Elafonisos village

In the village everything faces the sea: shops and cafés in front, houses behind, as if the sea were the stage of a theatre. On the two moles, Bastouni and Kavaki, two deer statues, the island’s symbol, face each other. Between them the harbour’s boats and caiques rock gently.

A walk in the lanes

Leave the car by the beach and walk: no car fits in the narrow lanes anyway. Until 1980 the streets were sand and people walked barefoot. The old houses have tiled roofs, yards full of flowers and a well. In the middle of the village is Pano Pigadi, the upper well, where the whole village once drew water.

At the end of the beach a little bridge leads to the islet of Agios Spyridonas, the best-known sight on the island. At the northern tip, the lighthouse the locals call “Spitha”, the spark, marks the harbour entrance.

A little history

Here, and on the now sunken shore north of the village, stood the first prehistoric settlement of the area. Today’s village was built from the middle of the 19th century, when the island was settled again.

From here

Kontogoni, Kalogeras and Megalo Tigani beaches are close to the village. To the south, the path climbs to Vigla and Vardia, the island’s highest peak.