Leros and Lipsi, apartments and villas - Leros Island
Leros and Lipsi, Greece's most unspoiled islands
The old towns and their beaches
The irregular coast provides for a huge variety of inlets and gulfs that offer
both rocky and sandy beaches, as well as an abundance of tourist localities.
Aghia Marina, situated in a natural port, stretches in an arena
like fashion between two slopes and is the center of all the island's services
and activities. Despite the activity, the town is still quite picturesque, complete
with traditional white houses nestled snugly together and fascinating neoclassical homes.
Perched on top of Apitiki hill, 300 meters over the sea, the remains of an old
Venetian castle overlook the whole village, to the west of which the Church of
the Blessed Virgin, with its grand gilt iconostasis and numerous ancient icons, is to be visited.
Panteli is a charming fishing village located just after Platanos,
in the southeastern part of the island. It has a wonderful sand beach and a great
number of restaurants serving excellent seafood. The town also provides vacationing
sailing crews and local fishermen with a safe harbor from the sea's winds.
The magical beach of Vromolithos is nearby.
Lakki, located on the coast southwest of Leros, is the largest
natural port of the eastern Aegean region.
At the start of the last century, Italians settled here and named it Porto Lago;
the settlers left their mark on both the natural setting and the architecture.
Even today, the old, imposing buildings of the neoclassical and littoral styles
make the town a unique place to visit.
Xirocampos is a splendid gulf located 8km south of Aghia Marina,
on the southernmost tip of the island, facing Kalimnos island. In addition to a
variety of beaches, visitors can admire the ruins of Paleocastro and the Church
of the Madonna of Kavouradena, built upon the rocks.
Alinta, located on the most inland point of Aghia Marina, has
crystalline waters surrounded by thick Mediterranean vegetation.
Visit Belleni Tower, which houses the Museum of Folklore and History, the town
library, a prints museum and the local art gallery.
Krithoni, where the Nefeli Hotel is located,
is a small maritime town situated between Aghia Marina and Alinta. Surrounded
by dense vegetation, Krithoni is home to a beautiful sandy beach, numerous restaurants
and a variety of shops.
Partheni is the northernmost inhabited center of Leros, where
the island's airport is located. Visitors here can visit the temple of the Virgin
Artemia, which is immersed in the deep, Mediterranean bush. There is also a small
port where boats leave for frequent day excursions to the nearby island of Lipsi.
Gourna and Drimona. The wide gulf of Gourna is located in the
western part of the island; the gulf is a favorite locale for families with children,
as it offers sandy beaches and shallow waters. Leaving Gourna and traveling down
the road that hugs the beach, visitors can reach Drimona, where the fourteenth
century Madonna of Gourlomatas Church is located.
A bit of History
Leros is an island of the Dodecanese situated between Patmos and Kalymnos, not far from Lipsi.
The first villages of the island were founded by Carian, Lelegian and Phoenician
farmers; they developed when the Cretans of Minoan times came to settle on the island.
There followed a wave of Dorians and Ionians, the cultural influence of whom was seminal.
During the Classic period the island was governed according to democratic Athenian principles and rose to splendour.
During Byzantine times the history of the island follows that of the rest of the
Dodecanese; it is during this period that the Castle and the Church of the Virgin
Mary are built, as well as the Paleokastro, or Old Castle, on the site of the ancient Cyclopian walls.
In 1309 the island was conquered by the Knights of Saint John of Jerusalem, who
held it until 1523, when it bacame part of the Turkish domains.
In 1821 Leros took active part in the national uprising against the Turks. During
the Balcanic wars of 1910-1913 the place of the Turkish Guard was taken by the
Italians in order to guarantee regular seafaring through the Aegean and the strait of the Dardanelles.
According to the Lausanne Treaty of 1923 the control of the Dodecanese was officially confirmed to Italy.
On March 7 1948 the Island of Leros eventually became part of the Greek state.