7 Best places to stay in Rhodes

Those in the know prefer the tranquillity and spaciousness of southern Rhodes rather than the buzz of the crowded north.

Atrium Prestige is where they book: the extensive tropical gardens with palm trees and waterfalls and inner courtyards hiding villas with their own pergolas and private pools convey the atmosphere of a dreamy village.

Contemporary op-art styling is both chic and comfortable, while the floor-to-ceiling windows reveal the majesty of Kalathos beach in front and the Lachania coast further out.

A nice little extra – the spa offers some fun parent-kid treatments.

Dead in the middle in the Turkish quarter of Rhodes Old Town, this quiet, charming 500-year-old  Ottoman mansion is a designer jewel that’s been featured in the World Of Interiors magazine.

Superbly restored by Effie Dedes and her partner Spiros Chrysovergis, every room is furnished differently with gusto, so look at a few choices before you decide.

Its popular restaurant, humbly called The Marco Polo Cafe and set in the citrus-shaded courtyard, is always full, so book way ahead, along with your reservation.

The Michelin-quality food is prepared by head chef Lefteris Sotirakis, one of the most promising new stars in Greece.

A mountain inn, strategically located in the island’s crossroads at Monolithos, To Limeri (‘The Lair’) was built from scratch by the Papastamatiou family in 1992.

It operated as taverna, until the addition of ten rural-luxe rooms in 2018, two of them with open Jacuzzis.

If you have a car, it’s a perfect, inexpensive base to explore Rhodes, for there’s nothing better than driving back from your day’s sightseeing and tucking into what feels like a family dinner.

Just inside of St. Athanasius Gate and close to every sight in the Old Town, is this 2018 winner of Europe’s Historic Hotel awards.

It’s indistinguishable from the cluster of medieval townhouses surrounding it; sensitive restoration has even left the original wooden beams standing.

Each room sports an original painting; breakfast is both freshly cooked and tailored to your appetites; every bathroom has a rain shower, and the family suite sports a private full-blown hammam.

Plus, it comes with its own lovers’ legend of the ‘Blue Jewel’ which you can read about there: a Greek best-seller was based on it.

Lavish yet genteel, this Rhodes luxury boutique hotel below the Lindos Acropolis, is made of locally-quarried sandstone and furnishes sweeping panoramas of the beach and coastline below.

Rooms are laden with time-warp detail: carved façades, hand-painted ceilings, cedar woodwork and pebble mosaic floors, all adapted from 17th-century Lindos mansion motifs.

Even the common terraces have a village feel, as mulberry trees, lavender and vines intermingle with bougainvilleas and jasmine creepers.

This adults-only amphitheatrically sited hotel on a hill above Vlycha bay (about 5km north of Lindos) is a perennial Top 20 TripAdvisor winner, competing in the most romantic hotel category. It’s easy to see why.

If pelagic views are your thing, then Lindos Blu has them in abundance, the two infinity pools making up for a lack of seafront.

Wellness fanatics will be drawn to the hammam, the sauna, and the free yoga courses; gourmets will dine at the fashionable Smeraldo restaurant; and tea connoisseurs will be dazzled by the choice of Greek mountain herbals.

A great have-it-all resort for those who want a ‘stay and relax’ rather than a ‘drive and explore’ holiday.

Sited on a Blue Flag beach above the village of Kolymbia, this adults-only, all-inclusive, award-winning resort offers a variety of rooms to suit all budgets; some on two levels, others with private hot tubs or gardens, but all with a balcony or terrace.

Whatever the price, the hotel never scrimps on service or facilities that include tennis courts, a lagoon-like pool, a gym, and a spa.

There are two easily accessible beaches – busy Afandou and undeveloped Tsambika – bookending Kolymbia, 6km to the north and south.