Porto Katsiki

The most famous beach on Lefkada and arguably the most photographed in the Ionian: a narrow ribbon of white pebbles and fine sand below a 70-metre wall of chalk cliffs that drop almost vertically into a sea of unreal turquoise. There is no road down — about 100 steps from the cliff-top car park.

It gets very busy in July and August; come early or late in the day. Tavernas at the top, two small canteens at the bottom, and a strong cross-wind on most afternoons.

things to do beach sight
A story
The beach takes its name — "port of the goat" — from the days when the only way down to the cove was by goat track. The current concrete steps zigzagging down from the car park were not built until the 1990s, after the beach became a national landmark.