Kardamena today is definitely a great holiday destination for the young with its Apartment hotels and large variety of English styled pubs, bars and clubs which cater for all musical tastes. The main nightclubs are, Downtown Starlight, and Zoom which all stay open until 4am on week days, and 6am at weekends. Most of the pubs and clubs don’t charge entrance fees as the many touts on the main strip will tell you as they bombard you as you walk by. Can be very frustrating when all you want to do is meander in and out of the shops.

You’ll find most of the shops are located around the main square; selling everything from designer gear to the usual tourist tat. Good buys are local jewellery or natural sponges from the Nisyros volcano. If you’re feeling adventurous you could even take a trip to Bodrum in Turkey for the Tuesday market. Catch a ferry from Kos Town.

Most of the holiday accommodation in Kardamena is self catering and luckily there are some good supermarkets offering most of the well-known brands. The two largest, both called Louis, are situated in the main square and by the bridge at the top of Main Bar Street. If you won’t a little more from your holiday accommodation A couple of kilometres outside the resort (to the east and the west) a not al walk able distance especially at the end of the night, there's about a dozen luxury all inclusive 4* - 5* hotels. The largest hotel in the area can be found at the end of the beach to the east the self contained package resort of Tolari, a 1,000-bed hotel complex where a village used to stand.

After you’ve finished shopping or you need to set yourself up before a hard nights drinking you’ll find Kardamena has a wide choice of restaurants to suit all tastes, and all pockets from Indian, Chinese and traditional Greek to fast food joints and cafes offering full English breakfasts. Good Greek restaurants include Andreas, Scala and El Greco; all can be found on the seafront.

Which brings us to the highlight of our stay on Kos, Kardamena’s main beach, blue flag awarded and 5km (the longest on Kos) of beautiful golden sand and crystal clear water ideal for either lots of sunbathing or a vast array of different water sports swimming, snorkelling, diving (there’s a dive school just outside town), pedalos, jet skiing, banana rides, extreme rings, water skiing and parascending.

If water sports leave you cold on the outskirts there’s a Go-cart track and a 5 a-side football pitch which stays open till late at night. There’s a ten pin bowling alley in Kos town. Horse riding is also available in the Jockey Club in Amaniou close to Pyli about 20 minutes away and a brand new gigantic water park with many kinds of slides and swimming pools is located between Marmari and Mastihari about 10-15 minutes away.

In the summer time, Kardamena hold a White Bait Festival; join locals in a tradition that promises a lot of dancing and amazing fun.

Kardamena is built on the site of the ancient settlement of Alasarna. During the 2nd century BC, Alasarna was an important urban centre with one thousand citizens, to whom the slaves and the metics should be added. Archaeological excavations have brought to light some impressive ruins, an extensive Early Christian settlement (from the very few known in Greece), with a temple to Apollo, as well as 4 basilicas that belong to the same period. Also many stone objects of everyday use (millstones, tools, vases, vessels etc.), mostly made of volcanic and sedimentary rocks have been recovered so far. Kardamena also has a very nice Byzantine church dedicated to Ag Theodotas.

If your under 30 and love to party you can choose to holiday in Kardamena any time of the holiday season. But if you prefer a less hectic holiday or have a young family I would go early or late in the season, prices will be a lot cheaper or find a nice hotel on the outskirts of town.