Getting from Symi to Kythira

If you are heading to Kythira from Symi you are making your way from one of the most beautiful harbour towns in the Dodecanese to an island at the southern tip of the Peloponnese, between the Aegean and the Ionian seas, on the opposite side of Greece. It has stone villages, deep gorges, a Venetian castle above Chora and a coastline of turquoise coves.

Take the ferry

There is no direct ferry from Symi to Kythira. 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 Kythira, or taking the overnight Piraeus to Rhodes ferry in reverse and boarding the Piraeus to Kythira ferry, which runs several times a week and takes around 6 to 6.5 hours to the port of Diakofti. Alternatively drive south through the Peloponnese to Neapoli for the short ferry across to Kythira, which takes around 1 hour and runs daily in summer.

Getting there by air

Kythira has its own small airport with daily connections from Athens. 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 Kythira takes under 1 hour on the second leg. Total journey time is around 5 to 6 hours. 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 Kythira. It is the fastest and most practical approach. 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 in reverse and drive south through the Peloponnese to Neapoli for the short ferry across to Kythira.