11 Island Boat Trips in Rhodes Worth Booking

1.High-Speed Boat to Symi Island & Saint George’s Bay

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 3,048 reviews · 6 - 9 hours · from $69Our pick

Take a fast boat from Rhodes to Symi, with about three hours to explore the pastel harbor, shops, cafés, and waterfront tavernas. The 9:00 and 11:00 departures include a 30-minute swim at Saint George’s Bay. The 15:15 boat offers a photo stop only, while Friday’s 17:00 cruise skips the bay entirely.

“Brilliant day out! Symi Island is a beautiful stop - we wandered around the sights, had a swim in the beach and lunch (try the fried shrimps). The highlight was the swim at Saint George’s Bay - gorgeous setting and lovely to swim in.”

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2.Cruise to Symi Island and Saint George’s Bay

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 2,137 reviews · 8h 30m · from $41Best value

Sail from Mandraki Harbour to Saint George Bay and Symi with SP Cruises. You get a clear-water swim stop, freshwater showers, an experienced crew, and about three hours in Gialos for lunch and wandering. Captain Yannis is known for his friendly style, while the onboard bar serves drinks and snacks. Bring a jacket for the windy ride.

“Great trip to Symi, amazing, beautiful island with a lot of views (and had the best ice cream there!). Boat was good, organised - but extremely long (took around 2 hours or so). St Georges Bay was lovely and had a good swim there for around an hour, clear water and enough floats for people. Would recommend!”

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3.Symi Island & Panormitis Monastery Day Trip by Boat

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 1,784 reviews · 9 hours · from $53

Travel from Rhodes to Symi aboard the Nikolaos X, stopping first at peaceful Panormitis Monastery, then spending about four hours among Symi Town’s colorful houses, sponge shops, cafes, and waterfront tavernas. Hotel pickup is available from selected Rhodes areas. The trip is self-guided, with a map and clear return times.

“Great trip, was guided all the way but also was given some time to explore by yourselfs”

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4.Boat Trip to Symi Island with swimming stop at St George Bay

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 1,753 reviews · 9 hours (approx.) · from $48

Sail from Rhodes to Symi Island with a one-hour swim at Saint George Bay. You get about three hours in Symi for lunch, shops, and harbor views. Hotel pickup is available for an extra fee, and the boat has toilets and a snack bar. The day lasts about nine hours, with roughly four hours of sailing.

“The trip as a whole was fantastic. We were picked up from our hotel and dropped off at the boat. The boat ride there was about 2hrs to St George's Bay. I would recommend taking travel sickness tablets if you get sea sick. St George's bay was beautiful, I would also recommend bringing your own snorkel as these are not provided on board. They do however provide woggles which my girlfriend made good use of (she's 25 years old). The island of Symi was also really nice, although quite busy as it is a tourist hot-spot. Would definitely recommend this trip.”

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5.Morning Cruise to Symi Island & St. George Bay

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 1,671 reviews · 8 hours · from $64

Spend eight hours cruising from Rhodes to Symi aboard the modern Doll boat. Swim and snorkel for about 90 minutes at St George’s Bay, then explore Yialos for three hours, with time for lunch, shops, and the Kali Strata climb. Hotel transfers, Wi-Fi, toilets, shaded seating, and snorkelling gear are included.

“liked the boat was nice and clean.. no commentary from the captain or crew to make the journey more entertaining often the boat was just silent would have been good for them to point out more of the islands or some history of st George's bay or Symi”

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6.Boat Trip to Symi Island by Fast Boat

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 975 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $48Top rated

Travel from Rhodes to Symi by fast boat, with about four hours to explore the harbor town on your own. Choose a central meeting point in Rhodes Town or pay extra for hotel pickup. Expect a mid-morning departure, a one to one-and-a-half-hour crossing, and free time for photos, lunch, shopping, and a walk along the waterfront.

“It was well organised and the team at half price tours were very good and helpful… it’s a totally different story when it comes to the boat they booked us on - it was teaming with diesel fumes and so noisy! My watch registered a consistent 85 db sound levels for the duration of the journey! At some points the noise peaked at more than 90db!! Unacceptable by any standards”

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7.Rhodes Town: Boat Trip to Symi Island and St Marina Bay

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 387 reviews · 8 hours · from $47

Sail from Rhodes Harbour to the boat-only waters of St Marina Bay for a 30-minute swim and snorkeling stop, then spend three hours exploring Symi Town. Rizos Cruises provides an open sundeck, air-conditioned seating, toilets, WiFi, floats, and a bar selling snacks and drinks. The $47 price makes this a practical full-day island outing.

“plenty of seating although it was a bit cold sitting in the shade for two hours, luckily I had a jumper. Sat in the sun on the way back, reasonably priced drinks, fantastic views but could have done with longer swimming in the bay. would have been nice to put stuff in a locker while swimming as we need things like phones and keys to get back into our hotel.”

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8.Day Trip to Symi Island by Fast Boat

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 292 reviews · 7 - 10 hours · from $50

Take a fast boat from Rhodes Town to Symi in about 75 minutes, then enjoy four hours of free time in Gialos. Walk among colorful houses, shop for handmade goods, eat local baby shrimp, and return by boat. Hotel pickup is optional, and clear WhatsApp communication helps with transfers and boarding.

“It was all really well organised. Only very minor quibble the wait for the boat in the morning, but everything else perfect”

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9.Butterfly Valley and Mini Cruise to Chalki Island

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 190 reviews · 11 hours · from $63

Begin with a hotel pickup and a morning walk through Rhodes’ Butterfly Valley, then take a ferry from Kamiros Skala to peaceful Chalki. You get free time for narrow lanes, tavernas, swimming, and sea views. Guide Joseph has led some departures, with about four hours on Chalki. Butterflies are most reliable from June to mid-September.

“We had an amazing day with this trip. Started with the butterfly valley which was a lovely start of the day. We saw lots and lots of butterflies and had a very relaxing walk at the valley Then we went to Chalki island which was very pretty. had some of the best food on a taverna on the beach as well.”

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10.Sunset Cruise to Symi Island with 3 Hours Free Time

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 186 reviews · 5 hours · from $57

You’ll board the Aphrodite Princess at Mandraki Harbour for a fast afternoon run to Symi. Explore the pastel harbor town independently for about three hours, eat at your own expense, then watch the sunset on the return to Rhodes. This English-language boat tour has no guide on Symi, but gives you time, flexibility, and a cooler, quieter visit.

“Great trip to Symi with an amazing sunset! The only negative was that it was 10 minutes late coming back.”

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11.Boat trip to Symi island with swimming at St. George

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 157 reviews · 8.5 hours · from $51

Spend 8.5 hours at sea and on Symi Island, with an optional hotel transfer from Rhodes. The boat stops for about 45 minutes to an hour at St. George Bay for swimming and snorkeling, then gives you roughly three hours in Symi’s harbor town. Bring swimwear, a towel, sun protection, and cash for lunch or snacks.

“We really enjoyed our trip to Symi island. Everything went very smoothly. Our hotel pickup was perfectly on time, and the boat ran on time all day too. Our transport home was easy to get too. Everyone was very friendly and it was a great experience.”

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