Samos is very near to the island of Patmos, famous for the Monastery of St. John. The Monastery of Hagios Ioannis Theologos (Saint John the Theologian) and the Cave of the Apocalypse on the island of Pátmos, together with the associated medieval settlement of Chorá, constitute an exceptional example of a traditional Greek Orthodox pilgrimage centre of outstanding architectural interest. The town of Chorá is one of the few settlements in Greece that have evolved uninterruptedly since the 12th century. There are few other places in the world where religious ceremonies that date back to the early Christian times are still being practised unchanged.

The Monastery of Hagios Ioannis Theologos and the Cave of the Apocalypse commemorate the site where St John the Theologian (Divine), the ‘Beloved Disciple’, composed two of the most sacred Christian works, his Gospel and the Apocalypse. Pátmos is the northernmost island of the Dodecanese group with an area of some 88 km2 , is largely barren, formed from three volcanic masses connected by narrow isthmuses. There are three settlements: the medieval Chorá, the 19th-century harbour of Skála, and the small rural Kampos. The site selected by Christodoulos for his Monastery of Hagios Ioannis Theologos dominates the whole island. There are excursions from the Port of Pythagorio to Patmos.