Asklepieion of Kos

The Asklepieion was built on a hillside above Kos town after the death of Hippocrates, whose school gave the island its medical reputation, and it functioned for centuries as a sanctuary where treatment, ritual and water were not separate things. Three terraces are stacked up the slope and linked by broad staircases. The lowest held baths and guest accommodation, the middle an altar and a temple of Apollo whose columns have been re-erected, the highest a large Doric temple of Asklepios with a colonnade around it. Springs still run at the site. From the top terrace the view crosses the town, the harbour and the narrow strait to the mainland coast opposite.

What you actually see

• The three terraces - the stacked plan with monumental staircases between the levels.
• The temple of Apollo - re-erected marble columns on the middle terrace.
• The sacred springs - water sources built into the retaining wall, central to the sanctuary's purpose.
• The top terrace view - over Kos town and the strait to the coast opposite.

When to go

Spring and autumn suit the climb; from late June the terraces hold heat and there is little shade beyond a few cypresses. Opening is early and the first hour is quiet before the organised tours arrive from the town hotels. Late afternoon light on the marble is the best of the day, but check the closing time, which shortens sharply off-season.

Honest expectations

Most of the standing columns are modern re-erections and the temples are foundation outlines, so this is a site about plan and setting rather than surviving architecture. It is smaller than its billing and an hour and a half covers it properly. Signage is sparse. The famous plane tree in Kos town is nowhere near old enough to be the one Hippocrates taught under.

Nearby

Kos town's ancient agora, Roman houses and the Knights' harbour castle are all a short ride back.