Choosing a Rhodes boat tour for a swimming day
A Rhodes boat tour works well when the water is the main event. The local day cruises here combine time at sea with food, drinks and snorkelling equipment. Start with how you want to spend the day: a meal followed by a swim, a buffet with allocated seating, or a programme that spreads snacks and a barbecue across the outing. The useful differences are in those details rather than the broad promise of an all-inclusive cruise.
Allow a separate part of the day for reaching the boat and returning to your accommodation. A meeting point in Mandraki and a paid hotel shuttle are different arrangements. Choose your cruise around both the onboard programme and the journey to departure, especially when several people are travelling together.
Our picks: Boat trips
Compare the lunch cruise with the buffet and cocktail option. The Greek BBQ cruise also includes snorkeling equipment.
Hand-picked tours, booked through Viator. Prices are indicative starting prices in euros (as of November 2026). Tap a tour for live availability and the current price in your currency.
Swim cruise with buffet
- Use of Snorkelling equipment
- Greek Gourmet Buffet
- Cocktail open bar
Guest numbers are restricted and seating is allocated.
Check availability →
Coastal cruise with lunch
- Use of Snorkelling equipment
- Beers, white and red wine
- Chicken, rice and Greek salad
Arrive at the meeting point 30 minutes before departure.
Check availability →
Swimming cruise with Greek BBQ
- Greek BBQ meal
- Use of Snorkelling equipment
- Beers, Wine, Soft drinks
A return transfer is available for an additional charge.
Check availability →Local swimming cruises with food and drinks
Compare a lunch cruise, a buffet cruise with allocated seating and a barbecue boat day with separately arranged hotel transfers.
Swimming stops and the cruise experience
Treat swimming stops as opportunities to enter the water under the crew’s instructions. A snorkel set gives you equipment for looking below the surface; it does not turn a boat day into a guided underwater excursion. Stay realistic about your own confidence in open water and discuss help with boarding or water access before choosing a trip. The snorkelling guide focuses more closely on equipment and the kind of water access each outing offers.
Keep a dry change of clothing, sun protection and personal essentials separate from what the cruise supplies. Food and drink inclusions help with packing, but they are not a reason to ignore heat or your own comfort on deck. The weather guide explains how to keep a boat day flexible when conditions affect the plan. Avoid putting an inflexible appointment immediately after your return.
A lunch cruise with showers and a toilet
The five-and-a-half-hour lunch cruise includes chicken, rice, pasta, Greek salad, tzatziki, stuffed vine leaves, olives and bread, with fruit as well. Bottled water, beer, red and white wine, soft drinks, juice, coffee and tea are included. Its practical onboard facilities include a shower, a toilet and Wi-Fi, alongside use of snorkelling equipment.
The meeting point is beside Evangelismos Church, with arrival requested 30 minutes in advance. This option suits visitors who want the meal, basic onboard facilities and equipment described together in one package. Work back from the meeting time when planning the morning; the length of the cruise itself is only part of the time you need away from your accommodation.
Buffet, cocktails and allocated seats
The six-hour buffet cruise starts at Mandraki Port opposite the Bank of Greece. Its package includes allocated seating on bean bags and sun benches, with a restricted number of guests. That is a useful distinction if having a particular place to sit matters more to you than a long list of food courses. No fixed passenger number needs to be assumed from that description.
The food consists of a Greek buffet, aperitifs and snacks, with vegan and gluten-free choices. Water, soft drinks, beer, wine and cocktails are included. Snorkelling equipment, pool noodles, floats and life jackets are also part of the package. Match the actual meal choices to your needs rather than treating the word buffet as a promise that every dietary requirement can be met.
Barbecue and snacks throughout the outing
The six-hour barbecue cruise includes souvlaki meat skewers, Greek salad, tzatziki and bread. The programme also lists hot dogs, doughnuts with coffee and waffles on the return journey. Beer, wine, soft drinks and iced frappé accompany the food, and snorkelling equipment is included. It is a different style of day for travellers who like several food breaks rather than organising lunch ashore.
Hotel transport for this outing is arranged separately and costs extra. The transfer service lists Faliraki, Kallithea, Ixia, Kremasti, Rhodes Town and Kolymbia, with arrangements made directly with the office. Keep that additional journey and cost in your comparison. For the wider choice of land and sea activities, use the Rhodes tours overview; for a day spent ashore, see the beach guide.
Questions about your boat day
Is hotel pickup included with the barbecue cruise?
Its hotel transfer is a separate paid arrangement. Choose the cruise and the journey to departure together, and retain the confirmed pickup instructions if you add that service.
Do these cruises provide snorkelling equipment?
The lunch, buffet and barbecue outings each include use of snorkelling equipment. Equipment use is different from having a guide accompany you underwater.
Which outing has allocated seating?
The buffet and cocktail cruise includes allocated seating on bean bags and sun benches. The lunch cruise instead explicitly lists a shower and onboard toilet among its facilities.