Sami (Kefalonia, Greece)

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The former capital of Kefalonia, Sami is now a large ferry port and fast-growing holiday centre. The town was wrecked by the by the 1953 earthquake and has been rebuilt with wide streets and prefab cement homes.

Despite its obvious potential as a tourist resort, the town has a shabby and dirty feel but is still a pretty good base for a holiday, being near the spectacular Anti Samos beach and the Drogarati and Mellisani caves.

A small, modern working ferry port with a compact grid layout boasting unremarkable, low-rise buildings and a long, attractive waterfront lined with cafes and tavernas. There is a ferry from here to the island of Ithaca, rising impressively across the bay to the N.

Accommodation is generally small, intimate hotels, guesthouses and apartments, usually family run which attracts those preferring greenery and scenery, good potential for walking and small-town charm, Ithaca's accessibility and beautiful nearby beaches are additional attractions. Entirely unsuited to a beach-and-nightlife holiday.

Locality:

Sami is located on the NE coast, 16 mls NE of Argostoli, 18 mls NE of the airport by adequate, though mountainous roads. On a broad bay with green hills rising steeply inland.

The pebbly town beach holds little appeal and offers no facilities. Karavomilos, 1 ml NW, has a better option or there is an outstanding beach at Antisamos, a steep, hard-going 3 mls NE. Antisamos Beach is long, white and pebbly, with quite large stones extending into the sea which is shallow and then shelves, there are sunbeds and parasols, a basic taverna and snack kiosk (high season only); no water sports. A number of tiny, stony coves off the road to Aghia Efimia.

During the daytime time can be spent watching the world go by at a waterfront cafe, scuba diving at Aghia Efimia, cycling, horse riding.

The nightlife is limited to tavernas and bars, some with late-night opening.

There is a good selection of tavernas offering mainly Greek/British tourist fare, several of them enticingly sited within the sound of the harbour's lapping waters. Fresh fish is a speciality.

Local excursions consist of:

Half day excursions such as exploring surrounding area, including ruins of ancient city E of Sami, Agrilion monastery and views from Cape Dichalia.

Full day excursions such as island tour including Drogarati Cave and Melissani lake grotto; pretty resort of Fiskardo; boat trips to Patras, Lefkas and Ithaca; sailing trips to small coves for swimming/snorkelling; boat and coach trip to classical site and museum of Olympia on the mainland.

Suggest a change to the Sami Things to do section (click to dropdown)

Population: 10.668.400
Languages: Greek 99% (official), English, French
Currency: euro
Currency code: EUR
Local Times:
Greece - Athens

Country Dialling Code: +30
Voltage: 220V 50Hz
Electrical plugs:
2 Parallel circular prongs

2 parallel circular prongs with an earth connector

2 parallel circular prongs with a female earth connector

'Schuko' type with two earth connectors on the sides

Greece appeals to different types of tourist, and very few could fail to find somewhere to suit their taste. From bustling Athens to blindingly bright islands, ancient fragments abound - the belly button of the cosmos at Delphi, fallen columns galore on the sacred island of Delos, frescoed Minoan palaces on Crete and even, quite possibly, the remnants of Atlantis at Santorini. Greeks are fierce guardians of tradition, but that doesn't mean they don't know how to have fun. In addition, hot sun and limpid seas conspire to make Greece a perfect place to relax. Whether you're supping in a beachside taverna , sipping coffee in a shady plateia or disco-dancing till dawn.

The Olympic Games were spawned in ancient classical Greece, along with democracy and the fundamentals of philosophy, science and mathematics. Modern Greece is better known as a great place to vacation rather than a centre of learning and culture. Today the country attracts by offering simple pleasures: delicious food at reasonable prices, local wine, beautiful beaches, sunshine, quaint villages, a seemingly endless lacework of coastline and little islands full of scenic surprises.

The country exudes traditional charm, particularly on its ever-popular islands, which cling to their stereotypical architecture and way of life despite being often over-run by tourists. Black-clad women still deliver vegetables to island tavernas on panniered donkeys, while bronzed, lined fishermen sit in the sun, drink thick coffee, and play dominoes or dice. The tourist infrastructure has intruded in many respects, but the timeless aspect of whitewashed buildings clustered on hillsides around narrow pebbled alleys has been retained. The myriad islands in the Aegean Sea are easily accessible from Piraeus, the historic harbour of Greece's mainland capital, Athens, by ferry or hydrofoil, offering a unique chance for 'island-hopping'. Many of the larger islands also have airports with connections to Athens or seasonally with major European cities.

On the mainland the city of Athens in the south is sprawling, overcrowded and polluted but nevertheless enthralls visitors, while Thessaloniki in the north is vibrant and modern with a Byzantine flavour. Athens is dominated by its major landmark, the Parthenon: the remains of other wonders of the ancient Greek classical world are to be found mainly on the Peloponnese Peninsula, south of Corinth, the gateway to a veritable treasure trove of history.

Greece and Greeks welcome with open arms the thousands of visitors that flock to admire their national assets every year - no-one leaves without having been warmed, both by the sun and the hospitality.

Sami (Kefalonia, Greece)

Sami Suitability Profile