CalmBeach Greece
Maistros options
Beaches in Kefalonia usually better when the maistros blows
35 sheltered beaches in Kefalonia, oriented away from the maistros. Check live wind & waves on CalmBeach before you go.
- 35beaches
- 14organized
- 16with photos
The maistros blows from NW/W, and the split shows up clearly in the data. Of the 77 beaches we have modelled, 35 take no open water toward NW/W; they cluster on the east coast, facing an arc of NE–S. The most reliable of them are listed below. The other 25 sit wide open to it.
The reason is the shape of the coast itself: these beaches have land behind them on the side the wind comes from. They are not necessarily enclosed bays — they simply sit in the wind shadow of the shore opposite.
The trade-off, plainly: the same east coast is open to the opposite wind. On days the wind swings from the east, the shelter reverses and the far side is the better call. So this list narrows the choice — it does not replace the forecast; check live wind and waves on the beach page before you go.
The beaches
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XiThe red sand of Paliki — A ~3 km strip of distinctive red-orange sand below clay cliffs, on the Paliki peninsula near Lixouri. The colour comes from iron released as the…
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Paralia SkalasThe long shore beside the Roman villa — Skala beach extends beside the resort village of the same name, at the southeastern tip of Kefalonia. It is one of the island's longest organized…
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EmplysiThe snorkelling cove near Fiskardo — A small cove of white pebbles, ringed by tree-clad cliffs, ~2 km north of picturesque Fiskardo. Its clear turquoise water and life-rich seabed make…
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PessadaThe little bay beside the Zakynthos ferry port — Pessada is a small sandy bay on the south coast of Kefalonia, about ten kilometres south of Argostoli, beside the little harbour of the same name…
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VoutiThe double cove below Zola — Vouti lies on the western coast of Kefalonia, below the village of Zola, between Fteri and Agia Kyriaki. It stretches along the western side of the…
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FokiThe seals' cove among the cypresses — Foki is a small, enclosed cove on the north coast of Kefalonia, a few minutes from the picturesque village of Fiskardo. Its name is said to come from…
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Agios Thomas
The two coves beneath the little chapel — Agios Thomas lies on the southern coast of Kefalonia, near the village of Karavados and about 13 kilometres from Argostoli. It is in fact two small…
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Trapezaki (gymniston)The eastern end toward Kanali — The naturist section of Trapezaki lies on the southern coast of Kefalonia, at the eastern end of the long sandy stretch that runs toward Kanali…
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Trapezaki
The sandy shore below Mousata — Trapezaki lies on the southern coast of Kefalonia, near the settlement of Mousata and about 13 kilometres from Argostoli. It is a sandy beach of fine…
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Kako Lagkadi
The hidden cove down the rugged ravine — Kako Lagadi is a hidden pebble cove on the eastern coast of Kefalonia, between Poros and Skala. It lies at the foot of steep cliffs, where a narrow…
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KimiliaThe secret cove of white pebbles — Kimilia lies in the Erisos region at the northern tip of Kefalonia, very close to Fiskardo. It is a small natural cove of white pebbles with large…
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RagiaColourful pebbles at the gateway of Poros — Ragia, also known as Aragia, stretches along the seafront of Poros in southeastern Kefalonia, a long shore where small, colourful pebbles alternate…
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Photo credits
- Xi: Splendid entry, CC BY 3.0
- Paralia Skalas: Michael Xanthakis, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Emplysi: Fæ, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Pessada: Anastasia Ioanna, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Vouti: Fæ, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Foki: slippymark, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Trapezaki (gymniston): IDS.photos from Tiverton, UK, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Kimilia: slippymark, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Ragia: Евгений Лыков, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Agia Paraskevi: Berit from Redhill/Surrey, UK, CC BY 2.0
- Central Square Beach: Fæ, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Xylokaravo: slippymark, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Kounopetra: No machine-readable author provided. Christos Vitt, CC BY-SA 2.5
- Paralia Agia Varvara: Paul Lakin, CC BY 3.0
- Spithi: Fæ, CC BY-SA 3.0
Good to know
Which beaches in Kefalonia may be better when the maistros blows?
The bays listed here are shielded from the maistros in the exposure model, so they may be more comfortable when it blows. Local conditions still vary, so confirm wind and waves before you go.
Does this guarantee low waves?
No. Shelter shows which coasts are shielded from a wind direction, not guaranteed calm or low waves. On strong-wind days follow local flags and check live wind and waves in the app.
When is the sea calmest here?
Across 35 of the beaches on this page, the open water in front of them is typically 0.57 m in June, 0.59 m in July and 0.56 m in August when the maistros is at its strongest, and 0.63 m in September. August is the calmest month of the season. We calculate these figures ourselves from European Copernicus wave-model data at 4.2 km resolution. They describe the sea offshore, not the shelter of an individual cove — a bay protected by a headland will usually be calmer than this.
How warm is the water, month by month?
Off 35 of the beaches on this page the sea is typically 19.2 °C in May, 22.8 °C in June, 25.0 °C in July, 26.3 °C in August and 25.2 °C in September — ideal at the height of summer, mild in June. By October it is 23.0 °C. August is the warmest month. Satellite measurements, 1995–2024, from a sea cell about 5 km offshore; shallow bays usually run warmer than this.
Wind and waves change every day. See live conditions for any of these beaches before you drive out.
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