Where to stay in Kefalonia: choosing your base

Where to stay in Kefalonia: distances and the car question

The first decision is not the hotel but the area. The island's mountainous spine, with Mount Ainos rising to 1,628 m, means roads wind and drive times add up: from Argostoli it is roughly 30 minutes to Sami, about 45 minutes to Skala, 50 minutes to an hour to Assos and an hour to an hour and a quarter to Fiskardo, about 50 km away. The airport is 8 km south of Argostoli, so the south-west is closest to it and the far north is furthest.

The second decision is whether you will hire a car. Most of the headline sights, from Myrtos to Melissani Cave, are spread across the island, and KTEL buses link Argostoli with the main villages a few times a day at best, with far fewer services to the north and outside summer. With a car you can stay almost anywhere; without one, choose a base where you can walk to a beach and to dinner, and fill the gaps with organised tours and boat trips. See car hire in Kefalonia if you are unsure.

Without a car: Argostoli and Lassi

Argostoli is the best base if you will not drive. It is the hub of the bus network, has plenty of taxis, a car ferry across the gulf to Lixouri and the widest choice of restaurants that stay open all year. Hotels are mostly city hotels, and the nearest beaches are a short taxi or bus ride away.

Lassi, 2–3 km south of town, is the island's main resort strip: Makris Gialos and Platis Gialos beaches, hotels with pools, bars and car hire offices, and a walk of about half an hour into Argostoli. It is the obvious choice for a first beach holiday without a car, though it is built-up and busy in August.

Skala in the south-east also works without a car for a beach-focused stay, as the long beach, restaurants and bars are all within walking distance. Getting anywhere else is harder, so plan on a few tours.

For families: Skala, Lassi and Lourdas

Families usually want a gently shelving beach, a choice of places to eat and not too much driving. Skala has a long sand-and-shingle beach, a flat village centre and plenty of family-run apartments with pools. Lassi puts sandy beaches 10–15 minutes from the airport, which matters with tired children. Lourdas, below the slopes of Mount Ainos on the south coast, has a long beach and a smaller, quieter resort.

On the west, Lixouri is close to the shallow red sand of Xi beach and much less crowded, but it is a long way from the classic sights. Wherever you stay, look for a hotel within walking distance of the beach to save the daily parking hunt.

For sightseeing: Sami and Agia Efimia

If you want to see as much as possible, stay on the east coast. Sami is a working port with ferries to Ithaca, the white-pebble cove of Antisamos over the hill, and both Melissani and Drogarati caves a few minutes' drive away. Agia Efimia, a small harbour village to the north, is one of the closest bases to Myrtos and a good place to hire a boat, with day trips across the strait to Ithaca in season.

From either, Argostoli, Assos and Fiskardo are all within about an hour, so day trips are easy. The beaches here are mostly pebble rather than sand.

For couples and quiet stays: Assos, Fiskardo and Katelios

Assos is a tiny village on a narrow isthmus below a Venetian castle, with a small pebble beach and a handful of tavernas. It is lovely in the evening once the day visitors leave, but parking is very limited and there is little to do beyond swimming, walking and eating.

Fiskardo, at the northern tip, came through the 1953 earthquake largely undamaged, so its harbour still has its pre-1953 houses. It is the island's most upmarket base, popular with yachts, with seasonal ferries to Lefkada and Ithaca. The trade-offs are higher prices and the long drive to the airport and the south.

Katelios, a fishing village on the south coast, is the quietest option of all: a few tavernas, a beach and the bay of Mounda, where loggerhead turtles nest in summer. It suits people who want peace and have a car. Poros in the south-east is a similar low-key choice, with a ferry port to the mainland.

Villas, nightlife and when to book

Villas with pools are scattered across the countryside, especially in the hills around Argostoli, on Paliki and in the north. They are great value for groups, but almost always need a car and can be up steep, narrow lanes, so check the access before booking.

For nightlife, the liveliest choices are Lassi, Argostoli and Skala; elsewhere evenings mean dinner by the harbour. July and August are the busiest months, peaking around 15 August, a Greek religious holiday that is also Italy's Ferragosto, so book early for that fortnight. In May, June, September and October most resorts are open, the sea is warm by June and you have far more choice; many hotels in the small resorts close from late October. See the best time to visit Kefalonia and our overview of Kefalonia's villages.