Getting to Lesvos
Lesvos has decent travel connections with a major airport just south of the capital Myttilini and daily ferries from Piraeus (Athens). Most arrive by charter flight direct to Lesvos or on a domestic flight from Athens. The ferry journeys are long and tedious, with journey times of up to 15 hours. There is a fast ferry in summer but this takes about seven hours and you arrive a little after midnight. Once on Lesvos the roads are good but the island is very large and car hire is recommended.
There are daily ferries to Mytilini from Athens (Piraeus). The main ferries are operated by NES Lines and the journey time is lengthy, sometimes 12 hours depending on the boat and it is usually overnight. The ship leaves Piraeus in the evening and arrives in Mytilini early in the morning after calling at Chios.
In high summer there are is a fast ferry from Athens to Mytilini operated by Hellenic Seaways with a journey time of seven to eight hours. SAOS operates a service from Lavrio, near the new Athens International Airport, to Sigri on the west coast of Lesvos where ferries also leave for Kos.
There are also ferry connections to Thessaloniki and Ayvalik (Turkey) as well as to other Greek islands such as Chios, Ikaria, Kalymnos, Kos, Limnos, Mykonos, Rhodes, Samos, and Syros. There are also several ferry services to Turkey (Ayvalik). In the high season there are boats every day but the service is reduced in the winter to a few times a week in good weather. The crossing from Lesvos to Turkey takes about 90 mins. The ferry does take cars,but it is fairly small so advance booking is recommended.
Summer ferry schedules may not be confirmed until April or May, and not published until then. The information is as accurate as I can make it but note that ferry schedules can change at any time.
Lesvos Towns and Villages
The capital of Lesvos is Mytilene (Μυτιλήνη), at the east end. A busy town as it concentrates the hospital, the university, the port, the airport, the court, the prefecture and other administrative headquarters.
Kalloni is the second-in-size town, located in the center of the island, at the north of the greater of the two gulfs (thus called "Gulf of Kalloni").
Molivos, the ancient Methymna (spelled also as Mithimna), the most important destination for a visitor, because of its attractions: the Gattilusi Castle and the whole preserved traditional architecture. It is one of the two lungs of tourism in Lesbos, the other one being Eressos.
Eressos is a small dale town at southwest paving the way to the sandy beach, or Skala Eressou, thus being mostly a summer resort. Notably, its fame as the birthplace of Sappho attracts some lesbian (homosexual) couples, but they consist a part of the whole number of Eressos' visitors, as it is a place too beautiful to become isolated.
Plomari at the south coast in the middle of the two gulfs' openings, is the homeland of Ouzo, the well-known Greek alcoholic beverage.
Mandamados, at the northeast, for the ceramic art tradition and the locally produced dairy products.
Agiasos, the picturesque village while ascending onto Olympos.
Roads on Lesvos are generally good but the island is very large and mountainous and routes are rarely straight so driving can be tiring. There are no expressways but roads are usually uncongested. Road between resorts are wide but in towns and villages they can narrow very quickly and the surface can deteriorate.
