Rhodes in spring by car: Greek Easter, wildflowers and quiet beaches (March to May)

Why spring is the best time to drive Rhodes

Summer on Rhodes means heat, busy beaches in July and August and the meltemi wind from mid-May. Spring is the opposite: mild enough to climb an acropolis at noon, green after the winter rain, and quiet on the mountain roads. You give up the warmest sea but gain long, bright days, with about 6 hours of sunshine a day in March, 8 in April and 9.5 in May.

March, April and May at a glance

• March - highs around 17 C, nights near 12 C, about 6 rainy days and a bracing sea of 16.5 C. Sites keep winter hours until 31 March, and 25 March, Independence Day, is a closing day for state museums and sites.
• April - highs around 20 C, nights near 14 C and about 5 rainy days. Summer opening hours begin on 1 April, the hills are green and full of flowers, and the sea reaches about 17.5 C.
• May - highs around 24 C, only about 2 rainy days and the sea near 20 C, warm enough for a first swim for many. Easter falls on 2 May in 2027, and the north-westerly meltemi starts to blow from about mid-May.

Greek Easter 2027 on Rhodes

Easter (Pascha) is the most important feast of the Orthodox year, and churches across Rhodes follow the whole of Holy Week. In 2027 Easter Sunday is 2 May, so Good Friday is 30 April and the midnight Resurrection service falls on the night of Saturday 1 May. Lindos, with its whitewashed lanes below the acropolis, is one of the most atmospheric places to follow it, and the same rhythm plays out in Rhodes Town and the villages.

• Holy Thursday, 29 April - eggs are dyed red and sweet koulourakia are baked; in Lindos the church cross is decorated with flowers and wreaths.
• Good Friday, 30 April - a day of mourning. Flowers decorate the epitaphios, the bier of Christ, which is carried after the evening laments in a candlelit procession through the lanes.
• Holy Saturday, 1 May - at midnight the Holy Light passes from candle to candle, and "Christos Anesti" (Christ is risen) is answered with cheers and fireworks. Families then crack red eggs over magiritsa soup.
• Easter Sunday, 2 May - lamb roasting in courtyards and on terraces, long family lunches and dancing.
• Easter Tuesday, 4 May - in Lindos icons are carried to the cemetery and then from house to house to bless each home.

What opens when in spring

• Palace of the Grand Master, Rhodes Old Town - until 31 March 08:30-15:30, closed on Tuesdays; from 1 April 08:00-20:00 daily. Closed on 25 March, 1 May and Easter Sunday, open on Easter Monday, with different hours on Good Friday and Holy Saturday.
• Acropolis of Lindos - until 31 March 08:00-15:30 (last entry 15:10), closed on Tuesdays; in summer 08:00-20:00, which the municipal timetable already listed from the start of April in 2024. Both sites charged 20 EUR at the time of writing.
• Valley of the Butterflies (Petaloudes) - the Jersey tiger moths arrive in June and peak in July and August; in spring it is a cool walk under oriental sweetgum trees. The municipal timetable listed it open 09:00-17:00 in April 2024, while other guides give late May, so check first.
• May Day - in 2021, the last year Easter fell on 2 May, the 1 May holiday moved to the Tuesday after Easter; watch for the official 2027 schedule.

Wildflower drives: Embonas, Kritinia and Profitis Ilias

Lindos and the quiet south

A four-day spring itinerary from RHO

• Day 1: Rhodes Town. About 14 km, some 20 minutes, from the airport. Park free at Akantia by the old commercial port, take the free minibus in, then walk the Old Town and visit the Palace of the Grand Master.
• Day 2: mountains and flowers. Drive the west coast to Kritinia castle, go up to Embonas for lunch and a wine tasting, and return through the forests of Profitis Ilias and Salakos.
• Day 3: Lindos and Prasonisi. Be at the Acropolis of Lindos at 08:00, then continue south to Prasonisi for the afternoon and return by the east coast road.
• Day 4: a gentle last morning. The Valley of the Butterflies is about 10 km from the airport, a cool forest walk before your flight. At Easter, spend this day at the Easter Tuesday customs in Lindos instead.

Driving in Greece: the rules that matter

• Speed limits: 50 km/h in built-up areas, 90 or 110 km/h outside them depending on the road, 130 km/h on motorways unless signs show less. Rhodes mountain roads are narrow and winding, so drive well below the limit.
• The alcohol limit is 0.5 g/l, and 0.2 g/l for drivers with a licence held for less than two years.
• Seatbelts are compulsory on every seat. Children under 3 need a suitable child seat, and children aged 3 to 11 under 1.35 m a restraint for their size.
• A warning triangle, first aid kit and fire extinguisher are compulsory in private cars.
• The medieval Old Town is closed to visitors' cars. Use the free Akantia car park, with a free minibus to the centre about every 20 minutes, or paid blue-line spaces outside the walls.
• Yellow lines mean no parking; cars left there can be fined or towed.