One of the great things about a Greek villa holiday is the wonderful ease with which you can blend the culture and heritage of Greece with simple relaxation on some of the most stunning beaches in the world. On Lefkada one of the many fabulous cultural sights is the church of Profitis Ilias.
Perched on a hilltop on one the highest and most remote points of Lefkada this tiny church is about a 45 minute drive up through the hills from Villa Gabriella. The drive itself gives you a chance to sample the simple, rural interior of the island, with some of the villages seeming almost to be stuck in a time warp as you pass through the narrow roads climbing dramatically from Villa Gabriella to the high interior plateau of Lefkada.
During the drive you’ll enjoy any number of stunning views with many bends or corners opening new vistas or new angles on vistas you’ve seen before – all improbably beautiful. But once you get to the church you’ll enjoy some of the most stunning views of the island, through 360 degrees, that it’s possible to experience from anywhere.
Whilst the outside of the church itself is quite unremarkable, save for it’s stunning location, the interior is a revelation. The tiny single room features an altar and decorations that are stunningly beautiful and I’m afraid our picture doesn’t do the interior justice.
During your Greek villa holiday at Villa Gabriella we highly recommend the trip to the church. We’d recommend either leaving early or perhaps heading up for sunset. Whilst it’s unlikely to be busy at any time, it’s almost sure to be deserted at those times and there can be few finer places in which to enjoy the tranquility, remoteness and solitude of such a beautiful location.
But of course there is so much more culture to find on Lefkada. This is one of many churches and there’s also the stunning Faneromeni Monastery, several ancient Greek sites, a couple of museums and, if you’re here in August the amazing Folk Festival. Why not get in contact (here) and we can help you plan a truly amazing trip to Lefkada including as much, or as little, culture as you’d like.
And if you’d like to look at flight options for your Greek villa holiday why not head over to Skyscanner and look for flights to our local airport (45 minutes drive) of Preveza (PVK).
Lefkada’s beauty is undiminished and it’s a quieter and even more relaxed island once the summer crowds have gone home. The weather though remains as beautiful as ever, if a little cooler in the evenings, making it an appealing option if you’re not tied to peak season. You’ll enjoy empty beaches, quieter restaurants and easy parking when you need to stock up the supermarket!
We’ve been thinking that the courtyard at the front of the villa, where there’s space to park a small fleet of cars, needed a feature worthy of a luxury villa rental Ionian. It’s an easily overlooked area of the villa as the view across the Ionian is from the back of the house. That said it’s a beautiful place to be when the day draws to a close as it catches the warmth of the early evening sunshine.
The bench was delivered in three parts for on-site assembly – understandable when you find out that each piece weighs around 150kg. It was installed recently and now looks absolutely fantastic positioned between the amphora and close to the Olive tree. Sitting on the bench you look across the courtyard, taking in the “eye”. This should be a blaze of colour during the spring and summer highlighted against the relaxing greens of the forest behind. Or you can turn your gaze to the left, admire the olives on the tree and catch of glimpse of the wonderful Ionian sea below.
Villa Gabriella. Ionian Luxury. Immerse yourself.
When guests choose a luxury Ionian villa for their holiday they want to find that villa in perfect condition.
The recent perfect autumn weather on Lefkada has helped progress. We’ve managed to get all six gates fully refinished – the pictures show three of them being lovingly repainted. Hours of sanding back to the bare metal was needed before they were treated to a generous coat of primer. Only then were they re-painted in a beautiful shade of dark green. This colour is a perfect complement to the surrounding forest and the gates now look very splendid indeed. Finally the Villa Gabriella sail design was repainted in gold. The end result is a truly magnificent welcome to our guests arriving at Villa Gabriella.
warm September sunshine the drive down to the Cape is an interesting mixture of winding roads and stunning views – perfect for a vacation day out. We took the road over the top of the mountain before heading south taking us past some stunning panoramas with the mixture of blues in the sea off the western coast truly breathtaking.
2015 rates for 2016 makes now a great time to book your 2016 holiday to Villa Gabriella Lefkada. For early bookings we’re offering a 5% early booking discount from our already competitive 2015 rates.