The West Coast Route: Filerimos Hill, Ancient Kamiros and Kritinia Castle

While 80 percent of visitors stay on the eastern coast of Rhodes, driving along the green, pine-forested western Aegean coast reveals the oldest history on the island with a fraction of the crowds. Before the unified city of Rhodes was founded at the northern tip of the island in 408 BC, the island was ruled by three powerful Dorian city-states mentioned by Homer: Lindos in the south-east, Ialyssos (on Filerimos Hill) in the north-west, and Kamiros on the western coast.

1. Filerimos Hill (Ancient Ialyssos, 12 km south-west of Rhodes Town)

Winding up through a fragrant forest of pine and cypress trees above Ialyssos/Trianta brings you to the flat summit plateau of Mount Filerimos (267 metres elevation), where dozens of tame, colourful peacocks strut freely under the trees:

• The Monastery of Our Lady of Filerimos & Ancient Temple of Athena Polias: walk through the restored 14th-century vaulted stone cloisters built by the Knights of St John right beside the marble foundations of the 3rd-century BC Doric Temple of Athena, and step down into the 15th-century subterranean chapel of Agios Georgios Chostos covered in medieval knightly frescoes.
• The Cypress Avenue ("Via Crucis") & 18-Metre Cross Viewpoint: walk down the shaded avenue flanked by fourteen bronze relief stations to the 18-metre concrete cross at the western cliff edge, looking straight down over the entire north-western coastline and airport.

2. Ancient Kamiros ("The Pompeii of Rhodes", 34 km south-west)

Unlike Lindos (which is a clifftop military fortress), Ancient Kamiros is an entire preserved Hellenistic town stepping up a pine-bordered amphitheatre hillside facing the sea. Walk from the lower Agora and Doric Fountain Square up the ancient main paved street (flanked by private courtyard houses with intact peristyle columns and terracotta water pipes) to the 206-metre-long Hellenistic Stoa and Cistern at the summit. Afterwards, drive 2 minutes down to Kamiros Skala for fresh grilled fish overlooking Chalki Island, and continue 15 minutes south to the 1472 Venetian-Knights' hilltop fortress of Kritinia Castle (Kastellos).