The largest Ionian island, mountainous and covered in cypress and fir, with the most photographed beach in Greece at the bottom of a cliff road. Quiet, scattered and best explored on your own wheels.
Kefalonia is the largest Ionian island and its resorts are small and far apart.
There's no single strip here. Skala and Lassi have most of the hotels, Fiskardo in the far north is a yacht harbour of Venetian houses, Assos is a village on an isthmus below a castle, and Myrtos is a beach at the foot of a hairpin road with nothing else near it. Distances that look short take a while on mountain roads. Almost everyone who enjoys Kefalonia hires a car; almost everyone who doesn't, doesn't.
A beach, a cave, and two villages worth the drive.
White pebbles between two cliffs, and the most photographed beach in Greece. Steep road down, no shade, and the swimming shelves fast.
A collapsed cavern with a lake inside, rowed under a hole in the roof. Go at midday when the sun comes straight down.
The only village to survive the 1953 earthquake. Venetian houses, a yacht harbour, and the prettiest evening on the island.
A pastel village on an isthmus with a Venetian castle above. Half an hour's walk up, and the view is the reward.
A national park of endemic black fir and semi-wild horses, at 1,600m. Cool, empty and completely unlike the coast.
Antisamos is the Captain Corelli beach — pebble, green-backed and clear. Skala has the island's best long sandy stretch.
Resorts are small and scattered. Where you base sets how much driving you do.
Near the airport and the capital. Most hotels, sandy beaches, and the shortest transfers.
South-east, with the island's longest sandy beach and a low-key village behind it.
Venetian houses and yachts. Ninety minutes from the airport, and lovely.
East coast, near the caves and Antisamos. Working harbours rather than resorts.
May to October, and it's greener and wetter than the Aegean islands.
July and August are hot and busy, particularly with Italian visitors in August. May, June and September give warm sea, comfortable driving and much lower prices. Kefalonia gets more rain than the Aegean, which is why it's so green — April and late October carry a real chance of it. Most of the island closes from November.
3h 30m to Kefalonia (EFL), seasonal from UK airports May to October.
20 minutes to Lassi, up to 90 to Fiskardo. Check yours before booking.
Euro. Cash is useful in villages and at beach tavernas.
Strongly recommended. Roads are good but winding, and distances take longer than they look.
We'll pick a base that suits how much driving you want, and write the payment plan out in full.
Yes, for anything beyond your own resort. Buses are limited and taxis over these distances add up fast.
It shelves very steeply and can have strong currents. Fine for confident swimmers in calm conditions; not one for children.
Corfu is greener still with an old town and more resorts. Kefalonia is quieter, wilder and needs a car. Corfu is easier; Kefalonia is more beautiful.
Skala and parts of Lassi. Most of the rest, including Myrtos and Antisamos, are white pebble.
Flights, accommodation and transfers as one package. Every one can be reshaped — different dates, different board, a different airport, or a stopover on the way.
Guide prices, per person, based on two sharing, including return flights, accommodation and transfers. They indicate what a holiday of this type has typically cost and are not an offer or a quotation. Your price depends on dates, party, board basis, departure airport and availability, and is confirmed in writing before any payment is taken.
Ready-built itineraries with flights, transfers and internal hops booked as one package, ATOL protected. Every one can be reshaped around your dates.
10 nights · May–Jun, Sep–Oct · from £1,449pp
11 nights · May–Jun, Sep · from £1,149pp
10 nights · Mar–May, Sep–Nov · from £849pp
11 nights · Apr, Oct · from £2,699pp
12 nights · Jun–Oct, Jan–Feb · from £3,399pp
12 nights · Jul–Oct · from £3,099pp
11 nights · Jun–Oct, Dec–Feb · from £1,799pp
11 nights · Nov–Apr · from £2,199pp
