After 10 years of traveling to some of Greece’s dreamiest beaches, I can wholeheartedly say that I’ve fallen in love with the country, its second-to-none coastline, and mindblowing hospitality.
And until this year, I thought I’d seen it all – from the royal blue waters of Zakynthos and the white stone houses of Santorini to the pink-sanded beaches of Crete and legendary nightlife of Mykonos – that is until I booked a trip to Lefkada.
The small and often-overlooked island managed to blow all my previous experiences out of the water, and considering the competition, that’s no easy feat.
So I got to thinking – what made this particular trip so overwhelmingly enjoyable?
That’s when I remembered just how much there is to love about Lefkada.
Lefkada Has Some Of The Most Scenic Beaches You’ll Ever See
While you’ll struggle to find a bad beach in Greece, the places I’ve seen in Lefkada are truly in a league of their own.
Let’s start with Porto Katsiki, arguably the island’s most famous hub and my current wallpaper.
While the beach itself was something I’d experienced before (a pebbly stretch of land surrounded by towering rocks and the most translucent-looking waters), the views I got to take in from an abandoned bridge nearby left me in awe.
If you do go here, you’ll want to walk beyond the parking lot on the right side of the beach and make your way to the narrow path that takes you to the viewpoint where most of the pictures you see online are taken – and believe me when I tell you none of them do justice to the real deal.
Mylos Beach was another one of my favorites – the easiest way to get there is to take a 5-minute (4€) boat ride from Paralia Agios Nikitas, but it’s all well worth it.
The pebbles here have a memory foam-like quality that makes laying that much more comfortable (there aren’t any sunbeds), and the overall experience is pretty similar to Porto Katsiki, with the added bonus that Mylos is much closer to the main town where most accommodations are located and the fact that there’ll be fewer people here.
The last beach you won’t want to miss out on is Egremni.
Now, unless you want to hike 2+ kilometers (1.2+ miles) in the scorching heat, the only way to comfortably get here is by boat, but I’m telling you right now, the color of the water is unlike anything you might’ve seen in your life.
Every video I’ve taken here looks filtered because of the bright, almost neon turquoise water, and though it can get a bit windy, swimming here is something I’ll treasure for the rest of my life.
You’ll Still Get To See A Lot Even On A Time Crunch
What happens when you want to see these, as well as all of the other amazing beaches scattered across Lefkada but are strapped for time?
You take a boat day tour that takes you to 6 destinations in a matter of hours.
These are pretty common, and you don’t have to go too much out of your way to find one, people are constantly handing out flyers at the beach, and even if you happen to miss them, there are information stalls you can go to all over the main town.
After talking to a couple of different companies, I ended up booking my trip with Eptanisos Cruises.
An adult ticket cost 40€ and it included a pretty filling lunch.
The tour started at 9:15 and ended at 6:15. Here’s what it included:
Departure from Nidri Harbor
- 1-hour stop at Egremni Beach
- Quick stop at Porto Katsiki (for swimming only, the vessel wasn’t allowed to approach the shore)
- 1-hour stop in Kefalonia for coffee/refreshments/souvenir shopping
- 1-hour stop at Frikes Beach in Ithaka
- Viewing stop at the Papanicolis Cave
- Tour around the three islands of Onassis
Overall, I’d say the experience was well worth the price.
The Food Is Delicious, Decently Sized, And In Most Places, Pretty Cheap
If there’s one thing that stays consistent across all Greek hubs, it’s the out-of-this-world food.
This time, though, the dishes I tried not only lived up to the taste and quality standards I had already created in my head but they were pretty reasonably priced, too, especially compared to other touristy islands.
The same sit-down meal that has cost me 50€, 60€ in Santorini, and 75€ in Mykonos only cost a little under 40€ in Lefkada (my favorite restaurant in the city was Κελάρι μεζεδοπωλείο Λευκάδα), and keep in mind that all this doesn’t take into account the changes in inflation throughout the years.
Not only was the food great value in and of itself, but most places I went to also served complimentary appetizers, desserts, or drinks on top of everything else – when I say the hospitality here is mindblowing, I’m not kidding.
And if you’re on an even tighter budget, a filling but quick meal (gyro+water) will usually set you back less than 5€, so safe to say you’ll love eating out in Lefkada.
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