Rhodes Old Town & Grand Masters Palace Shore Excursion

The focus of this private Rhodes tour is the sites located in the old town of Rhodes. You enjoy a short scenic drive before starting a walking tour which includes interior visits to the Grand Master's Palace and the Archaeological Museum.

You start your private Rhodes tour by passing the old port of Mandraki. It is here where the Colossus, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, is traditionally associated, though the popular image of it straddling the harbor entrance is a medieval invention. Most historians believe the statue stood on a single pedestal to one side of the harbor. You drive up the hilltop of Agios Stefanos where you will enjoy beautiful views of the Bay of Rhodes.

Next you travel back to the city and drive around the ancient stone walls. You enter the Old Town from d'Amboise Gate, which is the closest point to the rebuilt Grand Master's Palace. This 14th century palace, built by the Knights of St. John, shares some architectural character with the Papal Palace in Avignon, France, though it was built and fortified according to its own defensive needs on Rhodes. It was built to serve as a fortress in times of war, a peacetime residence for the Grand Master and a meeting place for senior knights.

After visiting the palace you walk the cobblestone street of the "Avenue of the Knights" where the famous knights once lived. To this day the street exudes a noble and forbidden aura with its lofty buildings which stretch the 1800 feet long unbroken wall of stone blocks. The flat facade is punctuated only by huge doorways and arched windows.

This avenue leads you to the Archaeological Museum which is housed in the 15th century Knights' Hospital. Your guide will show you many artifacts and exquisite statues dating back as far as the 4th Century B.C. Its most famous piece is the statue called the Aphrodite of Rhodes, a marble sculpture dating to the 2nd or 1st century BC and unearthed in Rhodes in 1923.

At the end of your walking tour you have free time before you are transferred back to the pier.