Kefalonia

Kefalonia is the largest of the Ionian islands. Despite its rich history and beautiful nature, it remains in the shadow of Corfu and Zakynthos, which attract many more tourists. Perhaps that's why you'll find deserted beaches, an authentic atmosphere and a unique sense of connection with nature and the landscape.

Unlike Corfu or Zakynthos, Kefalonia doesn't offer as much greenery. Instead, it offers spectacular views, picturesque coves, breathtaking beaches with all shades of blue, numerous archaeological sites and amazing caves.

Myrthos viewpoint

We spent 10 incredible days on the island, and we made it our mission to cross it and soak up the atmosphere. Many of the beaches are unorganized, which means you get to bring your own lunch or head to the nearest restaurant. We made it our mission to explore as much as we could, and we often combined this with a transfer to some other beach. The distances on the island are not great, but apart from XI beach, everything is accessible in a relatively short time.

The landscape is dominated by Mount Ainos, the highest peak of the island, on which grows the Kefalonian fir, a rare species of fir tree found only on this island. It is around this mountain that the wild horses live, and you can meet here either early in the morning or before sunset as they go to drink from the spring. This particular area features a number of hiking trails that offer views in all directions. As we arrived here with the ferry, Martin spotted a thin path cutting its way upwards. He commented, "I hope we don't go that way, that road looks freaky." A couple of days later we scrambled up it and yes it was winding, but it was worth it.

Mount Ainos southern route

Kefalonia, however, is famous for its beautiful beaches. From secluded coves to vast sandy plains. Among the most popular beaches are Myrtos Beach, known for its dramatic cliffs and turquoise waters, and Antisamos Beach, known for its lush vegetation and crystal clear sea. And for the more adventurous, there's Fteri beach, with the most beautiful sea color Greece has to offer. It looks like Lefkada's most famous beaches but offers privacy you won't find on Lefkada in summer anymore. The drive here is challenging though and requires a 45 minute hike through the surrounding hills.

Fteri beach - view of the beach

In terms of history, Kefalonia is also not lagging behind. It has a rich history dating back to ancient times, with evidence of settlement dating back to the Palaeolithic period. It has been inhabited by various civilizations, including the ancient Greeks, Romans, Byzantines and Venetians. Traces of them are still present on the island. All ancient sites are freely accessible and free of charge, just enter their name in the maps. The Acropolis of Sami, located a few minutes from Antisamos Beach, is definitely worth visiting, as well as the Cyclopean walls of the old Acropolis near the town of Krani.

Cyclopean walls of ancient Krani

Unfortunately, a major earthquake in 1953 destroyed most of the buildings and caused extensive loss of life. It also led to a massive abandonment of the island. Earthquakes are a frequent occurrence here, but most are only weak tremors. During our visit, we also witnessed one of 4.3 magnitude that woke us up in the middle of the night. Despite this, the island is the best Greece has to offer. One of them also destroyed the access to the beautiful Platia Ammos beach. You can still visit the beach, but without stairs, the access is considerably difficult and not suitable if you are travelling with children. Unlike neighbouring Lefkada, which also offers beautiful beaches, there are considerably fewer tourists so you have the opportunity to enjoy the true charm of the place.

Vouti Beach entrance

If you really want to get to explore the island, you can't do without a car. Most of the beaches are in remote places where there are no buses. Also, in case of any problem, the pharmacies on the island are only in Argostoli or Sami. Nowhere else. So a car is more or less a necessity unless you go to a hotel that can arrange everything for you. The good news is that Google maps works exemplary here and never once dragged us onto bad or closed roads. Occasionally though the streets were narrow, but that's typical throughout Greece. There are plenty of dirt roads here, but even a tiny "milk carton" like this was enough for us.

Kefalonia dirt roads

The island can be reached either by air or by ferry from Zakynthos. We opted for the ferry and a one-way ticket cost 9€ per person and 31€ per car. However, buying tickets was slightly complicated as they had to be bought in Zakynthos capital, Zante, and the ferry departed from the port of Agios Nikolaos at the other end of the island. We took the evening ferry so we were able to experience the sunset directly over the sea, which was beautiful.

sunset near Kefalonia

Although Kefalonia is not a big island, if you want to explore it the whole, it's a good idea to have one accommodation in the south-west of the island and one near Xi beach for at least 1-2 nights during your stay, as Xi is quite out of the way. As we are traveling with kids, we prefer two-bedroom apartments so everyone has their own privacy. By having a car we weren't looking for anything right on the beach, we wanted to spend each day in a different place to experience the amazing atmosphere.

We really liked the Agnanti apartment overlooking Xi beach. The other days we spent at Kostas-Sarantis where we had the whole house to ourselves and the owner was very helpful. And his cats loved us very much and kept us company every evening.

Choose whether you want to learn more about the island's most beautiful beaches or other leisure activities the island has to offer by clicking on the name or picture.