Leros Island Things to Do

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Leros has the privilege to be very near from a small archipelago from small islands and islets like Lipsi ,Patmos ,Marathi ,Arkious ,Aspronisia and many others that you can visit on Daily Excursions using the hydrofoils the Catamaran or local boats that organizing Daily trips to those islands. One of the Local boats that organize those daily trips is Barabarossa .It lives daily from Agia Marina at 11 am and returns at 19 pm.During the excursion the passengers will stop for swimming and they will be offered free Ouzo and Greek Mezes , on the islands you can have launch on the local taverns

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Lakki is the largest port on the island of Leros, but despite its size it seemed to be much less busy than the port at Agia Marina when I visited. The hydrofoils from the neighbouring islands of Kos, Kalymnos, Lipsi and Patmos drop passengers at Agia Marina rather than at Lakki. Perhaps the larger ferries call at Lakki.

Lakki is located about 4km south of the capital Platanos. I walked from there to Lakki along the main paved road. This journey ranged from picturesque mountainside roadway, overlooking gorgeous sandy beaches and clear blue seas, to busy traffic and no sidewalk! The views on the nicer part of the journey just about compensated for nearly being hit by speeding cars!

Lakki is unlike any other village on the island and is unlike any town that I have ever visited on any other Greek island. It has wide streets, lots of greenery in places and large low-rise Italian style buildings, including a very impressive Port Police building by the port.

A few cafes line the long seafront, but Lakki is far less touristy than Agia Marina. It may be busier in the height of summer, but it was fairly devoid of activity when I visited in May 2006. There seemed to be a lack of tourist oriented shops and a larger selection of grocery stores, hardware shops, car repair and spare parts shops and a large household goods hypermarket is located on the edge of the village.

The large crescent shaped bay is certainly impressive, and is supposedly the largest such bay in the whole of the Dodecanese islands, but it seemed to be somewhet underutilised on the day that I visited.

A small marina with a handful of yachts lies at one end of the bay.

My overriding memory of Lakki is of wide (but almost empty) streets, large Italian style buildings and a huge port with no activity.

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The lovely seaside village of Pantelli is the third village on Leros, after Platanos and Agia Marina.

Pantelli is located on the island's east coast, about 1km south of Platanos, and is connected to the capital by a paved road, making it an easy 10 minute walk away.

A number of picturesque tavernas (with quintessential Greek appearance) line the pebbly beach. You can sit and enjoy a meal in almost perfect silence, as I did, while watching the fishermen tend to their nets or clean their colourful fishing boats on the beach. A small fishing harbour lies at the far end of the beach.

Beyond the seafront, the charming lanes of Pantelli are home to a handful of traditional kafenions. The local fishermen and other local men (for these seem to be male dominated establishments), while away their days drinking, chatting and playing cards or dominoes.

I ate at Zorba's Taverna (see my restaurant tips for more details) right on the beach. The view was superb and the relaxed atmosphere of this small village was wonderful. Despite the perfect setting, the price of the food was very reasonable, since Leros still attracts relatively few tourists and so prices on the island are below those on neighbouring islands such as Kos and Patmos.

If you choose to walk up to Leros castle via the main mountainside road, as opposed to the steep steps, then you will be rewarded with breathtaking views over Pantelli.

From the beach at Pantelli, you can see the castle and a row of windmills standing above the whitewashed houses of the village.

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The village of Platanos, located in the east of Leros, is the capital of the island.

Platanos is located just 500m uphill from the port of Agia Marina and it sits at the foot of the mountain on which Leros Castle stands imposingly.

Platanos is a typical Greek island town, with whitewashed houses, narrow cobbled streets, an abundance of flowers, mopeds zipping in and out of narrow alleyways, cars trying to squeeze down roads that look impossibly narrow, cats and dogs lazing in the streets, small grocery stores, traditional tavernas, elderly men sitting in shaded cafes playing dominoes or backgammon, elderly ladies sitting on their doorsteps knitting or chatting.

A small square, with a plane tree at its centre, is the focal point of the village. The town hall is situated along one side of the square, the Platanos Cafe along another, and a number of small shops skirt the other sides of the square.

The entire island is accessible from here. A narrow road leads 500m downhill to Agia Marina in one direction. Another road leads to the beachside settlement of Pantelli, about 1 km away. Along the road from Platanos to Pantelli there are stunning views of the island's castle and a line of windmills standing on the mountain overlooking the capital.

A flight of steps from the main village square lead up the mountainside to the castle. This is arguably Leros' prime tourist attraction and I would highly recommend that you climb up to the castle to admire the panoramic views.

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The village of Agia Marina is located on the east coast of Leros.

Despite being the second harbour of the island (the main harbour being further south at Lakki), Agia Marina will be the first sight of the island for many tourists. Hydrofoils from Kos, Kalymnos, Lipsi and Patmos arrive here.

However, upon disembarking your boat, there are no signs to indicate that you have arrived at Agia Marina (or even Leros for that matter!), so I assumed that I had arrived at Lakki. This made for a very confusing morning as I followed my map on the basis that I had set off from Lakki.

Around the immediate port area, there are a number of outdoor cafes and restaurants where you can sit with a cold beer or a coffee and wait for your boat....or just sit and watch the activity as the fishing boats come in and out of the harbour.

Just behind the seafront, there are a few souvenir shops, outlets selling ferry and hydrofoil tickets, a bakery, a couple of craft shops, a bookmakers, a few other shops and a small art gallery.

A short walk along the seafront brings you to Agia Marina's tiny beach, backed by a handful of whitewashed houses. The beach is pebbly and not particularly impressive, but the water is warm and crystal clear. At the end of the beach there is a traditional taverna with a small windmill standing almost in the sea.

From Agia Marina, it is a short uphill walk (5-10 minutes) to Platanos (the island's capital). This is a picturesque walk through narrow, whitewashed, postcard pretty streets, with old ladies knitting on their doorsteps and cats asleep in the shade.

There is a great view of Agia Marina from Leros Castle and the surrounding mountains. I would strongly recommend walking (or driving) up there to admire the great views of the island and its coastline.

In 2005 the Leros War Museum was opened in Merkia, near Lakki, southern part of the island. The museum is located inside an old tunnel made by the Italians during the World War II. There are several items from the battle of Leros including guns, helmets, bombs, uniforms and numerous photos.

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This bit of the coast is the "other" resort, as opposed to Pantelli, on Leros. This area is more popular with the holidaying Greeks with a few holiday homes scattered about. The English company, Sunvil, used to go here in the 80's. I don't know whether they still have it on their books. The road runs straight along the narrow shore, with the odd taverna across the way.
It was extremely quiet in October, but then what Greek holidays in that month??
It was all a bit too main road for my liking.

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Up in the far north of the island is Blefouti Bay. A not bad beach with tamarisk trees for shelter and a lonely taverna that decided to close as we arrived. No sign of any accommodation.
There were a few boats moored in the bay here. Not a soul to be seen but as we left, we met another English couple who were looking for somewhere to eat. Unlucky on this occasion.