When you land at Rhodes International Airport (RHO), also known as Diagoras, you clear passport control only if arriving from outside the Schengen Area, collect your bags and pass customs, then step into a single arrivals hall about 14–15 km, a 20 to 25 minute drive, from Rhodes Town. Flights reach the island from Athens and other parts of Greece, and from cities across Europe, with the choice widest over the summer season, and you can be at your hotel soon after stepping off the plane.
Schengen and passport control
Greece is part of the Schengen Area. If you arrive on a flight from another Schengen country, there is normally no passport control on landing, and you go straight to baggage. If you arrive from outside Schengen, for example on some UK or non-EU services, you pass through passport control first. There is no online arrival card to fill in for Greece. Whether you need a visa depends on your nationality, so check your own requirement on official government channels before you travel and keep your passport or national ID handy.
Step by step on landing
The process at RHO is short and follows a familiar order. Here is the sequence once you are off the aircraft:
- Passport control: only for arrivals from outside the Schengen Area. Have your passport ready. Lines build up when several flights land together during the summer.
- Baggage claim: collect your luggage from the belt in the arrivals hall. Trolleys are available near the carousels.
- Customs: after baggage you pass through the customs channel. Use the green channel if you have nothing to declare and the red channel if you do.
- Arrivals hall: once through, you reach the public area with car-rental desks, ATMs and the exit to the taxi rank.
Money and quick essentials
| What | Detail |
|---|---|
| Distance to Rhodes Town | About 14–15 km, a 20 to 25 minute drive |
| Arrivals layout | Single arrivals hall |
| Currency | Euro (EUR) |
| Cash on arrival | ATMs landside in the hall |
| Languages | Greek; English widely spoken |
The currency is the euro, and cards are widely accepted across the island, so you rarely need much cash. Even so, pull out some small notes for the taxi and tips.
Getting into town
Step outside the hall and your options line up at the kerb: metered taxis at the rank, car-rental desks just behind you, and hotel shuttles if your resort runs one. The RODA public buses into Rhodes Town stop on the main road by the airport, and in summer KTEL adds a direct line 25 to Faliraki from the main road by the airport. For a full comparison of fares, driving times and the cheapest ways across the island, see our guide to getting from the airport to Rhodes Town. Booking a transfer before you fly means a driver is waiting when you leave baggage claim, which is handy after a long flight or a late landing.
If you would rather see where you come out and where taxis and buses wait, the airport map marks the arrivals side, the taxi rank and the bus stop on the main road.
