Nikiana in Lefkada: Calm Fishing Village on the East Coast

The sheltered east coast of Lefkada at Nikiana, with its calm bay and village

Nikiana is a calm, family-friendly fishing village on the sheltered east coast of Lefkada, the kind of easygoing place you settle into rather than rush through. Where the west coast of the island is all sheer cliffs and dramatic turquoise bays, Nikiana sits on the gentle Ionian shore. With a long pebble beach, clear calm … Read more

Lefkada Sailing: Yacht Charter, Winds and Island Routes

Lefkada sailing in the Ionian, a yacht flying the Greek flag among the islands

Lefkada sailing is one of the most rewarding yacht charter experiences in Greece, set in the sheltered heart of the southern Ionian. From the large marina beside Lefkada Town, a fleet of charter yachts sets off each week to explore a compact cluster of green islands, calm channels and hidden coves. Gentle afternoon winds, calm … Read more

Vlycho in Lefkada: The Village and Its Sheltered Bay

Vlycho bay full of moored yachts, one of the most sheltered harbours in Lefkada

Vlycho is a quiet village on the east coast of Lefkada, strung along a steep green hillside above one of the most sheltered bays in the whole Ionian. Lying just south of the busy resort of Nydri, the village, also spelled Vlicho or Vliho, keeps a calm, workaday character despite its closeness to the crowds. … Read more

Lefkada Ferries: Routes, Ports and Island Hopping

Lefkada ferries: the Meganisi II crossing from Nydri

Lefkada ferries are the sea links that connect the island to its Ionian neighbours, sailing from the ports of Nydri and Vasiliki to Meganisi, Kefalonia and Ithaca. Unusually among Greek islands, Lefkada itself needs no ferry: a causeway and a floating bridge carry the road straight onto the island from the mainland, so cars simply … Read more

Skorpios Island in Lefkada: The Onassis Private Island

Skorpios island, the green private Onassis islet, seen from the sea off Lefkada

Skorpios island is the small, green private islet off the east coast of Lefkada that the world came to know as the retreat of the shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis. Lying about three kilometres from the resort of Nydri, it is a lush, wooded dot in the sheltered channel where Lefkada meets its scatter of satellite … Read more

Gyra Beach in Lefkada: Windmills, Lagoon and Long Sands

Gyra beach windmill on the sand above the deep-blue sea, Lefkada

Gyra beach is the long, easy-going shore just outside Lefkada Town. A strip of sand and small pebbles that wraps around the shallow lagoon on the northern edge of the island. Only about 2.5 kilometres from the capital, it is the closest real beach to town, and its length gives it space even in high … Read more

Desimi Beach in Lefkada: Sheltered Bay and Clear Water

Desimi beach clear turquoise water in its sheltered bay, Lefkada

Desimi beach is one of the most sheltered and family-friendly bays on the east coast of Lefkada. A curve of white pebbles and calm turquoise water on the Geni peninsula near Nydri. Tucked on the outer side of the Vlycho bay, it faces away from the open sea, so its water stays flat and clear … Read more

Faneromeni Monastery in Lefkada: Icons, History and Views

Faneromeni Monastery church and bell tower above Lefkada Town

Faneromeni Monastery is the most important religious site on Lefkada, set on a pine-covered hill above the town near the village of Tsoukalades. Dedicated to the Virgin Mary Faneromeni, the patron saint of the island. The monastery draws pilgrims and visitors for its revered icon, its museum of Byzantine treasures and its wide views over … Read more

Agia Mavra Castle in Lefkada: The Venetian Fortress Guide

Agia Mavra Castle walls and sea moat at the entrance to Lefkada

Agia Mavra Castle guards the entrance to Lefkada. A large medieval fortress on a low spit of land beside the causeway and floating bridge that link the island to the Greek mainland. Also known as Santa Maura, the castle sits at the narrow strait between the island and the coast. A position that controlled the … Read more

Lefkada Hiking: Trails, Waterfalls and Mountain Routes

Waterfall in the Dimosari gorge on a Lefkada hiking trail near Nydri

Lefkada hiking ranges from waterfall gorges and mountain ridges to short coastal paths that drop to hidden beaches, all on one road-connected Ionian island in western Greece. A green mountain spine runs down the centre of the island and rises to Mount Stavrota at about 1,180 metres, while a broken west coast falls in cliffs … Read more

Lefkada Itinerary: How Many Days and What to See

The Nydri islets and green coast of Lefkada, a highlight of a Lefkada itinerary

A Lefkada itinerary rewards the traveller who treats the island as a driving route rather than a single resort. Lefkada joins the mainland by a causeway, so a hire car reaches the north town, the west-coast cliffs, the sheltered east coast and the mountain interior across roughly fifty kilometres. Three days catch the headline sights, … Read more

Lefkada Weddings: Venues, Ceremonies and Planning

A Greek Orthodox wedding ceremony with the crowning of the couple

Lefkada weddings suit couples who want a destination celebration on a green Ionian island reached by a road bridge rather than a ferry. The landscape pairs harbour villages, cliff-top viewpoints and quiet beaches, giving ceremonies a natural setting without long transfers. Seaside restaurants, hillside villas, olive-grove spaces and village churches all host events here. Elopements … Read more