Lardos Castle, Lardos, Greece

Lardos castle was built sometime in the 12th century, during the Byzantine era. When the Knights of the Order of St. John invaded the island in 1309, one of their immediate priorities was to locate ideal sites on which they could erect forts so that they could be used as lookout posts over the sea, but also to protect the soldiers from the enemy. When they came to Lardos, they discovered an entire fort from the Byzantine Era, which was in excellent condition. Very little restoration work was needed to be done to this stronghold, so for the new conquerors it was simply a matter of moving in.

The castle was then presented to the Genovese Admiral, Vinioli, by the Grand Master in the same year of their arrival, as reward for his part in the successful invasion of Rhodes. And that was not all that he was given his reward package included the entire settlement of Lardos. Today, the ruins of this once glorious Byzantine stronghold lie in very peaceful surroundings, in a remote location, some 500m from the residential part of Lardos, with only roaming goats for company a far cry from the days when the castle was buzzing with activity and the battle cries of warring soldiers. Also in the area of the castle, among the ruins of other smaller defenses, archaeologists had found remains of some of the mansions from the same era.

References:

visitrhodes.com

User Reviews

Ken Symons (13 months ago)
Easy to find, you can see it from a distance. Only to be reached on foot unless you have a very capable jeep. It's a decent walk uphill but nothing an average person can't do. There is not luch left of the ruin but its a nice open view over the area. I can see why they build a castle here. Worth the visit. Mind you there ALOT of thede ruins around Rhodos and some are way nicer then this one. If you visit Lardos (closest village) its worth checking it out!

Joonas Tammisto (14 months ago)
We did not find castle. There is huge junk yard at the google maps location, if you go to left under the aqueduct, there is dead end. If you take right side, the path is overgrown with tall weeds and is not accessible.

Marcel Červenka (2 years ago)
Nice place for a walk if you stay in Lardos near beach. There is literally one wall but anyway, it is cool place with nice view.

Peter T (2 years ago)
Easy to find but often overlooked, these castle ruins are worth the short walk through olive groves. Great views from the top.

maxwell tall (3 years ago)
Not easy to find road, I left my bike at olive garden and climbed to the castle like a mountain goat. No signs, no any information, not to much to do there and maybe not the best place to come with small kids, but I'm glad I've been there. It's some kind of adventures between lazy food time in hotel

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