Patmos
UNESCO World Heritage Site (1999): The Historic Centre (Chora) With The Monastery Of Saint John The Theologian And The Cave Of The Apocalypse, Where John Is Said To Have Received The Revelation · Chora (Patmos), South Aegean
Patmos is a small, rocky island at the northern end of the Dodecanese where, by long Christian tradition, John received the vision written down as the Book of Revelation, traditionally dated to about AD 95, while exiled by the Roman authorities. The cave where he is said to have lived and dictated to his disciple Prochorus now sits inside a small monastery halfway up the hill between the port of Skala and the white town of Chora. At the top, the fortified Monastery of Saint John the Theologian, founded in 1088 by the monk Christodoulos, still houses a working community and a treasury of icons, vestments and manuscripts. Chora, the monastery and the cave form a UNESCO World Heritage Site (1999). Pilgrims come for the cave and the Easter services; others come for the quiet, the captains' mansions, the windmills and clean beaches reached by boat or path. Honest caveats: there is no airport, ferries from Piraeus are long, the sacred sites are small and quickly seen, and cruise-ship mornings bring crowds to both at once.
Patmos, Dodecanese; port of Skala; the Cave of the Apocalypse halfway up the hill; Chora and the Monastery of Saint John the Theologian at the top, Chora (Patmos), South Aegean, Greece
The Cave of the Apocalypse and the Monastery of Saint John keep monastic hours rather than state-site hours: they generally open every morning and on some afternoons in the week, and close for services, feast days and at the monks' discretion. Hours are often extended or shifted around cruise calls - check the current schedule at the port or with your lodging. Small entry charges apply at the cave and the treasury museum (confirm current fees, and whether the monastery itself charges). The dress code is enforced at both doors. Chora, the windmills and the beaches are open at all times. The cave is about 2 km up the road from Skala and the monastery about 4 km; local buses and taxis serve both, or walk the old stepped path. Book ferries and rooms for Easter and August well ahead.