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Route · 7 days · round-tripYacht charter route · Ionian

Preveza via Ithaka & Kastos.

Sail a 7-day yacht charter from Preveza through Meganisi, Ithaka, Kefalonia, Kastos and Kalamos — quiet quays, sea caves and Ionian tavernas.

The route

Day-by-day route

Click any pin on the map or any day in the route summary below to see that day's stop, story and photos.

Meganisi
Day 1

Preveza → Meganisi

The longest leg of the week gets you out of Cleopatra Marina, through the Lefkada canal, and into Meganisi's sheltered eastern bays.

Distance

18 NM

Sailing

~3.6h at 5 kn

At a glance

Route at a glance

Best season

May – mid-October (peak Jun – Sep, calmer winds)

Duration

7 days

Departure

Preveza

Sailing area

Ionian

Route summary

Click any day to jump back to the map and see its photos, narrative and mooring tip.

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The full story

Day-by-day journey

Named anchorages, mooring notes and things to do for every leg of the week — the map follows along as you scroll.

Day 1 / 7
Meganisi
1
Day 1

Preveza → Meganisi

Give yourself a proper start and slip the lines by nine. Preveza to Meganisi is the biggest single hop of the trip, and the Lefkada canal sets the pace: the floating bridge at the north end swings open on the hour, so time your arrival rather than idling in the channel. Once through, the dredged cut runs straight and shallow, so stay between the marks. Meganisi opens up to the east, and the two bays worth aiming for are Porto Atheni and Abelike, both deeply indented and calm even when the afternoon maestro fills in. Spartochori sits up on the cliffs above Port Spilia if you want a village night instead. We usually take a restaurant mooring in one of the smaller coves, drop the hook off the bow, and run a line ashore. Swim before dinner while the light's still low.

Things to do

Time the Lefkada floating bridge opening

Anchor stern-to in Abelike Bay

Dinghy into the Papanikolis sea cave

Walk up to Spartochori village

Swim off a Porto Atheni cove

Mooring tip

Porto Atheni and Abelike are anchor-plus-longline bays; go in bow-first to a taverna pontoon and the buoy comes with dinner. Vathy has a small town quay if you'd rather lie stern-to for the night.

Ithaka
2
Day 2

Meganisi → Ithaka

With only twelve miles to cover, there's no rush. Most crews potter down the west coast of Meganisi, then cross the strait toward Ithaka's steep, green shoulders. Vathy is the obvious target, a near-landlocked bay ringed by the town, with a couple of pins on the map worth your morning: the Cave of the Nymphs above the road, where Homer's story has Odysseus stashing the Phaeacian gifts, and Dexa Bay for a swim on the way back. If Vathy's quay looks packed, keep going north. Kioni and Frikes are smaller, prettier, and slower, and the three ruined windmills at the mouth of Kioni make the approach one of the best in the Ionian. Eat ashore either way. A plate of sofrito and a cold bottle of local white finishes the day well.

Things to do

Climb to the Cave of the Nymphs

Swim in shallow Dexa Bay

Anchor off Kioni's three windmills

Eat sofrito at a Vathy taverna

Wander the lanes in Frikes

Mooring tip

Vathy's town quay is stern-to with your own anchor and fills fast in July; get in before the breeze or take the north bays. Kioni and Frikes both have short quays plus room to anchor off in the bay.

Kefalonia
3
Day 3

Ithaka → Kefalonia

Kefalonia is the big one, and Argostoli sits deep inside a long, sheltered bay behind the Lassi peninsula. The approach past the Fanari lighthouse is straightforward, and the town quay puts you a two-minute walk from the morning market. Argostoli has a party trick worth catching early: loggerhead turtles work the harbour front at dawn, hanging around the fishing boats for scraps, and you'll often see them from the deck with a coffee in hand. Inland, the Robola cooperative up near Fragata pours the island's crisp white in the shadow of Mount Ainos, an easy taxi run if the crew fancies a tasting. Back on the water, Fanari Bay just outside the harbour makes a calmer overnight if the quay feels too lively. Try the kreatopita, Kefalonia's rich meat pie, before you leave.

Things to do

Spot loggerhead turtles at Argostoli harbour

Taste Robola white near Fragata

Walk the De Bosset stone bridge

Try kreatopita at a quayside taverna

Anchor overnight in quiet Fanari Bay

Mooring tip

Argostoli's town quay is stern-to and busy; arrive by early afternoon to claim a spot with water and power. For a still night away from the traffic, drop the hook on sand in Fanari Bay just inside the headland.

Kastos
4
Day 4

Kefalonia → Kastos

This is the day you earn the peace at the far end. Twenty-odd miles back across the inner sea, usually close-hauled or on the beam once the maestro fills in around midday, so a nine o'clock start pays off. Kastos is long, thin, and about as sleepy as the Ionian gets, with a resident population you could count on two hands out of season. The single village sits on the west coast, its little harbour backed by olive terraces and a ruined windmill on the ridge above. Nights here are genuinely dark and genuinely silent. There's a taverna or two by the quay doing whatever came off the boat that morning, and not much else, which is the whole point. Swim off the south bays in the afternoon and let the day wind down slowly.

Things to do

Hike the ridge to the old windmill

Swim off the quiet southern bays

Eat the day's catch by the quay

Walk the island's stone donkey paths

Mooring tip

The village quay takes a handful of boats stern-to with your own anchor, and there are restaurant moorings off the harbour where dinner ashore covers the buoy. Space is tight, so get in mid-afternoon rather than at dusk.

Kalamos
5
Day 5

Kastos → Kalamos

Barely an hour under sail separates Kastos from Kalamos, so there's time to explore before you settle. Kalamos rises steep and green, wrapped in pine forest that runs almost to the waterline, and it hides one of the Ionian's strangest sights. Round the west coast to Port Leone, a village abandoned after the 1953 earthquake dropped its wells below the water table; the houses stand roofless and empty, though the little church is still kept and still used. Anchor off and row in for a look. Port Kalamos itself is the night stop, and mooring here is half the fun: George and his family have run the quayside taverna for decades and will wave you in, take your lines, and hand you a cold drink before the sun's off the hill. Book nothing, just arrive early.

Things to do

Row ashore at the Port Leone ghost village

Let George take your lines at the quay

Snorkel the clear water at Agrapidia

Climb up to Episkopi village

Walk the pine trails above the port

Mooring tip

At Port Kalamos, George's taverna hands you a lazy line and pontoon space stern-to, no booking needed but arrive by mid-afternoon in season. For a night at anchor, Asprogiali Bay drops to five to seven metres over good holding sand.

Preveza
6
Day 6

Kalamos → Preveza

Twenty-five miles closes the loop, so this is another early one, especially if you want the sails up before the wind builds. The run north hugs the mainland coast, and Mytikas makes a fair lunch stop: a soft, golden-sand shore that's a rarity in a region built mostly on white pebble and rock. Drop the hook, swim, eat on board, then push on. The Lefkada canal comes round again on the way back, floating bridge and all, so factor the hourly opening into your timing rather than arriving at the wrong minute. Aim to be alongside at Cleopatra Marina with light to spare; the last evening is easier when the boat's already settled. Book your fuel slot ahead so the morning handover isn't a scramble.

Things to do

Anchor and swim off sandy Mytikas

Time the Lefkada bridge opening again

Fuel up before the Cleopatra Marina berth

Walk the Preveza waterfront in the evening

Mooring tip

Cleopatra Marina is the base and lays you alongside or stern-to in a made berth. Radio ahead for a berthing slot and book the fuel dock 24 hours out, since the pontoon backs up on changeover days.

Check out
7
Day 7

Preveza → Check-Out

Handover usually runs mid-morning, so there's room for one last wander before the boat changes hands. Preveza's old town rewards a slow lap: narrow lanes under Venetian arches, a fish market that's been trading in the same spot for generations, and cafes where a Greek coffee comes with a glass of cold water and no hurry. If the crew has an hour and a hire car, the Roman city of Nikopolis sits a short drive north, built by Octavian to mark his victory at nearby Actium and still spread across the hillside in walls and mosaics. Sort the cleaning and packing the evening before so the morning stays unhurried. Then it's coffee on the paralia, one more look at the water, and the drive to the airport.

Things to do

Coffee under the Venetian arches

Browse the old-town fish market

Drive to the Nikopolis Roman ruins

Final walk along the Preveza paralia

Clean and pack for handover

Mooring tip

Cleopatra Marina handles the check-out at your booked berth; clean the boat and settle the fuel the evening before so the morning inspection is quick.

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