Why go
The roads radiate from Rhodes city along the coasts, while pine and cypress grow in the less settled interior. Mount Attavyros marks the island's high point, and Petaloudes Valley is associated with summer gatherings of tiger moths. These contrasts help choose an outing by landscape as well as by landmark.
The full story
Rhodes stretches roughly 80 kilometres from end to end, narrowing and widening like a spearhead. Rhodes city sits at its northern tip, where the island's ancient and modern harbours developed. Roads extend south along the east and west coasts past beaches, villages and cultivated strips. The interior is more mountainous and less densely settled, with pine and cypress among its characteristic trees. Mount Attavyros, at about 1,216 metres, is the highest point. The island's limestone base and rocky shores sit alongside land used for olives, grapes, citrus and vegetables. Petaloudes Valley is known for the large numbers of tiger moths that gather there in summer. Rhodes also lies in an earthquake-prone region: the earthquake of 226 BC famously toppled the Colossus, while later shocks affected the city. For a traveler, this geography is a practical map of contrasting days: urban history around the northern harbour, coastal settlements such as Lindos and Pefkos, or a more inland landscape.