Elafonisos is the largest small island in Greece! It is small enough--only 18 square kilometers--to be classified as an islet. But with about 1,000 permanent residents, it is the most populated small island in our country.
It is an enchanting fishing island which in recent years has become a tourist attraction, mainly due to its beautiful sandy beaches with their light blue water. Especially in August, the island is overrun with tourists, and you will fight for a place everywhere!
The abundant sand and light colors of the sea begin even before we get to the island from the opposite Lakonian coast of Pounta. These characteristic features are due to the geological history of the place, since the peninsula that Pausanias described as a donkey jaw (based on its shape), which was linked to Pounta, dissolved into the sea after the devastating earthquake of 375 AD.
With it went the prehistoric city which was located between today’s beaches at Pounta and Pavlopetri, and the islet of Pavlopetri across the water. A dive just four meters below the surface will take us more than 4,000 years back in time. The submerged city also includes the prehistoric cemetery at the edge of the beach at Pavlopetri.
Behind the prehistoric cemetery, it is worth visiting Limni Strongyli (Round Lake or Lagoon), an important wetland in the area that belongs to the NATURA network.
From Pounta, we can cross over to Elafonisos in small ferry boats (“pantofles,” or slippers), which slowly but surely take us to the island in 10 minutes. The service is frequent, about every half hour during the summer months, running until at least 8:00 in the evening. Transportation costs about 12 euros for two people with a car.
Most of the island’s residents and tourist services are concentrated in the northern settlement of Elafonisos. The settlement ends at a picturesque harbor with fishing boats and the islet of Agios Spyridonas, which houses the main church of Elafonisos and is connected to the rest of the island with a small concrete bridge.
The second largest settlement is Kato Nisi, in the west, also known as Nisia (tis) Panagias, which means Islands of the Virgin, with the beautiful Nisia Panagias Beach. Moreover, as we said, almost all of Elafonisos is a huge sandy beach. The exotic beaches of Sarakiniko and Fragos, better known as Megalos Simos and Mikros Simos, respectively, are the hallmarks of the island. It is said that they were named after a Kalymnian diver, Simos, who passed away there, overcome by decompression sickness.
Our proposal for swimming, however, is the much smaller but most enchanting Lefki Beach in the southeastern part of the island, about a kilometer before Mikros Simos. Spectacular light blue water, white sands, and perfect, because of its location, when the large beaches catch the southerly and westerly winds.
We recommend two interesting expeditions on the island: the ascent to the cave of Megalos Simos, and a visit to Agios Patapios in the southwestern part of the island and at Aglyftis Beach.
It is worth the short but strenuous climb (15 to 20 minutes by footpath) to 85 meters to explore the cave (which seems like it gave birth to the island) and enjoy the view over the Bay of Sarakiniko. To find it, proceed along the dirt road that continues beyond the end of the road that leads to Megalos Simos (about 500 meters) until you see the cave above you on the right. From there, choose the point from which to start the ascent. We recommend that you follow the footpath.
A visit to Agios Patapios and Aglyftis Beach will give us the chance to experience another side of Elafonisos, more solitary and wilder, but also very beautiful: cliffs, a desert landscape, and the endless azure of the sea and sky.
At the southwestern edge of Nisia tis Panagias, where the road ends, a sometimes demanding coastal footpath begins that will lead us (in about 40 minutes) to the chapel of Agios Patapios (built in 1960), the beautiful Aglyftis Beach, and the islet across from it. Aglyftis Beach is the least known beach on the island, wild, solitary, and remote, with the company of only seagulls and the chapel of Agios Patapios.
On the island, there are more than seventy choices for lodging (hotels, guesthouses, and rooms for rent), most of them simple and affordable. Generally the cost of accommodation and restaurants is quite competitive, given the demand that exists, especially in the summer months. In one of the richest fishing spots in Greece, you will surely enjoy fresh fish (of any kind) at reasonable prices. For those who want to have fun until late, there are several bars and clubs that stay open almost until dawn.
If you have time while you're in the area, it's worth taking a few more days to get acquainted with a relatively unknown region of our country, southeastern Lakonia, which includes the Municipal Unit of Voies, with its capitol Neapoli. It is an area with a history that began in the second millennium BC in the region of ancient Voies. It is a beautiful land, with good food, enjoyable and secluded sandy beaches, and numerous monuments on the way to Cape Malea.
