Sunset at a hippie bar with the patron, employee and a deer

Greece on four wheels, with no fixed destinations (II)

I look at the photos and video captures of the effects of the cyclone that shattered the Ionian Islands and I can't seem to write about the experiences I lived in sunny Greece. But as after every storm the sun comes out again, I thought you might want to make some vacation plans and I can help you out with a few tips. 

Lefkada-Killini route, costs and restrictions

The four days and three nights spent in Lefkada convinced us to stay in Greece . If you haven't read the first article, which you can find HERE , I remind you that this year we decided one evening to pack our bags and drive to Greece without having any well-established plans. On the morning we were supposed to check out of the hotel room in Lefkada, we put our finger on the map and stopped in Zakynthos. We filled up with fuel, diesel around 1,2 euros/liter, and set off on our journey. The first 100 km were a driving test, on a European road full of potholes, unmarked and with drivers constantly cutting the rather dangerous curves, then we entered the highway that takes you to Kilini, the ferry port. Although the legal speed limit on the highway is 130 km/h, I don't think we drove more than 25 km at this speed. As the MFA recommends on its own website, the Greeks have instituted many restrictions on the expressway, which I really recommend you respect. Up to Killini, I think I came across dozens of video cameras monitoring speed and about six police crews. And if you think that on the roads in Romania , where most of us add ten kilometers over the limit, in Greece, on car forums, you will find messages announcing that exceeding the legal speed limit by up to 20 km/h will cost you a fine of 40 euros. We chose to keep the money in our pockets and respect the legal speed limit, although many Greeks, with their license plates hidden by special plates, were flying on the highway. Let's not forget! The Lefkada – Killini road meant 20 euros (motorway tolls, plus the Patra bridge)

Killini is not a destination, just a port of embarkation

And since I kept saying that we had no definite plans for the trip, we wanted to see if we could stop for a night in Killini to discover some beautiful things here too. Unfortunately, the small port is just a ferry boarding station, with a few shabby houses, a beach beaten daily by strong winds and a few small family businesses. So we decided to get on the ferry, with the car, and set off for the famous island of Zakynthos, the favorite home of turtles. If you are a believer, pray that you don't catch a storm at sea and that you are lucky to have drivers who are attentive to the cars parked millimeter by millimeter on the ferry. Otherwise, you will count the scratches and new colors on the plate of your car.

As I bought the tickets only for the shower and not ahead of time, I paid more, i.e. 80,64 euros (two people and a car)

You can travel the approximately one-hour route either inside the ferry or on the outer deck where you also have a bar, and smoking is allowed. If a protective mask is mandatory inside, outside you are warned to use it only if the police are checking on board (which happened on the way back). As for the distance between tables, inside it is respected, but outside you will sit like at a bistro on the beautiful streets of Paris, meaning there is no question of two meters of space. When the ship approaches the port of Zakynthos, drivers run towards cars as if they could get off the ship faster, and when the landing platform is open, a crowd forms, more like at the pan offers in Romania . Don't get angry and wait calmly for all the Greeks and tourists in a hurry to get off, although they will cut your face and force you out! After all, you are on vacation!

Laganas is a Costinesti with an air of Mamaia and extremely commercial 

We chose to stay at a hotel in Kalamaki that I highly recommend. Although it is only three stars, the accommodation conditions and facilities are four stars, and the price/quality ratio was very good. We chose the Kalamaki area because it is very close to Zakynthos town, but also to the rest of the beaches and recommended areas on the island.

As the ferry brought us to Zakynthos at 17.30, we decided to spend the few hours of sun we still had at Gerakas beach, an area known for turtle visits. I left the car in the free parking provided by the locals, visited the turtle rescue center (I saw four) and then went down to the beach. Attention - if you are on holiday with your non-speaking partner (dog, cat) the access of animals to the beach is prohibited. It is good to know that the access of people is only allowed until 19.00 and only in certain areas. The restrictions are imposed to protect the area where the turtles lay their eggs.

You will notice dozens of nests protected by wooden frames, and if you are patient, you might be lucky and notice the little creatures that are starting their journey in life. We were either unlucky or impatient because we didn't see any specimens! 

In the evening we decided to go to Laganas to eat. If you have been to Costinesti, you will feel at home. An amalgam of terraces, stalls, a beach with more dirt than sand, bars and lots of Brits and Dutch. Maybe that's why you'll find a Mc Donalds restaurant and a KFC just a few meters from the beach, although the Greek dishes have no term of comparison with the frozen products of the two international chains. The advantage of the Laganas resort is that you will find dozens of restaurants a stone's throw from the sea. Prices slightly higher than the other taverns we ate at, over 50 euros for two people/one dish and two glasses of wine.

Locals say that Laganas was known for its alcohol-fuelled parties organized especially for British tourists. The pandemic and social distancing rules have stopped this type of tourism. 

And the Greeks do irresponsible tourism just to please the homo sapiens gentry

It is impossible to arrive in Zakynthos and not go to admire the famous Navagio beach. Yes, the one that appears in all of Greece's promotional photos, with the famous cigarette smuggler shipwreck washed up on the beach. 

We chose to get to this place by car, but you also have dozens of boats at your disposal that will drop you right on the beach for a few tens of minutes. Why didn't I choose the boat? To please the tourists, the Greeks sail the boats right into the natural reserve intended for turtles, forcing the poor animals to go under the glass-bottomed boats to be admired by homo sapiens. Not the type of tourism I recommend! And if the first picture is cropped, I leave the whole picture here so you can see what the tourists leave behind them, right in this spectacular place. 

Escape to beaches less sought after by tourists 

One day I dedicated only to tanning, so I looked for beaches recommended by the locals. That's how we discovered Porto Roxa, an area with rocky shores, with sunbeds placed right on the stones and with quite difficult access to the sea. Precisely because they are quite far from the tourist areas, these beaches are preferred by Greeks or young people who get inspiration from tripadvisor and other review sites. We stopped at Porto Roxa for about two hours and we did not regret it. I didn't pay for parking and sunbeds, but consumption is mandatory, but without any particular limit. If you are a scuba enthusiast then you have come to the right place! After balancing on the slippery rocks to reach the sea, the paradise of the depths will delight you. 

From here, we went to Porto Limnionas. You may say that our whole trip was more on the road, but that's who we are. We can hardly stop our engines! At Porto Limnionas, we discovered a tavern with extremely tasty dishes, more than generous portions and an artificial beach built on the rocks. Unfortunately, the area is preferred by Greeks, and at 14.00:XNUMX p.m. when we arrived, there were no more free beach beds. A rock on which he was sunbathing and an Italian, on an aimless journey around the world, was enough for us. The scenery is amazing! Unreal clear water, a few caves you could swim in and the mood there, prompted me to say it was a place I would return to. 

And the last beach I recommend, at least for a swim in the sea, is Xigia. The Greeks promote it as a natural spa because sulfur is a bit of a mess in the area, but be careful because it's right next to the tourist bus stop and it's crowded.

Sunset at a hippie bar with the patron, employee and a deer

We decided that Korakonisi Beach deserved the first place in our adventure. Located in a hard-to-reach valley with a narrow road that flows directly into the sea, Korakonisi is a paradise for those who want to escape the crowds. A chain of stone stairs built right into the slope, with some areas where you need climbing skills, bring you to a small beach located between two rocks. At sunset, the fireball descends into the sea right between the two raw stone sentinels. 

And if you catch the sunset here, I recommend spending the evening at the small bar built right on the cliff.

With a patron cut out as if from the hippie era, a young employee who speaks five foreign languages ​​and a pet goat, the place looks like a fairy tale. 

Relaxed, the owner of the restaurant invited us to admire the sea and the sunset because he will take care of the rest. You can eat a mouth-watering Greek salad, you have all kinds of drinks and, surprisingly, the toilet, similar to those in rural areas in Romania, was extremely clean. My advice is to forget all the pressures, manage to empty your mind and admire the spectacle of nature. 

Our Zakynthos experience ended in the small fishing port of Agios Nikolaos. A place where time seems to stand still! 

Our adventure doesn't end here. In the third and final part, I tell you how the conflict between Turkey and Greece changed our plans, as we arrived in Lefkada again and then decided to visit Athens as well.