the main harbour for passengers.
Blue Star and SAOS leave from the New Port which is a 15-minute walk past the bus stop. There are seats here but no amenities.