Rhodes In One Day - What To Do In Rhodes From A Cruise Ship

By Dave Briggs · Published 2026-11-13 · Last updated 2026-11-13

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Rhodes is one of the simplest port days in Greece, because the medieval city is right beside where you dock. You can be inside the walls before the crowd from the coaches has even found its guide.

I'll tell you how I would spend the day, what I would leave out, and how to be back on board with time to spare.

How to see Rhodes in a day

A day in Rhodes can give you a proper feel for Rhodes Town. It cannot give you the island.

Rhodes is big, with long beaches, hill villages and castles scattered about. I spent a little over two weeks here in late April and early May 2022, and I went all over, from Lindos to Prasonisi in the far south to the castle at Monolithos. I still came away feeling I had only started. So please do not try to see it all.

The knights built this town expecting a siege, and it still looks ready for one. Inside the walls you get stone towers, arched gateways, a palace and a long cobbled street built by crusader knights. It feels like a film set that people still live in.

If I only had one day, I would spend it inside the walls, take a long sit-down lunch and finish at the waterfront. If you are in port for more than about eight hours, Lindos starts to become possible. Otherwise I would leave it for another visit.

On a busy day, with several cruise lines in port at once, the main streets of the old town fill up fast. Go in early, and keep the quiet back lanes for the middle of the day.

Rhodes Shore Excursion Vs See It Yourself

For the town itself, I do not think you need an excursion. The quay is so close to the walls that there is nothing to organise. You walk off and you are there.

I do see the appeal of a guided tour though. The medieval city has a lot of history packed into it, and a knowledgeable guide can make the Palace of the Grand Master and the Street of the Knights mean something. If that sounds like you, a small group tour on foot is the version I would look at.

This small group walking tour of Rhodes Old Town takes about three hours.

If you want Lindos, that is where I think the cruise line's own excursion earns its fee. I will explain why further down.

Where cruise ships dock in Rhodes and how to reach the Old Town

Cruise ships in Rhodes use the port on the edge of Rhodes Town, right beside the medieval walls. You tie up alongside, so you normally walk straight off onto the quay with no tender. When I was there in April 2022, two white cruise ships were tied up right under the old fortifications.

Which berth you get can change from day to day, so check the berth details from your cruise line. What does not change is that the old town is close. From the quay to the nearest gate is five to fifteen minutes on foot, depending on the berth, and it is flat all the way.

You do not need a shuttle, a taxi or a bus to get into town. Just walk. Leave the taxi for the hot afternoon when your feet have had enough.

Do remember that Rhodes has two harbours close together. The big vessels use the commercial and tourist harbour. The smaller excursion boats leave from Mandraki, a bit further along the waterfront, with its old windmills and a ticket kiosk selling trips to Lindos. I saw both on my first day, so don't mix them up when you read the excursion boards.

Walk into the medieval city of Rhodes

On my first day in Rhodes I headed for the walls, and I would do the same. Up close, the fortifications look like what a child would draw for a castle, all round towers and battlements around a pointed gateway.

Once you are inside the walled town, the pace changes. The lanes are narrow and cobbled, and now and then a minaret or a dome shows over the rooftops. I took photos of a small mosque with a red and cream dome and a slender minaret, framed by tall cypress trees. The knights built the town, and the Ottomans who came after them left their mosques in it.

Do not plan a route. Pick a lane that looks quiet and follow it for a while. The walls surround you on every side, so you cannot stay lost for long.

Be ready for the cobbles. They are uneven and can be slippery, so wear shoes with some grip.

The Palace of the Grand Master and the Street of the Knights

The palace is the big set piece of the medieval city. It was built in the 14th century for the Grand Master of the Knights of St John, and it has had a rough life since. It served as a prison under the Ottomans and much of it was destroyed in 1856, when a gunpowder store nearby blew up.

The version you see today was heavily rebuilt in the 1930s, and not everyone likes that. I wrote more about it in my Rhodes travel guide.

I like the palace for its courtyards and the old mosaic floors inside. If you only have an hour for it, go in. If you only have a few minutes, the outside and the street leading down from it will do.

The Street of the Knights is the one straight, orderly lane among crooked ones. It is a medieval row of stone buildings that once housed the knightly orders. Go early if you can, because by late morning it fills with groups.

Lunch and a wander in the back lanes of Rhodes old town

The main shopping streets are busy and a bit loud, with a lot of people trying to get you to sit down. Socratous is the obvious one. I would stroll it once, and then turn away from it.

The quieter lanes to either side are where the town feels lived in. You find small squares with a tree and a café table or two, and the crowds thin out fast. This is where I would stop for lunch.

I would also look up the old hammam on Arionos Square. Whether or not the baths are open when you pass, the building is worth a look from outside.

Give lunch a proper hour. You do not have to see everything, and a cool, shaded table in the middle of the day is one of the best parts of being here.

Mandraki harbour in Rhodes Town

After lunch, I would leave the walls and head to Mandraki. It is a small marina with white yachts, three stone windmills with red conical roofs, and a fortress with a lighthouse at the entrance.

At the harbour mouth, a bronze stag and a doe stand on two tall columns. Legend has it the Colossus of Rhodes stood astride this entrance. It is not there today, so don't go looking!

The waterfront is flat and open, which suits tired legs after the cobbles. Dawdle here, and then wander back toward your berth.

Should you go to Lindos from a Rhodes cruise port?

Lindos is the one place on the island that tempts everyone, and I understand why. A white village climbs a hill, with a fortress and the ruins of an ancient acropolis on top, and a turquoise bay below.

I went on 5 May 2022. I walked the lanes of white houses, climbed up to the acropolis and looked down on a bay full of moored boats, and then I went down to the beach. It was a long and lovely day, and it was a day with nothing else squeezed in.

That is my point. Lindos is roughly an hour each way by car from Rhodes Town, and the public bus takes nearer an hour and a half. By the time you add the climb and a bite to eat, it uses most of the day. On a stop of six or seven hours I would not try it.

If you are in port for longer and you want it, there are three realistic options.

• The cruise line's excursion. This is the one I would pick. If the coach runs late, the cruise line takes responsibility for getting you back on board. That is worth paying for.
• A taxi. It works for a small group if you agree the fare and the waiting time in advance, but if you are late back, that is your problem.
• The public bus. The KTEL bus leaves from beside the New Market at Mandraki, and is cheap, but I would not lean on it for a tight schedule. Check the current timetable with KTEL Rodou before you rely on it.

A private tour also keeps you in control of the clock. This private half day shore excursion takes in Lindos and the highlights of Rhodes Town in about five hours, priced per group of up to four.

If you want to compare the options at more length, my guide to Rhodes day trips and tours covers them.

What I would skip on a day in Rhodes

• Hiring a car. Parking and the island roads are more stress than a short call deserves. My piece on renting a car in Rhodes explains why it makes sense on a longer stay.
• Trying to do the town and Lindos together. You will end up rushing both.
• Driving out to a beach. Prasonisi and the far south are a long way to go for a swim. If you want the sea, Elli beach is a short walk past Mandraki.
• Buying the first thing you see in the busy streets. Go a little further first.

Getting back to Rhodes cruise port

This is the bit people get wrong. The port looks close, so you think you have more time than you do.

In the old town the lanes twist about, and finding the right gate out takes longer than you think, especially in the afternoon heat. I would start heading back at least an hour before the final boarding time, and more than that if you have been on the far side of town.

If you went to Lindos on your own, you need a lot more buffer. Count backwards from the time the gangway closes, and allow for traffic on the main road. The crew will not wait for you, and a missed sailing is a very expensive afternoon. If you are in any doubt, book the excursion so that they own the timing.

You've been warned!

Dave Briggs
Dave is a UK travel writer living in Athens since 2015. With 20 years of firsthand travel experience and over 80,000 km of bicycle touring across six continents, he's been blogging at Dave's Travel Pages since 2005. Every guide is based on places he's actually been.

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