We have had an utterly wonderful fortnight in Kefalonia, a picture perfect Greek Island that ticked all the boxes. We have benefitted immensely from innumerable tips from my fabulous friend Sally-Ann Christodoulakus who now lives on the island with her family.
Flights:
We flew from Heathrow on BA direct. Astonishingly they were cheaper than EasyJet and due to Covid many of those were cancelled so it proved to be a win win.
Car hire
Sal recommended Greekstone for car hire. They were waiting to meet us at the airport, and super helpful in the build up with regard to which category car to book (indeed they actually downsold us as I was worried about boot space but they were adamant the Tipo was big enough and they were right)
The South
We spent the first week in Svoronata. One of the massive advantages of it is that it’s literally 10 minutes from the airport and as the airport is so small you can be in the pool within half an hour or so of touch down. So close, that depending on exactly where you are staying or what beach you are at (Ammes in particular) the planes fly very low overhead. My kids LOVED this. There aren’t that many flights, they’re all in the day, so my two became inveterate plane spotters. Don’t let this put you off.
Accommodation in the South
It was probably due to Covid but we got an unbelievable deal on a villa which I think usually sells for double the price. We were initially due to stay at the wonderful looking Avithos Beach Estate (not to be confused with the Avithos at Beach Resort). At the time it was only available through Simpson’s Travel. Our holiday was originally booked for 2020 but our flights were cancelled that year due to Covid and we couldn’t come. In Autumn 2020 Simpson’s decided not to represent the hotel anymore and then Cyclone Iannos hit the island. I tried to book the hotel directly with the new owner for 2021 but had a bit of a nightmare after she initially took our booking and then months later disappeared into complete radio silence before finally admitting three weeks before our visit that they wouldn’t be opening this year due to the cyclone damage. So I had to find alternative accommodation. Poss worth checking if they are open again in future.
So after much research I booked the following villa through James Villa Holidays who I found excellent:
There are three adjacent villas, very modern, brand new, everything you could need (except a washing machine but hell who really needs that on hols?!). Our villa massively exceeded expectations. Two en suite shower rooms, mod cons. Just lovely.
If you are looking for something slightly bigger/with a sea view/infinity pool check out Avithos Beach Villas or the magnificent Casa di Mare all of which seem to be built owned the same guy but mostly sold direct rather than through James Villas.
Alternatively there is an owner-direct Facebook group in which villa owners can message you direct with offers if you post details of what you’re after. You can find it by joining “Kefalonia Holiday Property Rent Direct”
Beaches
I’m not a massive beach fan and Oscy really isn’t so we didn’t spend a huge amount of time at the beach. Beaches in the South tend to be sandy whilst in the North they are stony. I strongly recommend bringing aqua shoes with if you plan to go to the stony beaches. They are available locally at the mini markets too.
Around Svoronata, Avithos is considered one of the best beaches. It’s wide, sandy and safe, with a beach bar and two restaurants above it (see restaurant list to follow). Ammes is great if you want the rush of planes coming into land right above your head. Further towards Lassi (a more touristy area) there are other good options including Makis Gialos which is a big beach with water sports and a large beach bar - Costa Costa. We didn’t go but Sally says it can get super busy there. We did spend a few hours at Gradakis beach which was great - it had posh sunbeds and a small beach bar. See also restaurants below for dinner nearby.
Notes on the capital - Argostoli
I’m going to copy and paste Sal’s notes to me about the capital as they are useful:
Firstly you should know (you might already) that the entire town and most of the island was flattened by a huge earthquake in 1953. Lost forever was the stunning venetian architecture, which was replaced with somewhat ugly, but safe concrete buildings. Argostoli rose, albeit not half as pretty, from the ashes.
Definitely take an early morning trip in to see the turtles. Parking can be tricky but anywhere along the waters edge is a good bet. The turtles will be there each morning hanging around the fishing boats close to the Kefalonia Grand Hotel. There is a conservation group here called Wildlife Sense, they are often around wearing turquoise t-shirts, they are very happy to answer all your questions if you see them.
It's nice to sit on the water and have a drink/coffee overlooking the lagoon. De Bossett has tables on the water close to the pedestrian bridge which is also nice to walk across early evening.
Argostoli is at its best in the evenings. After 7/8pm. There is a pedestrian street 'Lithostoro' which makes a nice walk and loads of places to stop and drink/eat. At the end of this street is the large square.
Restaurants in the South
We ate at the following restaurants which we’d highly recommend:
Avithos Preview
There are two restaurants just above Avithos Beach and Sally recommend Preview. Massive portions of very fresh food. Great place.
En Kefalinia
Gorgeous organic farm restaurant which was only open on weekends during our visit. Lovely, little rustic kitchen garden which you can wander through and they sell their own home made jams and preserves. Marc’s favourite choice in the South.
Olive Grove
Not to be confused with the Olive Lounge. Large gardens, nice food, a little way up the hill in Metaxata.
Sto Psito
This was the boys huge favourite and we went back a second time for our last night in the South. Fabulous sunset views, stunning setting over the sea, super friendly. A pond with fish and terrapins to keep the kids amused. And cats.
Kamaroules
We spent a couple of hours by the very nice Gradakis beach (posh sun beds) and then had dinner at Karamoules nearby. It’s very rustic with seating under the trees. The boys were underwhelmed but for something simple and authentic it’s worth considering.
Olive Lounge
High above Svronata are two great restaurants next door to each other - il Borgo and The Olive Lounge. Sal recommended the latter. It was my favourite meal. Gorgeous view, very good quality food, lovely atmosphere. Really loved it here.
Other suggestions
Sally also recommended Vinaries In Argostoli which sounded great for fish but we didn’t have a chance to go there.
I did meet her for a coffee at the Marine Cafe in Svoronata which is a great choice for daytime coffee and a view.
One morning we went into Argostoli (somehow we were the only people not to see the turtles in the harbour!) There are pedalos and electric boats which can be hired in the lagoon and apparently the turtles swim around the boats. We had brunch at De Bosset which was excellent.
Boat trip
We did one boat trip in the North and one in the South. In the South there are two main cruises that leave from Argostoli - the Lady O and the Queen Bee. Both go to the same three locations but are very different. The Lady O is a yacht - Marc saw them getting people doing the macarena at lunchtime (!). They do what looks like a nice barbecue on the beach but overall it seemed more flashy, more Eastern European and too much like a party boat for us. The Queen Bee however was brilliant. It’s a gorgeous more traditional wooden boat. The guys who run it are incredibly lovely and do absolutely everything they can to make sure everyone has a brilliant time. Nothing is too much trouble. Don’t want to jump off the boat into the sea? They have a tender that will run you to the shore - or tow you on the surfboard, or whizz you through a cave. There’s mattresses for sunbathing at the front or on top of the boat, music that’s not intrusive and there’s no shortage of wine if you want it - they even picked up lattes for people at the last stop and put them in floating cup holders for those who were chilling in the sea. The stops are magical (the first at White Rocks in particular). We had an absolutely brilliant day and I’d highly recommend it (boat trips aren’t cheap but imo worth splashing out for)
Supermarkets
Between Svoronata and Argostoli are three bigger supermarkets- a Lidl and two Greek supermarkets. They aren’t huge but cheaper than the mini markets elsewhere. There’s literally only mini markets in the North so worth stocking up before heading up there.
The North
For our second week we drove North. It takes about 90 minutes from Svronata and the roads which go round the mountains are pretty twisty so you’ll want to take it carefully.
The drive up North was one of the most magical days. It takes just under an hour to reach Myrtos. Images of beach here are used to promote tourism for all of Greece and when you see it you’ll understand why. That said, you don’t need to go to the beach itself to enjoy it. From above, the beach looks like it has powder white sand but in fact it’s stony. More importantly there are strong currents and it’s notorious for people getting into difficulty. So do what we did and enjoy it from the viewpoint just past the turning down to the beach. It’s indescribably beautiful. Truly breathtaking. If you want to have a coffee en route stop at the lovely looking Myrtillo Cafe just before the turning to the beach. We were impatient to get on but the little garden looked wonderful and Sal recommend it to us.
After Myrtos it’s a short drive to Assos. The views along the coast all the way there are magnificent and the peninsula is stunning. Assos is heavenly. It was badly damaged by the cyclone but seems to have recovered now. Charles and Diana are said to have stopped off here on their honeymoon and Sally got married here (her wedding pics are divine). We had lunch at Nefteli-Anait. Lovely fresh fish and fabulous views. Walk up the steps to the right of the bay for the Insta-lovers money shot or walk up to the castle if you’re feeling energetic(we weren’t).
Fiskardo
For our accommodation in the North I wanted to stay near Fiskardo. I found our villa through AirBnB but actually booked direct with the owner for a better price. Dimitra has several beautiful villas listed on Airbnb mostly in the hamlet of Evreti but I think she owns quite a number of further properties in the area too so worth asking her directly if you’re interested.
Here is the Airbnb link to ours:
Dimitra is incredibly responsive and helpful and can be reached at:
krithari@alphamag.gr
Evreti is about a 10 minute drive to Fiskardo (around a few hairpin bends but you do get used to them!) the advantage is that it has INCREDIBLE views over to Ithaca as well as sight of Lefkada and even mainland Greece to the North. The view from the bedroom and terrace is endlessly mesmerising - from sunrise if you’re up early enough to the moon glistening over the channel at night.
There is one luxury hotel in the North (arguably the only real luxury resort on the island) called the Emelisse.
Restaurants in The North
Inevitably we spent most evenings eating in Fiskardo. With all the yachts it’s a fairly upmarket harbour but by no means overly pretentious, formal or wildly expensive.
Most restaurants and tavernas in Greece serve a fairly similar menu with some variety around the edges. In Fiskardo we ate at Elli’s, Tassia, Vasso’s and Idira and they were all good (Tassia has the loveliest setting right in the centre). It’s hard to imagine you can go wrong with anywhere there.
Alati
Beyond Fiskardo possibly my favourite restaurant of the trip was Alati on the sunset side of the island overlooking Alaties Beach. The setting is mind blowing and it felt different to almost everywhere else we ate, a little more modern, cool and a breathtaking sunset view.
Inland recommendations we were given included Makis in Vasilikades, the Old Stone House at Dafnoudi, or one of the options in Magganos such as Elaia or Kefall-onia.
Boat trip in The North
Sally recommended Ionian Discoveries for our Northern boat trip and TripAdvisor seemed to concur. It’s a much smaller and simpler wooden boat than the Queen Bee in the South. No sunbathing mattresses here, but the guys who run it are marine experts which is the big appeal (they will also give you the lowdown on Ithaca’s mythical heritage. They have full snorkelling equipment onboard but if you just want to stay on the boat that’s fine too. At our first stop we snorkelled and they dived in and retrieved a small octopus which they put in a tank and shared info about it before releasing it back in the water. We also swam with a turtle at a later stop which was utterly magical. Not something they can guarantee but they are experts at finding them and manage the swim hugely responsibly so as not to distress them. Overall the boat days were probably the best days for me. Food is provided and on both the boat trips we did there is obviously a toilet onboard. Osc had a go at steering both types of boat and there is surely nothing more magnificent than jumping into warm azure waters of the Aegean Sea (or is it the Ionian Sea here? Who knows?).
In Fiskardo there are small canopied self drive boats that can be hired for the day without previous experience. A map is provided and you pay a fee with fuel use on top.
Day trip
Equidistant from the North or South it’s worth doing a trip to Drogarati and Melissani caves which are about 10 minutes apart.
Drogarati is a large stagalmite and stalactite extravaganza. Lots of steps down but open and easy once inside.
Melissani is “the cave of Nymphs”. Reminiscent of Mexico’s cenotes it has crystal clear Aqua water which you will see from the 5 minute rowing boat tour. Arrive midday when the sun is overhead - we were there at 11.30 so avoided long queues but the sunlight would probably have been better half an hour later.
For lunch drive to nearby Agia Effemia and have lunch at Paradise Taverna. It sits high above a little beach so can be combined with a swim and is a glorious spot for some honest food.
For either the north or south Sal recommended two operators for anyone looking for more organised, adventurous pursuits. I came close to booking the stargazing with Wild Nature which has really fabulous reviews but in the end decided it was too long for our kids. Perhaps one for next time. Operators are:
https://wildnature-expeditions.gr/
One final note. Wasps. We were plagued by them particularly during the day in the North (in the south they seemed to only appear for a short window around sunset). We were told this has been by far the worst year for them since 2015. There are various theories but the most likely is due to having a four month drought (we had a day with a bit of rain which made the local news!) Marc, Zacy and I were all stung. And none of us were flapping or even wafting them away at the time. Restaurants light coffee granules to smoke them away which works a bit. My hope is that the next few years revert to more normal conditions and they prove to be far less of a menace.
So that’s it.
