A-Z Travel Guide to Kos

The 2022 edition of the A-Z Travel Guide to Kos is the 15th edition of the best and most comprehensive guidebook to Kos in the Dodecanese islands of Greece.

This 2022 travel guide to Kos runs to 186 pages, making it easily the biggest guide to this popular tourist destination, and also the most up-to-date. It may lack the colour photos in some of the other handful of Kos guides, but this helps keep the cover price down.

It also gives you access to the A-to-Z Travel Club on the publisher’s website, which has even more Kos information, links, current weather, flight information and other topics that can’t be kept current in a printed guide.

A-Z Travel Guide to Kos Contents

As with the companion Santorini guide, this A-Z Travel Guide to Kos begins with an overview of the island followed by a lengthy section on the history of Kos. I certainly didn’t know that it had been inhabited since at least 2900BC, as confirmed by the prehistoric tombs and finds at the site of Asklupi (which the author covers in the Places of Interest section).

Culture

After History, the author turns to the Culture of Kos, describing the people, customs, cultural and religious events, local products like honey, olives and wine, and the wildlife you’ll find on the island, from bats and rats to dogs and cats.

Kos TownKos Town

Places of Interest

This section naturally begins with Kos Town, which covers a generous 12 pages and is followed by an A-Z list of archaeological sites around the island. This is followed by a page listing the museums, and then villages and island attractions. Finally in this section there are several pages about the neighbouring volcanic island of Nisyros, which is a popular day trip from Kos.

One of the few things the book lacks is an index, so you can look things up quickly, rather than have to turn to the right section and then the right page. That’s a minor quibble, though.

Kos BeachKos Beach

Kos Beaches and Resorts

Kos is best known as an island with great beaches and resorts, and these get their own section, though the rest of the A-Z Travel Guide to Kos makes it clear that there’s much more to Kos than just beaches. The beaches and resorts are covered in depth, in 16 pages, going clockwise round the island from the beaches nearest Kos Town. 

Other Sections of the Guide to Kos

There are many more sections to the guide, too many to list them all, but they include the best ways of getting around the island, the best things to eat, what to shop for, activities around the island, and bugs and other pests. Be aware that while the author talks about hotels and tavernas, there are no listings for where to stay or where to eat. 

KosKos

The Author of the A-Z Travel Guide to Kos

This Kos guide is written by Tony Oswin, who has lived on Thassos since 2006, and makes regular visits to other Greek islands to keep his several guides up-to-date. His first guidebook was naturally to Thassos, which he and his wife retired to, and he has also written and published guides to Rhodes and Santorini.

Buying the A-Z Travel Guide to Kos

If you’re going to Kos then this comprehensive guide is highly recommended. 

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