Getting from Symi to Antipaxos

If you are heading to Antipaxos from Symi you are making your way from one of the most beautiful harbour towns in the Dodecanese to a tiny island just south of Paxos in the Ionian Sea, on the opposite side of Greece. It has beaches of a quality that would be famous if they were anywhere more accessible.

Take the ferry

There is no direct ferry from Symi to Antipaxos. No Dodecanese island is connected by sea to any Ionian island. Antipaxos is accessible only by sea taxi from Gaios on Paxos, taking around 15 to 20 minutes. Getting there means taking the ferry from Symi to Rhodes, which takes around 50 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes and runs multiple times daily, and then flying from Rhodes to Athens and then Athens to Corfu, followed by the ferry from Corfu to Paxos taking around 1 hour 30 minutes and then the sea taxi to Antipaxos. Alternatively fly from Rhodes to Athens and drive northwest to Igoumenitsa for the car ferry to Paxos.

Getting there by air

Antipaxos has no airport. The nearest airport is Corfu. Symi has no airport. The nearest airport is Rhodes. Taking the ferry from Symi to Rhodes, flying from Rhodes to Athens and then Athens to Corfu, followed by the ferry from Corfu to Paxos and then the sea taxi to Antipaxos, gives a total journey time of around 7 to 8 hours. Note that the Corfu to Paxos ferry does not carry vehicles. In Greece, airlines do not operate direct inter island flights.

Your best option

Take the ferry from Symi to Rhodes and fly from Rhodes to Athens, then fly from Athens to Corfu and take the ferry across to Paxos, followed by the sea taxi to Antipaxos. Antipaxos is most rewarding as a day trip or overnight from Paxos rather than a standalone destination as facilities on the island are almost nonexistent. Note that Symi is car-free so if you are traveling with a car it would already be in Rhodes, from where you can board the overnight Piraeus ferry and drive northwest to Igoumenitsa for the car ferry to Paxos.