Add in a mix of cool restaurants, local bars, sparkling yachts, and lush green hills dotted with wild flowers, and you have the recipe for a great holiday for every kind of holidaymaker.
Holidays in Kos are popular during the heat of the summer months, while trips to the Greek isle - the third largest in the Dodecanese - are quieter affairs in spring and autumn.
The island, which is closer to Turkey than Greece, is blessed with an abundance of beaches and holidays here revolve around the sand, pebbles and sea. High-rise hotels are nowhere to be seen. Instead, you'll find thoughtfully laid out low-rise resorts surrounded by flowers and greenery.
After landing at Kos Island International Airport (KGS), you'll be transferred to your chosen resort. There are some treasures to pick from. If you're after nightlife, you can't go wrong with pumping Kardamena, which is a beach-by-day, club-by-night, kind of resort. Kos Town features a more sophisticated nightlife scene, while most of the other resorts are sedate and family-friendly, with just enough amenities to keep visitors happy. Choose from: Tingaki (also known as Tigaki), with its white sands and shallow waters; the famous beaches of Kefalos; Mastichari village, which has great beaches; the pebbly beaches of Psalidi, near Kos Town; Marmari, which is also near town and home to popular Marmari Beach; or Agios Fokas, where the beaches are made up of a mix of black sand, white sand and pebbles.
Circle the island and you'll come across busy beaches, where rows of umbrellas spike the sand and provide much-needed shade, and small, secluded coves that look like they've been forgotten, even by the locals.
Beach lovers will go gaga over curvy Paradise Beach, which is also home to Bubble Beach - where bubbles really do swell up through the water. Exotic Beach and Camel Beach also draw those looking to relax next to the sound of the gentle waves, while Thermes Beach is famed for its hot springs.
