Getting from Arki to Antikythera

If you are heading to Antikythera from Arki you are making your way from one of the smallest inhabited islands in the Dodecanese to one of the most remote islands in Greece, sitting in the strait between Kythira and Crete with around 30 to 40 permanent residents. It is known to the world for the Antikythera Mechanism, a 2,000-year-old bronze analog computer recovered from a shipwreck in 1900 and now considered the most sophisticated device to survive from antiquity.

Take the ferry

There is no direct ferry from Arki to Antikythera. Arki is connected to Patmos, Leros, Lipsi, Kalymnos and occasionally Rhodes and Samos, with services running a limited number of times per week. Antikythera is served by a ferry running from Piraeus through Kythira to Antikythera, continuing to Kissamos in Crete. Getting there means taking the ferry from Arki to Leros, flying to Athens and then flying to Kythira, followed by the short ferry from Kythira to Antikythera taking around 1 hour 30 minutes.

Getting there by air

Antikythera has no airport, only a helipad. The nearest airport is Kythira, with connections from Athens. Arki has no airport either. Taking the local ferry from Arki to Leros, flying to Athens and then Athens to Kythira, followed by the short ferry from Kythira to Antikythera, gives a total journey time of around 6 to 7 hours. In Greece, airlines do not operate direct inter island flights.

Your best option

Take the local ferry from Arki to Leros, fly to Athens and then fly to Kythira and take the ferry across to Antikythera. Check the ferry schedule before booking your flights as the Kythira to Antikythera service runs only a few times per week. Check the ferry schedule from Arki carefully before booking as services also run only a limited number of times per week. Bring everything you need as the island has almost no facilities and that is rather the point of going.