Getting There
By Plane -- Both Olympic Airways and Aegean Airlines offer several flights daily between Athens and Lesvos (Mitilini); both also offer occasional flights to Thessaloniki. Contact Olympic Airways in Athens at tel. 210/966-6666, or check out www.olympicairlines.gr. Contact Aegean Airlines (tel. 801/112-0000 or check www.aegeanair.com). The airport (tel. 22510/61-490 or 22510/61-590) is 7km (4 miles) south of Mitilini. There's no bus to the town; a taxi will cost about 10€ ($13).
By Boat -- The principal port of Lesvos is Mitilini, from which almost all the ferries arrive and depart, although there is some ferry traffic through the west-coast port of Sigri. There's one ferry daily to Mitilini from Piraeus, stopping at Hios (10-12 hr.); there are also several ferries weekly from Rafina to Sigri (9 hr.). There are daily boats in both directions between Mitilini and Hios (3 hr.). Two boats call weekly at Mitilini from Kavala (10 hr.) and Thessaloniki (10-13 hr.), stopping at Limnos on the way. There's also one ferry a week from Siros (9 hr.). Check schedules with a local travel agent, www.gtp.gr, the Mitilini Port Authority (tel. 22510/28-827), or Sigri Port Authority (tel. 22530/54-433).
Once you get to Lesvos, double-check the boat schedule for your departure, as the harbor is extremely busy in the summer and service is often inexplicably irregular.
