Weather and climate in Dodecanese (Greece)

The Dodecanese Islands (also called Southern Sporades) are located in the southeastern part of the Aegean Sea, and have a Mediterranean climate, with mild, rainy winters and hot, sunny summers.
The main islands of the archipelago are: Agathonisi (or Gaidaro), Astypalaia (or Stampalia), Kalymnos, Karpathos, Kasos, Kastellorizo (or Megisti), Kos, Leipsoi (or Lisso), Leros, Nisyros, Patmos, Rhodes (the largest and most important), Symi, Tilos, and Halki (or Chalki).
Then there are many smaller islands and islets, among which we can mention Pserimos (or Cappari), Farmakonisi, Telendos, Arkoi, Saria, Gyali, Levitha, Ro, Strongyli Megistis, Alimia, and Syrna.

Being that they lie in the eastern part of the Aegean Sea, in summer, the islands are affected on a less intense and continuous manner by the Meltemi, the northerly wind that blows on the central Aegean Sea, so they are warmer in summer than the Cyclades, except the westernmost islands (such as Astypalaia), which have a climate similar to the Cyclades. In addition, sometimes there may be a period of intense heat, with maximum temperatures around 36/37 °C (97/99 °F) or more.
The Dodecanese Islands tend to be milder in winter as well, compared with the Cyclades, in particular, they are less exposed to cold air outbreaks from the continent, since the northwest wind has to cover a longer stretch of sea, so snowfalls on the Dodecanese Islands are very rare, and in practice, snow never accumulates on the ground, at least at sea level. Sometimes, however, it can be a bit cold, in fact, lows can drop to around 2/3 °C (35/37 °F) and highs to around 5/7 °C (41/45 °F), in addition, the wind can increase the feeling of cold.
For example, here are the average temperatures in Kalymnos.

Precipitation on the Dodecanese Islands is normally between 650 and 750 millimeters (25 to 30 inches) per year and is concentrated in the cold period, from October to March, when it can occur in the form of showers or thunderstorms, and can sometimes be abundant.
Because of the long summer drought, the landscape is typically semi-arid, especially on the flat islands and at low altitude (in the interior of some islands, there are hilly and mountainous areas, which are greener).
This is for example the average rainfall in Rhodes.

The amount of sunshine in the Dodecanese is great in summer, when clear skies are the norm. In winter, periods of bad weather, with cloudy skies, alternate with sunny periods.
Here are the average daily sunshine hours in Rhodes.



In summer, the temperature of the sea remains somewhat lower in the central and northern part of the archipelago, in fact, it does not exceed 23/24 °C (73/75 °F) in July and August, while it becomes higher on the southern islands, such as Karpathos, Rhodes and Kastelorizo, where it can reach 25/26 °C (77/79 °F).
Here, for example, is the sea temperature in Kos.

Best Time

The best time to go to the Dodecanese islands for a beach holiday is the summer, from June to mid-September. In early June, the weather can be a little cool in the evening: for safety you can bring a sweatshirt. Especially on the western islands, you can bring a light sweatshirt for windy evenings also in midsummer.
In May, not only the sea is still a bit cold, but the air can also be too cool for sunbathing, at least on certain days.
Since it can get very hot in summer, if you want to visit the ruins of ancient Greece or the modern cities, or for excursions to the interior of the islands, you can choose spring, in April and May. You can also choose autumn, at least in the first half of October, while later, rain becomes more likely.

Back to the Greek Islands.