DODECANESE ISLANDS (Greece)

Vacation Rentals & Holiday Rentals in Dodecanese and surrounding area.	Hotels	Flights	Car Hire/Rental

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The Dodecanese islands lie far from the Greek mainland, down in the southeast Aegean, tucked under the Turkish coast. Although grouped together, they're actually quite varied in look.

Some are green and fertile, with towns built round large harbours. Others have the ruggedness and picturesque hillside villages that you find in the Cyclades. What most of them do have in common, however, is sunny skies, beautiful beaches and good infrastructure.

The group's name comes from the Greek word for 12 ('dodeca') - but there are actually 13 main islands, and many smaller ones. The main gateways to the region are Kos and Rhodes, both of which are now well and truly on the tourist map. From these hubs, you can then branch off towards smaller, more unspoilt islands.

Ferries, catamarans and hydrofoils between the main islands are frequent, so you can easily combine different islands in the course of a holiday. You could spend a week experiencing the bustle and culture of Rhodes, for example, then follow that with a quieter stay on Symi.

The area has a fascinating history and heritage. Romans, Crusaders, Ottomans and Italians have all left their mark, and the Dodecanese have some of the best historical sites in the Aegean. There are castles and forts, monasteries and temples, and a mixture of styles from East and West.

Of the 13 main islands, Rhodes is the largest and most cosmopolitan. Considered the 'rose' of the Aegean, it's rocky round the coast, but lush and wooded inland.

Thanks to its fine, sandy beaches and 300 days of sunshine a year, it's one of the most heavily visited of all Greek islands and can get seriously busy in summer. It's also rich in cultural and archaeological treasures, having flourished during the Ancient Aegean civilisation, and during the era of the knights of St John.

Kos , another popular holiday destination, is the third largest of the Dodecanese and one of the most beautiful, with fertile plains, pine-clad mountains and long beaches. Like Rhodes, it's sadly overdeveloped in parts but it also has historical and archaeological attractions, and there are many remains of ancient Greek civilisation, including the huge pine tree under which Hippocrates, the father of medicine, was believed to have taught his students. If you're more interested in clubbing than culture, Kos has a lively nightlife, with bars, clubs and (in summer) an outdoor cinema.

Twenty-three miles north of Rhodes lies Symi , said to be one of the most beautiful of all Greek islands, and tipped to join the likes of St Tropez and Portofino as a jet-set destination.

Also with a fairly smart reputation is Patmos , the northernmost island in the Dodecanese and one of the smallest, at just over 20 square miles. It's renowned as a holy island because it was here that St John wrote the Book of Revelations, and it's still a place of pilgrimage today.

Although it has lovely beaches, rolling countryside and a pretty port in Skala, most of its visitors are day-trippers or cruise passengers who just come to see the monastery but don't stay.

The remote and laid-back island of Tilos is good for walkers, botanists (especially in spring) and get-away-from-it-all types. There are more Crusader castles than hire cars (local transport is mostly by mule and donkey), and wild goats outnumber the friendly residents by about ten to one.

Halki , just off the west coast of Rhodes, also has a traditional, unhurried way of life, with no discos, no watersports, and hardly any traffic. Halki Town (also known as Emborio) has a pretty, taverna-lined fishing harbour, elegant neo-classical buildings and an old Crusader castle on a hill.

Kalymnos is a rugged, mountainous island with prehistoric caves, hot springs and a grotto at Spilia Kefalas. In the 1920s it was famous for the sponge trade (it's still the centre of sponge fishing in the Aegean) but as that declined many inhabitants emigrated, large numbers of them to Australia. Many are now returning, giving the island an Aussie flavour.

Leros is one of the most genuine and unspoilt Greek islands, and a favourite hideaway for authors and artists. The countryside is green and gently hilly, and the coastline lined with secluded coves and bays. During the Italian occupation of the Dodecanese, they used the town of Lakki as their principal naval base, thanks to its wonderful natural harbour.

Karpathos , halfway between Rhodes and Crete, is a long, narrow island with beautiful mountainous scenery in the north (good for walking) and lovely beaches in the south. Its scenic, rugged coastline attracts some Germans and Scandinavians, though not many Brits as yet.

The village of Olymbos in the north features architecture and traditions dating back to Doric times and the locals speak an ancient Greek Homer would recognise.

Little Lipsi is said to be the island where Homer's hero, Odysseus, bewitched by Calypso, dallied for seven years on his return home from the Trojan War. Laid-back, uncommercialised and very pretty, it has a rolling landscape, only one village and few crowds.

Nissyros , a rocky island, is low on beaches, and consequently barely features on the tourist circuit. However, it does have its own unique attraction in the shape of the Dodecanese's only volcano (see Don't Miss).

Kastellorizo's main feature is its Blue Grotto, not dissimilar to the famous one in Capri. This smallest of the Dodecanese islands lies very close to the Turkish coast and is the easternmost point of Greece. It was used as the location for the award-winning Italian film, Mediterraneo .

Astypalea , the westernmost of the Dodecanese, is more like a Cycladic island, in terms of both its geography and its buildings. Famous for being the only Aegean island that's totally snake-free, it has a picturesque capital and pretty scenery and attracts many holidaymakers from Athens.