The northern Dodecanese: Kalymnos, Leros, Patmos
7 days · 80 nm · starts in Kos · Greece
Kos
Fly into Kos and take over the yacht in the marina. Do the big shop in town — there are shops on Kalymnos and Patmos further along, but the choice is noticeably thinner.
Kos → Kalymnos
The island of the sponge divers: they are still sold on the Pothia waterfront, and above the town hang the cliffs that climbers fly in for from all over the world. Spend the night at the quay in Pothia or in the enclosed bay of Vathy.
Kalymnos → Leros
Leros is the most Italian island in the Aegean: Portolago, now Lakki, was built in the thirties as a model naval town and is rationalist architecture from end to end. Berth in Lakki or in picturesque Pandeli below the castle.
Leros → Patmos
North again. Skala is the main port of Patmos, with the fortified monastery of St John on the hill above it and the Cave of the Apocalypse halfway up. Moor at the mole or anchor in the bay alongside.
Patmos: Chora and the monastery
A day without a passage. In the morning, up to Chora: an 11th-century monastery, a library of manuscripts and a view over half the Dodecanese, with the Cave of the Apocalypse on the way. The afternoon goes to Lambi and Psili Ammos beaches, or simply to an evening in Skala.
Patmos → Lipsi
A small island with one village, blue domes above the harbour and a dozen bays around it. This is usually the laziest day of the week.
Lipsi → Kos
The one long leg: south along Kalymnos and back into Kos marina. On a fresh meltemi the day splits with a night on Kalymnos.
The calmest Greek route starting from Kos: the islands sit in a chain 10–12 nm apart, the legs take two hours, and the loop leaves room for a whole day without moving. The meltemi blows here too, but the short distances let you sail in the morning and sit it out at the berth. About 80 nm in a week.
Practicalities
- Meltemi: a north-westerly of 15–25 knots from June to September. It is on the nose going north, but the legs are short — leave early, before it gets going, and you are at the berth by the afternoon.
- Berths: the quays at Pothia, Lakki, Skala and on Lipsi are municipal and cheap, and you moor stern-to on your own anchor. Power and water are not available everywhere, and on Patmos the mole fills up by lunchtime in season.
- Patmos is a place of pilgrimage: shorts and bare shoulders are not admitted to the monastery of St John or the Cave of the Apocalypse, and both close in the middle of the day. Plan the climb for the morning.
- The loop stretches easily: if the week goes well, boats add Arkoi or Archangelos between Leros and Patmos — near-empty islets with anchorages and a single taverna.
When to go and what it costs
Greece is the cheapest place in the Mediterranean: a median €175 per person per week in winter, and even in summer (€298) it is cheaper than Turkey. Fleet discounts here are the deepest on the market — up to 63% on average for last-minute deals — so look at the price per berth, not the percentage.
RYC Rentals data, 2,062 offers from 2024–2026, as of 13 Aug 2026 · full breakdown →