Lourdas Kefalonia resort report and satellite view of Lourdas

Lourdas Kefalonia

Lourdas Bay is one of the largest in Kefalonia and fringed by a long beach of pale gritty sand beneath a steep hillside. The resort lies on the south coast just west of Katelios and Skala. There is a 3km beach of sand and pebble along the shore and the hillside village and surrounding area.
Lourdas or Lourdhata can refer to a large area of the countryside including the village of Vlahata above and much of it is dotted with tourist accommodation. The main village of Lourdas has grown up around a hillside spring but as a resort it is very spread out with about 20 tavernas, a couple of bars and two mini markets interspersed with hotels and apartment blocks. The tavernas are bland and, as tourism is the mainstay of the economy, you will be hard pressed to a menu item that doesn't include a large portion of uninspiring chips.
It's a clean and pleasant enough village and notably quiet as it is not located on a main road but a dead end, so all traffic tends to be local. It is a not unattractive village, although the architecture is modern and uninspired. The growth in tourist accommodation and tourist services has given it an increasingly charmless air but the centre is well shaded by large plane trees.
The village is also some distance from the sea and although apartment brochures boast extensive views they rarely mention the steep and tiresome climb up from the beach below - the climb is pretty universally called 'a killer'.
The beach is a long and grubby swathe of sand and shingle backed by a dirt road. It falls steeply into the sea so children should be supervised. The beach is so big it rarely gets crowded but many prefer to drive to nearby Trapekazi beach.
There are some pleasant walks through the forested hillside and more along the coast towards the Monastery of Sission and Katsonas beach. Being cut off from the main road the village lacks a decent bus service and, what with the steep trek back from the beach, most tourists rely on a car to get about.