Rhodes is the largest island of the Dodecanese, a group of Greek islands located in the southeast of the Aegean Sea just off the west coast of Turkey. Since antiquity its unique location has brought it both power and wealth.
On the northernmost tip of the island is the fascinating metropolis of Chora Rodos whose harbor entrance was once adorned by the Seventh Wonder of The World, the Colossus of Rhodes. But the legendary lighthouse has long since gone and today, excursion boats and yachts crowd the island’s former trading harbor that has a rich and dramatic past.
Byzantines, Arabs, The Knights of the Order of St. John, Ottomans and Italians, each one influenced the ever-changing history of the island that was first settled in 400 B.C.
At the city’s highest point is the huge palace of the Grand Master, the monumental junction of the Street of the Knights and the command post of the Christian order. The Grand Master was the highest dignitary of the Order of the Knights of Malta, a lifetime office.
Rhodes is an island steeped in history as well as the calm lifestyle of the Mediterranean.
