A week is exactly right for Lefkada. Long enough to fall into the rhythm of the place — the slow morning swim, the lunch that runs to three o'clock, the early evening light the locals call the blue hour — yet short enough that you never feel you're rushing to tick things off. This is the plan we'd give a friend staying on the quiet south-east coast: a gentle loop of the island's best bays, a boat day across to Meganisi, the famous west-coast beaches, and plenty of room to do nothing at all. Treat it as a menu, not a marching order. The very best days here are often the ones you didn't plan.
Day 1 — Arrive and settle in
Land at Aktion / Preveza (PVK), collect the hire car and point it south; you'll be at the villa within the hour, on roads that grow quieter with every mile. Resist the urge to do anything ambitious today. Unpack slowly, find the shade by the pool, and let the island lower your pulse. When you're hungry, the nearest taverna is a short drive down to the water — order whatever came off the boat that morning, and let an early night set you up for the week. The holiday has already started; you just need to notice.
Day 2 — The south-east bays: Mikros Gialos, Rouda & Sivota
Spend your first full day getting to know your own stretch of coast, because it's quietly one of the loveliest on the island. Start at Mikros Gialos, a horseshoe of clear water and smooth pebbles that's perfect for a long, lazy swim. From there it's a short hop to Rouda Bay for a paddle and a coffee, and then on to Sivota — a near-enclosed inlet ringed with fish tavernas, where the yachts moor up for lunch and the calamari is some of the best you'll eat all trip.
- Mikros Gialos — sheltered, clear and rarely crowded; the morning swim.
- Rouda Bay — a calm cove with a beach bar for a mid-morning pause.
- Sivota — the long lunch; tavernas right on the waterline.
It's a short day by the map, but a full one by the soul — the whole point of the south-east is that nothing is far, and everything is unhurried.
Day 3 — A boat to Meganisi and the blue caves
Today you go to sea. Meganisi is the little island floating just off Lefkada's east coast, and the best way to meet it is by boat — either a self-drive day boat (no licence needed for the small ones) from Nidri or Sivota, or a place on a skippered day trip. Make for Papanikolis, one of the largest sea caves in the Mediterranean, where the water glows an impossible electric blue. Drop anchor in a deserted cove for a swim off the back of the boat, then putter into Vathy or Spartochori for a long lunch in a harbour-side taverna before the slow cruise home.
If you'd rather someone else did the navigating, a skippered trip is the easy choice and lets everyone relax with a glass of something cold. Either way, this tends to be the day people talk about all the way home.
Go to the blue caves early. The colour inside Papanikolis is at its most vivid late morning, before the afternoon day-tripper boats arrive from the bigger resorts — push off by nine and you may well have the glowing water to yourselves for half an hour.
Day 4 — The west-coast beaches: Porto Katsiki, Egremni & Kathisma
Now for the postcards. Lefkada's west coast is its dramatic side — sheer white cliffs dropping to water so turquoise it looks edited — and it's worth the drive across the island for a day. Porto Katsiki is the icon, a crescent of pale sand beneath a towering cliff; Egremni is the wild, end-of-the-world one; and Kathisma is the longer, easygoing beach with sunbeds and beach bars if you'd like a little more comfort. Pick one or two rather than all three — the coast is best savoured, not raced.
- Porto Katsiki — the famous cliff-backed crescent; go early for parking.
- Egremni — remote and spectacular; bring water and shade.
- Kathisma — long, relaxed, with bars and loungers for a slower day.
Take the swimming seriously, take a hat, and time the run home so you cross back over the hills as the light turns gold.
Day 5 — Vasiliki, windsurfing and the Nidri waterfalls
Head down to Vasiliki, the breezy bay in the island's south that's famous among windsurfers for its reliable afternoon thermal wind. You don't have to be an expert — the schools here will have a complete beginner up and (mostly) standing in an afternoon, and it's a brilliant, salty, laughing kind of day. If sailing isn't your thing, swap it for the Nidri waterfalls: a short, shaded walk up a gorge to a cool plunge pool, the perfect antidote to a hot afternoon and a hit with children.
Whichever you choose, reward yourselves afterwards with an ice cream on the Nidri waterfront and watch the boats come in — it's the busiest little harbour on the island, and good fun to people-watch over a sundowner.
Day 6 — Lefkada town and the Saturday market
Give the car a rest from the coast and spend a morning in Lefkada town, the island's pretty, low-rise capital. It's a place of narrow lanes, painted timber-and-metal houses (built that way to flex with earthquakes), a long marina, and cafés made for sitting in. If your week lines up with a Saturday, time it for the morning market — stalls of local honey, olives, herbs, cheeses and the celebrated Lefkada lentils and salami, ideal for stocking the villa kitchen or filling a suitcase corner with edible souvenirs.
Have lunch in town, browse the little shops out of the midday heat, and pick up a bottle of local wine and something for tonight's slow supper back at the pool. After a week of beaches, a leisurely town day feels just right.
Day 7 — A slow last morning
Don't waste your final morning packing in a panic. Have one more swim, one more long Greek coffee, one last look at the bay you've come to think of as yours. The drive back to PVK is short and easy, so there's no need to rush — leave with enough time for a final stop at a roadside stand for honey or olive oil to take the taste of the island home. You'll already be quietly planning the next trip before the bridge is behind you. Most people do.
Stay on the south-east coast
This whole week is built around basing yourself on Lefkada's quiet south-east, where every one of these days starts and ends with your own pool. Cavos Villa sits above the bay at Mikros Gialos, and Villa Anatoli on its ridge above Poros — both an easy hour from the airport, both perfectly placed for the bays, the boat days and the beaches above.