LEFKADA
Nidri was the home of the German archaeologist, Dorpfeld, who maintained that Lefkada was in fact none other than Homer's Ithaca. Sights worth seeing in the area are the ruins of the
prehistoric city and some circular graves. You next stop on your way around the island is
Poros and the lovely pebbled beach of Mikro Yialo. Your tour of the island finishes with a visit to Agios Nikitas, a traditional, picturesque fishing hamlet on the west coast of Lefkada, and a stop at the island village of Karia, Known for its handmade traditional embroideries. Both before and after Agios Nikitas you can take a dip in the sparkling waters of one of the most beautiful beaches of Lefkada. Its fine white sand streches as far as the eye can see. From Nidri, you can take a short ferryboat ride to Meganissi, 12 nautical miles southeast of Lefkada. According to historians, Meganissi has been settled since Homer's time. It has three villages, sea caves, wonderful beaches and clean waters. Local EventsHow to get thereUseful telephone numbersThings to buy |
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To get to Lefkada, you don't need to take a boat. Instead you go by car or bus, quickly
crossing over the narrow channel separating the coast of Aitolokarnania and the island. It
is said that once upon a time Lefkada was united with mainland Greece. Some say the
Leleges, its first inhabitants, transformed it into an island; others maintain that the
Corinthians dug a trench across the isthums. Lefkada is a mountainous island, covered with
dense vegetation to the east and south. Its eastern coast slopes gently down to the sea,
which is sheltered from the wind and dotted with thickly wooded islets. The most famous of
these are Skorpios, Madouri and Sparti.
In contrast, the west coast is steep, with a few spectacular stretches of
endless golden beach. The capital of the island is also called Lefkada. A tranquil,
picturesque town built on a natural harbour, it is composed of distinctive, multicoloured
wooden houses, whose upper floors are covered with sheet metal. It is from here you 'll
set off-over good roads - to explore the island. Before abandoning the town, you may wish
to visit the castle of Santa Maura, right next to the channel. It was founded in 1300 By
John Orsini, a Frankish Knight who held Lefkada as a fief.
If you follow
the eastern coast road, passing through villages bordered on one side by the sea and on
the other by lush greenery -villages like Ligia and Nikiana- you will come to Nidri, one
of the most popular holiday spots on the island.
At Lefkada or Shappho's Leap, the most sourherly cape on the island, there
once stood a shrine to Apollo, famous throughout the ancient world. Here, too, they say
that the poet Sappho took her life, flinging herself from the white cliffs, a hopeless
victim of her unrequited love for Phaona.