Kefalonia

The largest of the Ionian islands, Kefalonia is a place of grand natural drama: soaring limestone mountains, deep caves, and beaches so vividly blue they barely look real. Made famous to many by the novel and film Captain Corelli's Mandolin, the island rewards visitors who want spectacular scenery and space to breathe, with its towns spread widely across a rugged, green landscape.

At its heart is Myrtos, regularly named among Greece's most beautiful beaches, a dazzling strip of white pebbles cradled between steep cliffs and turquoise water. Nearby, the underground lake of Melissani Cave glows sapphire when midday sun pours through its collapsed roof, while the neighbouring Drogarati cave impresses with its vast, stalactite-hung chamber. These natural wonders sit within easy reach of one another in the island's centre.

Kefalonia's villages are part of its charm. Assos is a tiny pastel-painted hamlet on a slender isthmus beneath a Venetian castle, while Fiskardo, the only town to survive the 1953 earthquake intact, lines its harbour with elegant Venetian houses and yachts. The capital, Argostoli, curves around a lagoon, and the ferry port of Sami sits on the east coast. Above it all rises Mount Ainos, a national park cloaked in rare black fir and home to semi-wild horses.

Late spring and early autumn are ideal. May and June bring warm seas, wildflowers and green hills, while September offers hot, settled weather with thinner crowds. July and August are busy and hot, especially at Myrtos and the northern villages, but the island's size means quiet corners are never far away. Winter is green, wet and largely closed to tourism.

Getting there is easy in summer, with an airport near Argostoli receiving charter flights from across Europe, plus ferries from Kyllini and Patra on the mainland. A hire car is almost essential given the distances between beaches, caves and villages. For travellers seeking natural grandeur, relaxed harbour dinners and fewer crowds than the Cyclades, Kefalonia is one of Greece's most rewarding islands.