Discover Rhodope: Coast, Lake and Ancient Sites

Rhodope brings together a distinctive coastal landscape, the shallow Lake Ismarida and places steeped in ancient history. Along the southwestern coast, sandy beaches and deep blue waters shape the scenery, while the Archaeological Museum of Komotini, the Theatre of Maronia and the Acropolis of Petrota add distinct cultural and landscape features. When planning your holiday, it is worth deciding first what you would like to focus on: should your stay centre on beach activities, an interest in nature or archaeological sites? You can use this as a guide when choosing a holiday rental, too. This way, you can start planning around the experiences that matter to you, rather than choosing solely by place name.

Coast and beach activities

Rhodope’s southwestern coast is characterised by sandy beaches and deep blue waters, and is generally easy for everyone to access. At Petrota Beach, you can swim, play on the shore and explore the varied seabed. This combination gives the area more than a single beach focus: it ranges from spending time on the shore to exploring underwater. The route to the beach passes the prehistoric Acropolis of Petrota, a megalithic monument also known as the “Rocks of Petrota”. If you would like to factor archaeological heritage into your choice of location as well as being near the water, this gives you a clear point of difference between the beach activities and the historical feature along the way.

At Molyvoti Beach, you can snorkel and fish. The two beach profiles offer different experiences: Petrota is associated with swimming, playing on the shore and exploring the seabed; Molyvoti with snorkelling and fishing. If you are choosing a location based on a particular activity, these differences give you concrete points of comparison.

Lake Ismarida as a nature focus

Lake Ismarida is considered Rhodope’s most important habitat and one of the rarest shallow freshwater lakes. Its average depth is one metre. An average depth of one metre makes the description of a shallow lake more tangible; at the same time, the focus here is on a habitat, offering a different perspective on nature from the beaches. If you are interested in current ecological conditions, check them before your visit. The lake is therefore a draw for nature enthusiasts, while the beaches are characterised above all by specific activities.

Architecture and ancient sites

The cultural sites each offer a different focus, too. The Archaeological Museum of Komotini is housed in a building designed by the architect Aris Konstantinidis. For travellers interested in architecture, the museum is associated with a specifically named architect as well. The ancient Theatre of Maronia is located at the archaeological site near the Kambana findspot and is framed by olive trees and pines. The combination of the ancient structure and its tree-lined setting brings out the theatre’s connection to the landscape. When choosing a cultural focus, you can therefore weigh the architecture of the museum building against the theatre in its setting of olive trees and pines.

Discover more places

Discover more destinations: Komotiní, Fanari, Kávos, Marónia, Iasmos, Asomati, Xilagani, Platanitis.

For an overview of the wider region, see: Eastern Macedonia and Thrace.