Think of the Greek islands as one big happy family: there’s the attractive jet-setter (Mykonos), the extrovert who’ll always get the party started (Corfu) and then, the quiet natural beauty (Kefalonia).
It has had its share of admirers. Not least of all was Lord Byron, who arrived here 200 years ago and wrote: “If I am a poet, I owe it to the air of Greece.”
As the largest of the seven Ionian islands west of the mainland, there are stretches of it that remain just as nature intended. A small herd of wild horses lives on the slopes of Mount Aenos and the fishing village of Assos is charming.
The capital, Argostoli, on the west coast of the island, lost fame when it refused to allow Captain Corelli’s Mandolin to be filmed on its streets (instead the town had to be recreated in Sami on the east coast).
Argostoli is a town full of elegant pastel-coloured buildings, a lovely square, Platia Vallianou, to sit and people-watch, a host of cafés and tavernas, attractive shops and a promenade along the harbour with a market on Saturdays.
Kate Johnson visits Kefalonia, the largest of the seven Ionian islands. Above is the village of Assos, which she describes as “charming”
The capital, Argostoli (pictured), “is full of elegant pastel-coloured buildings and is located on the west coast of the island,” says Kate
We stayed seven miles away at the Eliamos Hotel and Spa (the name translates as the scent of olives) in the sleepy village of Spartia, down a winding single-lane road and with shopkeepers waving at you as you pass.
Opened last year, it was the first luxury hotel (a member of the Relais & Chateaux group of individual properties) in the area, the brainchild of Kefalonia-born Spyro Korsanos and his interior architect wife Maike.
Their dream was to create a special hotel in a place with panoramic views and they achieved it.
Eliamos Hotel and Spa was designed by Kefalonia-born Spryo Korsanos and his interior architect wife Maike. The hotel “has 12 gorgeous, understated suites (above),” Kate notes.
‘All rooms at Eliamos Hotel and Spa open with sliding doors onto the terrace with hot tub and saltwater infinity pool,’ says Kate
The hotel has 12 gorgeous, discreet luxury suites with private pools. Mine has two huge bedrooms, both with ensuite bathrooms and outdoor showers, either side of the sunken living room with kitchen.
All rooms have sliding doors leading to the terrace with a hot tub and saltwater infinity pool. The terrace is spacious.
Three suites are built on a separate plot of land nearby. The rest, a mix of one to three bedrooms, are built into the hillside and surrounded by gardens filled with lemon trees, herbs, lavender, roses and gnarled old olive trees.
We watch the glorious Ionian Sea changing from blue-green to ice-blue to steel-grey throughout the day.
It is private but not isolated, with all the privacy of a villa and all the services of a hotel.
The beaches near the Eliamos Hotel and Spa, such as Avithos, seen here, are “unspoiled,” says Kate.
The restaurant is fantastic and the staff are very friendly. And if you need a change of scenery, they can recommend local taverns.
My charming and cheerful tour guide, Dyonisis, can take me on a strictly archaeological or historical tour, but I prefer a combination of both with a personal touch.
We pass the spectacular caves at Amandakis Beach on Cape Liakas, where Dyonisis used to jump into the sea as a child. We also visit an old bar where he used to play the piano in the shadow of the ruins of the 800-year-old St. George’s Castle.
Being in nature makes everything better: a cooking class on the sunny terrace, a fantastic massage on my private terrace. The latter is the best, with a cool breeze instead of air conditioning, birdsong and the splash of water spilling over the infinity pool instead of ambient music, and even my first attempt at outdoor Pilates Reformer ends too soon.
The nearby beaches are pristine. Thermanti is at the end of a secret path (no sun loungers, no rubbish and occasional seaweed) and Avithos is a free bike ride away (it’s an electric bike, but this place is hilly) where a couple of Greek women stand in the sea and put the world to rights. There can’t be many better places to do that than here.
