Egremni beach

Egremni beach is 40km away from the capital city Lefkas and 20km from Vasiliki. It is one of the beaches Lefkada is known for and it is one of the reasons you will come to visit this island.

Egremni is one of the most beautiful beaches in Greece, and it is also listed as one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. Until 2015 this beach was able to reach by going down 350 famous steps, but after the earthquake, you can approach it only from the sea, by boat.

The excellent news for anyone who loves Lefkada or plans to visit is that the stairs are back in operation.

They say that the project was complicated, primarily because it was necessary to ensure the 100% safety of tourists who would go down to the beach in this way. Finally, however, the works were completed with the help of a Slovenia company.

How was it once? After a long drive during the summer of 2016, you probably came across the big sign for danger and closed road. However, you could pass the sign and drive about 700m more where actually a landslide is. It is possible to park your car there or leave it on the road, but it would be more difficult to turn over your car on the way back, because the road is not wide, and there is a cliff next to it. 300m away there’s a viewpoint which you could reach after passing the landslide. That requires comfortable shoes. If you want to continue further more you have to be in good shape, because first you will come across the remains of the steps which are partially broken and then 200m from the beach there are no more steps, instead there is a abyss with a huge landslide. There is placed a rope by which it is possible to go down to the beach and back. It takes about half an hour from the parking place to the beach. This road is dangerous, unsafe and smaller or larger landslides are constant, so we don’t recommend coming this way. However if you decide going to this adventure, it is necessary to bring a water and parasol with you, because the shadow below the rocks is unsafe due to often landslides - constant rolling stones down the cliff and cracking are not pleasant to hear or see while laying on the beach.

If you go to this beach, it is necessary to bring water and an umbrella because the shade under the rocks is unsafe due to frequent landslides - rolling pebbles down the cliff and crackling that are not pleasant to hear or see while lying on the beach :)

In 2017, after an attempt at reconstruction, the road was officially closed. Now the situation is much better, and what is great is that the works on asphalting the shortcut over the hill from Vasiliki to the beaches of Porto Katsiki and Egremni are over! Now the distance is about 15km. Vasiliki is now becoming the best base for touring the beaches of the west coast of Lefkada !!!

How to reach the beach now?

As we wrote, the road from Vasiliki has been fixed and can now be reached more easily and quickly. However, in some parts, when you turn off the main road to go to the beach, the road is very narrow and hardly two cars can pass each other, so you have to be very careful and drive slowly. When you get to about 1-1.5 km from the beach, there is a parking lot where you can leave your car and pay €10 for parking for the whole day (regardless of how long you will stay on the beach). When you go to the beach from the parking lot, after a few meters you will come across a gate that is locked and closed, and that is the reason why you cannot go further by car. There is a 1km walk to the stairs and from the gate on an excellent paved road that is very downhill, that is, uphill when you return from the beach. The road is quite tiring, especially in the heat and sun, with a lot of things you carry, so get ready for a dangerous workout. If you have a problem with walking uphill and downhill or walking in the sun, the best way to get to the beach is by boat. After a strenuous walk, you reach the stairs, of which there are about 400, and the descent begins to the beach itself. The view of the sea from there, but also with a couple of viewpoints along the way, is truly magical.

In addition to the new steps on Egremni beach, there is another possibility to reach it, and that is by sea.

You could also rent a private boat from Vasiliki and Nidri and you could visit the beach together with the captain. There are numerous excursions to this beach, both from Nidri or Vasiliki. Visiting Egremni beach is usually a part of the trip to the beaches Porto Katsiki and Agiofili. There are also larger boats from Nidri, which, except from these three beaches, can take you to several islands nearby (Kefalonia, Ithaca, Scorpios…). Before you choose any of these options, you should first pay attention to several things. If you are renting a private boat, first check if there is wind and if it’s wavy you should prearrange with the captain what will happen with the money on the occasion that you won’t be able to disembark because of the strong wind. If you take one of the other two options, check how long will you stay on the mentioned beaches and if you are just passing by or you will be disembarked. It could happen that you see a specific beach 200m away and just move on or come by just for a 30-40 minutes, which could only take you to go up and down the boat. Be well informed about the details to avoid unpleasant surprises. Keep in mind that ships are crowded, and that often several ships come at the same time at Porto Katsiki or Egremni and the crowd is unbearable. To bargain over the price of the excursion is a common thing on Lefkada.

Coast of the Egremni beach is cowered with gravel and small white stones, so the water sandals are desirable for a pleasant entry into the water or out of it. A depth is large after a meter or two, therefore it’s necessary to pay attention to the children and non-swimmers. The waves are constant and sometimes very powerful and up to 3m high, so in combination with a relatively sharp depth could be very dangerous. drowning occur, therefore you should be very careful. Sudden large waves are common and if you put your things (towels, cell phones..) near the water, they could be taken away by it. The waves surprise and tantalize the best swimmers. Do not let children out of the sight, because there is no lifeguards.

There are no contents on the beach, so it’s necessary to bring food, water and parasol with you. It’s not safe looking for the shadow below the rocks. There is one cafe/restaurant up the stairs and that’s it. There is also the only toilet within the restaurant, which you have to pay for if you are not a guest.
On the beach, you can only rent an umbrella, and since the number is limited, if you come later, there won’t be any more, and if you don’t have your own, you’ll have to be in the sun all day.
There are no showers or cabins either on the beach or up there.

The visit to the Egremni beach would be a great experience. This endless blue, white rocks and gravel, milky-blue sea, large and foamy waves and powerful sound of the sea will be engraved in your memory forever.
Don’t forget that there is only one gas station on the west coast (nearby Agios Nikitas)! Before coming here, fuel the tank.