Info about Lixouri Peninsula

[Phil]

This is just (maybe) a brief post to get you all posting your experiences and recommendations about the Lixouri peninsula.

Anyone who has never been there before will find the return ferry trip from Argostoli - Lixouri well worth doing, even if you explore no further. The views from the ferries as you cross the gulf are outstanding. The alternative is to drive all around the gulf - also worth doing. Better still do both..

I have never been a big fan of LIXOURI town - I don't know what it is, but somehow it lacks the atmosphere I love elsewhere on Kef. Maybe it is me who hasn't spent enough time there to explore?

When the Lixouri peninsular is mentioned, most people just seem to think of the southern section around Lixouri. This is relatively flat and a lot of the landscape is peppered with former quarry workings.

LEPEDA is a nice beach overlooking the gulf with Aenos as a backdrop and there is a great hotel midway between Lixouri and Lepeda.

I won't mention the KGV - there is too much written about it already.

Xi beach is often recommended. It shelves very gently into the sea and is very safe for swimming, but there has been a lot of recent development here and I would suggest that it is probably too busy for many visitors in high season. But you can paddle/swim beyond the cave at the eastern end of the beach to find a quieter bay.

VATSA is a gem of a place - completely alien to anything else on Kef.

KIPOUREON monastry is in a stunning location, but I have always arrived during siesta. I have yet to get inside.
I can see the Mon Tafiou noted on the map in front of me - has anyone been there? I never noticed it on the way to Kipoureon!

AMMOS beach - very remote and you need to be fit to walk down many steps ........ Kefallon is young enough to have done it and he might want to say more on the subject?

PETANI is lovely and now has an excellent macadamed road. Similar view from above as Myrtos. Tavernas here have a very short season, though.

ATHERAS is a lovely peaceful bay - and the village is worth exploring on the way.

ZOLA village is beautiful with superb views. I thought the bay below was a bit of a disappointment. There have been a lot of villas built recently alongside the descent. The fishing harbour is interesting.

At the top of the lagoon there are wetlands for any twitchers.

The one thing I have not yet mentioned , and the area which is rarely written about, is the central section just inland of the western coast. There are some lovely unspoilt villages up there with far-reaching views.........

I am sure there are plenty of you out there who have spent more time than me on the peninsula. I feel I have only scratched the surface.
Looking forward to receiving all your posts........................

Phil

PS I had a feeling it might not be a brief post.

.

[Michelle]

I think Phil may have said it all here. I love the drive around the south end of the peninsula and back up along the 'main' road which leads to Petani. As Phil said there are some gorgeous views to be had along this road, giving a completely different perspective on the main island and also allowing views of the rugged western coastline. I'll post some pics today when I figure out how to do it.

Again, agreeing with Phil, the little villages along the way are very quaint and somehow unlike the villages on the main land, not sure why they just have a different feel, it appears to be far more 'leafy' than parts of the mainland. Stopping off for drinks/lunch etc in one of the many little tavernas is worth doing as we received some of the warmest welcomes in these of the whole island.

Xi beach is lovely, very sandy and safe with a couple of tavernas close by and lovely views of the mainland and you can have a mud bath here too digging the mud out yourself from the back of the beach.

Petani is one of my favourite places, gorgeous beach but the sea can get a bit choppy around here with some decent sized waves. As Phil said, on the approach this looks very much like Myrtos, but is a more sandy beach. Beautiful unspoiled view of the sunset from here too. You can hire a boat here too to explore the western coastline but we didn't fancy it as everytime we've been the sea has looked a bit too much of a challenge for us.

Vatsa is beautiful with one of the only rivers we've found on Kefalonia. Tavernas are good for fish in particular.

Atheras is a very pretty little village and the beach is really nice - watch out for giant ants though, there were swarms of them around both times we visited. The drive down is gorgeous with some lovely views of the beach on the approach.

Again agreeing with Phil that the ferry over from Argostoli is worth taking just for the views (will post some pics of this too later). It's not as bad as it may seem driving on and off, it doesn't feel as chaotic as it looks when you are in the car, but blood pressure probably rises slightly!

We only visited Zola for an hour or so the beach was nice and again with good views - don't you just find these everywhere on Kef though? One of the reasons we love the island.

Of course the drive from Argostoli or down from Assos/Myrtos way is lovely and if you continue down to Lixouri you will be surprised by the only piece of flat land we've found on Kef - it was like driving through Lincolnshire with the farmland and livestock roaming around - although Lincolnshire doesn't have the spectacular view of the mainland that this drive offers nor does it have much sunshine either!

As Phil said most tavernas etc are closed at the very beginning and end of season so if venturing across this side I'd suggest you make sure you have some snacks/drinks in the car just in case you can't find anywhere although having said that we did find places open in May and late September it's just that they are few and far between. Having said this Lixouri being a larger town does have tavernas and shops open seemingly all through the season so you could take refreshments or buy some for the journey here.

I like Lixouri and prefer it to Argostoli for dining out in the evening. It's busy but not as busy as Argostoli and feels more 'open'. Lovely view over to the mainland at night watching the mainland twinkle across the bay if you choose to eat in one of the tavernas near the port. It seems that on a Friday night in particular the locals kind of swap - if you sit watching the ferries in the evening it seems that Lixourians go over to Argostoli for their night out and the returning ferry is full of Argostolians venturing over to Lixouri for their night out. Obviously not all of them, but there seemed to be a bit of an exodus going on purely from a spectators viewpoint.

Ammos is a bit of a challenge with all of the steps, but worth it when you get down there - of course going down isn't the problem it's getting back up that is the killer! Even in pretty cool weather it was hard going - I'd definately not attempt it with pushchairs and wheelchairs are out of the question. By the way, Xi and Petani both have a wheelchair ramp to access the beach. If going down to Ammos take water to drink on the way back up, particularly if the weather is hot and just take the ascent easy, it would be fun to start off running up but you wouldn't get far - as my little boy found out when we had to drag him up the last stage! There were some strong currents and big waves when we were down on Ammos beach too - don't know if this is typical or we were just unlucky. It does seem to be a feature of this western most coast though and one that can take you by surprise so be careful with little ones in particular.

All in all, as with Kefalonia in general you are guaranteed a warm welcome, friendly locals and gorgeous views whether you are sitting around on a beach or driving through this part of the island, I'd certainly recommend it.

[belfaccino]

Hi again,

You've both pretty much covered the whole area of Lixouri, to my knowledge, and I agree with your descriptions. It is as I have experienced Lixouri... so I'll stick mainly to what Greeks appreciate most of all.... good food!!

I love going to the villages towards Schineas, Damoulianata etc. There's a nice small tavern at the village of Kontogennada, right beneath the church. It is said by locals that it serves the best souvlaki or bbq fillet in the whole of Lixouri at reasonable prices and has a fantastic view to the Lixouri peninsula. We've been there a few times and weren't disappointed. Especially during very hot nights, it's a great place to enjoy the cool atmosphere of the mountain. Naturally, one will need a car to get there. I don't think there are local buses at night.

Then, there's "Stathis" tavern a little further down to the left from the Monastery of Kypouria. I haven't been there this year, but it's on a beautiful location, huge space and little wooden tables lined up under the olive trees with a lot of room for kids to run and play (and leave us alone ) and, of course, the sunset!

And another tavern we really like is Captain Nickolas on the last curve of the road on the way to Vatsa Beach. It's not situated on the beach; it's about 200 metres before reaching the beach and it has great home-made food (and home-made "spoon sweets", marmelades, etc.) and a beautiful view over Vatsa beach. It's usually nice and quiet (and I guess romantic!). The owners are very polite and discreet and quick to serve.
I'm not a fan of the tavern on the beach of Vatsa, but I won't go into that. I feel rather claustrophobic under the straw roof with tarred wood, but that's me. Others enjoy it there.

And there's Zormbas restaurant on the macadam road that starts from Lixouri square... locals favour this restaurant and you're lucky if you find a table. We always make sure to be there at around 8pm (not a very Greek time to eat dinner, lol) to find a table.

Our other favorite restaurant is Novita situated in the town of Lixouri at the port. Excellent service (from our experience) and good food. It's pricier than a tavern, but then again, it's a restaurant; but the prices are not so high compared to neighbourhood restaurants in Athens.

Aside from food, we believe that Xi has become rather noisy for our taste, which is a pity because it was our favorite spot these last years. So, we didn't visit the beach at all this year. We went to Mega Lakkos which is now what Xi used to look like years ago and I dare to predict that in a few years time it will develop like Xi.

We love Lepeda beach and were lucky to go there in the last week of August when it was quieter. It's got a nice clean canteen with toasts, drinks/beer, coffee and umbrellas (not too many) and we were joking about how everything seemed to cost 2 euros. A soft-drink cost 2 euros; a toast cost 2 euros. One sunbed also cost 2 euros... hehehe.... although I think the owner should do something about the price of the softdrink...

But, our favorite beach of all is Vatsa. The waters aren't shallow like Xi or Mega Lakkos; the water temparature is great (just cool, not to chilly and not too warm). I don't know what it is, but I always manage to relax in that place. I agree with you it is a gem.

I will try to remember more details. We're back in Athens now and are trying to cope with nostalgia for Lixouri.

[john]

I have to agree with you Phil about the villages in the heart of the Lixouri peninnsula. We spent ages driving around them.......sometimes lost and back tracking again and again!
I didn't really study the map and just drove so i can't even recall the names of most of the villages i passed through!
It is a wonderful experience though and apart from some of the remote villages on the "main" part of Kefalonia these are about as close to the "old" greece as you are liable to get......absolutely no tourists!
We plan to revisit Lixouri this time around so hopefully i will be able to give a bit more of an in-depth report!!
The countryside is wonderful in this area and is definately worth a visit.

[greece monkey]

Spent a few hours that end few years back on a beach can,t recall the name but big waves and full of weed.?Must make note to explore that area more this visit out soon.