How to go to Mytilene? & Transportation in Lesvos

Before going to Lesbos, “How to get to Lesbos?” I did the research. With both my research results and my experiences on the island I visited twice. How to get to Mytilene? And how is transportation in Lesvos? You will find answers to your questions in this article. 

How to go to Mytilene? & Transportation to Mytilene

You can reach Lesbos Island, which is the third largest island in Greece, opposite Ayvalık in the North Aegean, by plane from certain points in Greece, or by ferry from Turkey or Greece. 

You must have a valid passport and Schengen visa to go to Lesbos. If you have a green passport, you can go without a visa. Until 2019, it was possible to visit the Greek Islands with a gate visa, but since then the gate visa is not valid. In other words, you must get a Schengen visa before making plans for the islands.

If your passport has the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus stamp, you cannot enter Lesbos. We can already go to Cyprus with our ID, you don't need to use a passport and get stamped. However, I wanted to remind you that if you are going to Greece and the Greek Islands, you should not have a TRNC stamp in your passport.

How to go to Mytilene by Ferry?

You can take a ferry to Mytilene from Ayvalık and other Greek Islands. Before the pandemic, there were also ferries from Küçükkuyu and Dikili, but these ferries are not operating at the moment.

You can reach Mytilene by ferries departing from Ayvalık. There are 2 different companies that provide ferry service from Ayvalık to Lesbos. Turyol and the ferries of Jalem Tur companies are going. Turyol and Jalem Tur's regular ferries reach Mytilene in 90 minutes, while Jalem Tur's fast ferry reaches Mytilene in 45 minutes. There are mutual ferry services from Ayvalık to Lesbos and from Lesbos to Ayvalık at 09:00 in the morning and 18:00 in the evening.

Turyol Company Ayvalik-Midilli 2022 Ferry Prices

I traveled with Turyol company on both of my visits to the island, the round-trip adult ticket price is 30 Euros. Below you can see ticket prices for all classes;

• Baby (0 – 6 years old): 5 Euros one way, 5 Euros round trip
• Child (6 – 12 years old): 10 Euros one way, 15 Euros round trip
• Adult: 20 Euros one way, 30 Euros round trip
• Motorcycle: 25 Euros one way, 40 Euros round trip
• Auto & Jeep (less than 5 meters): 55 Euros one way, 80 Euros round trip
• Minibus (less than 6 meters): 90 Euros one way, 140 Euros round trip
• Caravan (less than 6 meters): 120 Euros one way, 180 Euros round trip
• Midibus (6-9 meters): 200 Euros one way, 250 Euros round trip
• Bus: 300 Euros one way, 400 Euros round trip

Ayvalik Port Tax

While going from Ayvalık to Lesbos, you have to pay 150 TL international departure fee and port tax in addition to the ticket prices at separate tolls. The tax figures to be paid for all passengers leaving Ayvalık port are as follows:

• Pedestrian: 15 TL Port Tax
• Motorcycle: 15 TL
• Car : 65 TL
• Jeep & Minibus : 115 TL
• Van: 115 TL
• Bus : 230 TL

There are ferries from Mytilene to Thessaloniki and Athens. You can also pass through Lesbos to other islands such as Chios, Limnos and Kos.

How to go to Lesbos from Ayvalık?

My habit is to go early to the airport, bus station or ferry when I go somewhere. My stay in Ayvalık Macaron HotelI took one of the minibuses at the old Tansaş stop with a 2-3 minute walk from l and went to the ferry port. The port is only 1 km walking distance from the center of Ayvalık.

Just across the pier, there are offices of 2 companies going from Ayvalık to Lesbos. I chose Turyol to go from Ayvalık to Lesbos. You can buy the ticket from the office before boarding the ferry, or you can buy it online.

At the entrance of the ferry port, there is a cafeteria on the left and a box office on the right where you can pay the international departure fee and port tax.

When you arrive at the pier at 09:00 for the ferry at 07:30, you can sit in the cafeteria and have breakfast, you have options such as toast, bagels and tea.

They do not open the customs gates before the ferry time approaches, so the passengers of Mytilene wait outside or in this cafeteria until the gates open. When the doors open, the fee stamp box also opens, if you haven't paid in advance, you can pay quickly here. The ferry consisted mostly of Turkish holidaymakers and was quite calm. It can be very crowded on weekends and during the holidays in July-August, so it is useful to be prepared accordingly.

The ferry I boarded was a 3-deck ferry designed to carry both passengers and vehicles. While getting on the ferry, I asked the young person who was checking the ticket, "Where is the most beautiful place?" He suggested the place in front of the bridge, but because I didn't want to go outdoors for 1,5 hours under the sun, I settled in the enclosed area on the second floor. The ground floor is reserved for vehicles, the middle floor is a closed area. There is a cafe here. The entire third floor consists of open-top seating, and I'm sure it's pretty breezy on hot summer days. 

When the ferry said goodbye to Ayvalık and took Cunda to its right, I went to the computer to plan the places I would visit in Lesbos. It attracts Turkish GSM operators until it reaches Mitilini port. It even attracts many parts of the island facing Turkey. Don't forget to manually select the operator, whatever Vodafone or Turkcell you use, and turn off your cellular data for free roaming. Otherwise, you will be connected to the Greek operator and you will have to pay from the international internet tariff.

The ferry departs on time and we reached Mitilini Port at the end of the 1,5-hour journey. As soon as they land in the port, they direct them to the customs building where passport control will be made. Since our ferry was quite quiet, I passed the control without waiting in line.

How to go to Mytilene by car?

Another way to go to Mytilene is to take the ferry with your own car. Of course, this time you need to buy tickets for the vehicle and the passenger, not just the passenger price. When buying tickets online, you can see the number of vehicle seats left.

The vehicle ferry crossing fee is 80 Euros round trip, and the minimum payment amount is 105 Euros since there will be at least one passenger, that is, the driver of the vehicle. You pay an additional 25 Euros for each extra passenger. In addition, your vehicle must have green insurance when traveling abroad.

How to go to Mytilene by Plane?

There is an airport in Lesvos, it is called Mytilene International Airport. Aegean Airlines, Astra Airlines, Skyexpress and Olympic Air have flights from Lesbos. By the way, we only call Lesbos, the Greeks call it Lesvos. It is useful to pay attention to this when searching for any flight. You can control the flights by selecting Lesvos as the island and Mitilini as the city.

From Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen Airport to Mitilini Airport with connecting Aegean Airlines flights. It is possible to reach Mytilene directly from Athens, Thessaloniki, and from many European cities by connecting Athens. 

Car Rental in Lesvos

Renting a car or a motorbike is the most common way to see different places in Lesvos. You can rent a car according to the class you want between 45-50 euros per day.

In some cities of the island, the streets are very, very narrow, so prefer a small vehicle as much as possible instead of a large vehicle.

As soon as you leave the Lesbos ferry port, you will see the signs of many car rental offices on the left diagonal. You can arrange a vehicle by visiting one of them. However, during peak periods there is a risk of not having a vehicle or the class you want, and pre-arranging it is an option. Rentalcars.com You can rent a vehicle with the features you want from the website.

During the peak season, the prices offered by the websites are a bit high. For this reason, we preferred to make a reservation by sending an e-mail to the car rental companies.

On my first trip to Lesbos, I rented a scooter from Golden Sun company, and on my second trip I rented a car from Discovery company. To rent a car from Discovery [email protected] You can book a car by contacting the company at the address. We rented the vehicle without any down payment. I even made our payment while delivering the vehicle. A very relevant and reliable company.

Motorcycle Rental in Lesvos

If you want to rent a scooter or motorcycle in Lesvos, it costs between 20-25 Euros per day. I rented a 125cc scooter for transportation in Lesvos. As soon as you exit the ferry port, you will see the signs of many car and motorcycle rental offices on the left. The place I rented was Golden Sun, where you will see the motorcycle rental sign just around the corner. Address and phone are listed below, there is no option to rent from the internet. Golden Sun Car Rental 7 Aristarchou Tzeims Street, Kioski, 811 31 Mytilene, Lesvos Lesvos Greece +302251041779

They said 125 Euros per day for the rental fee of the 23 cc motorcycle. Since I will be renting for 4 days, we agreed on a total of 70 Euros, so it came to 17,5 Euros per day.

If your license is of old type, mine is, Greece generally has problems with car rentals. The brother who gave me the bike gave it to me by saying, "My new driver's license stayed at the hotel" if you come across a police officer on the road. If it was a company like Sixth, Avis, and not a local rental company, they probably wouldn't have given it.

“Is it necessary to have a motor license?” The question came up too. Ask me specifically, "Do you have a motor license, do you have experience?" ' they asked as they handed over the engine. I don't know what would have happened if it didn't, but if you don't already have experience and a driver's license, don't rent a motorbike. The roads are narrow, winding and very deserted. If something happens to you, it may take a long time for them to find you.

When you rent a scooter/motor, they only give you a helmet with an open jaw for protection. If you're on a motorcycle and have your own supplies, it might be a good idea to bring them. The roads in Lesvos are really curvy and there are road works in some places. Riding a motorcycle in such an unprotected way made me very nervous, keep in mind.

I will have one more note, when riding a motorcycle, choose a long-sleeved outfit, even if it is thin. When I drove all day with a T-shirt in the form of an athlete, I got amazing labor burns at the end of the day, I did it, you guys.

Transportation in Lesvos by Bus

During my trip to Mytilene, many “can't we travel in Lesvos, apart from renting a car?” on social media. came the question. You can come to the island with your own vehicle, as well as by intercity buses within the island. For bus schedules Mytilene Intercity Bus Administration's websiteWhat can you look at?

On the map above, you can see which cities the buses stop at. It stops by almost all of the main sights but there are usually one or more buses a day. That's why it's a good idea to check the bus times before making your travel plan.

Pony Tours

Another way to visit Lesbos is to join the tours departing from Ayvalık. One-day, two-day or longer tours turyolonline.com You can buy at. Prices are also quite affordable.

If you ask me about Mytilene, you should spare a week to visit every part of it to the fullest. But if you want to rest my head for two days at the weekend, it is a very suitable island for that too. It is easy to get to, easy to come by, partially easy to travel within the island, and in general, it is a very pleasant island to visit. I hope my way goes back to Lesbos.

If you like this article, you may be interested in my other Greek Islands articles:

• Mytilene Places to Visit and Mytilene Travel Plan
• 10 beautiful Greek island suggestions
• Symi, the favorite island of the Turks
• island of knights Rhodes
• honeymoon island Santorini

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