KALYMNOS
Vacations and Sightseeing
Vacations and Sightseeing
| Basic information | |
| Official language | Greek |
| Capital | Pothia |
| Area | 109 km² |
| Population | 11,913 (2021) |
| Currency | euro (EUR) |
| Web | .gr |
| Code. | GRC |
| Tel. | +30 |
Popular destinations GREECE
| Aegina | Alonissos | Andros |
| Chios | Corfu | Crete |
| Hydra | Kalymnos | Karpathos |
| Kefalonia | Kos | Lefkas |
| Lesbos | Mykonos | Naxos |
| Paros | Patmos | Peloponnese |
| Poros | Rhodes | Samos |
| Santorini | Skiathos | Skopelos |
| Spetses | Thasos | Zakynthos |
Vacations and Sightseeing
The main reason to visit Kalymnos is the beach. There is an abundance of beaches and as a tourist you can enjoy the sunset and sunrise in peace. Most of the beaches are natural and not yet very developed. On the east coast are the beaches of Armies, Drasonia and Palaionissos, in the west the sandy beaches of Kandouni, Linaria and Platys Gialós, among others.
You can also hire a bicycle and wander around the island. There are other means of exploring the island such as taxis and buses, but cycling gives you the most freedom. You will see old buildings, churches, museums and monasteries along the way. Everything here has been untouched since the Middle Ages or even earlier. In the Kalymnian House, the daily life of earlier times is exhibited.
Two museums on Kalymnos are a must to visit. They are the Archaeological Museum and the Nautical Museum. The Archaeological Museum exhibits archaeological findings from the Neolithic and Bronze Age, including statues and leather clothing, in addition to 19th century furniture.
he Nautical Museum has a collection of objects and animals from the underwater world and of course, there is also much to find out about the history and techniques that are and were used in sponge fishing.
Another maritime museum, Museum Seaworld, is located in the village Vlihadia, where you can see (dead) fish and shellfish, sometimes in the form of rare fossils. There are also many remains of old shipwrecks, such as amphorae and treasure chests, most of which were found by the famous archaeologist Stavros Valsamidis.
Pera Kastro is an old Byzantine crusader fortress with as many as nine white chapels and the ruins of a medieval village on its grounds.
Kalymnos is, especially on the west coast, a true paradise for mountaineers, with more than 1600 climbing routes in about 84 climbing areas against sometimes perpendicular mountain slopes, for both beginners and professionals. The mountain slopes are the result of volcanic activity in the distant past. One of the first climbing areas, climbing has become popular on Kalymnos only since 1996, is at Arhi. Unique is the climbing between stalactite formations in the Grande Grotta in a mountain above Massouri. Climbing routes have also been set out on the neighbouring island of Telendos.
On the virtually car-free and treeless island of Telendos, about a ten-minute boat ride from Kalymnos, there are two ruins, the Monastery of Agios Vasileiou and the medieval church of Agios Konstantinos (Saint Constantine) and some pebble beaches. When the sea is calm, under the coastline you can still see remains of houses from before the earthquake that separated Télendos from Kalymnos in 554. Telendos has a nudist beach and there is plenty of climbing to be done.
Sources
Wikipedia
CIA - World Factbook
BBC - Country Profiles
Last updated March 2024Copyright: Team The World of Info