Europe Hotel 3

Greece isn't short on natural beauty. In fact, it seems as if everywhere you turn, there are perfectly golden half-moon beaches, glittering bays of bluer than blue water, dramatic and breathtaking rock formations. Yet, despite this wealth of beauty, there is one attraction that still stands out as especially, incredibly lovely: Melissani Lake in Kefalonia.

Melissani Lake is an underground lake, housed in a cave by the same name on the Greek island of Kefalonia island. Located not far from Karavomilo, it is a lacustrine cave of unique beauty that measures 3.5km in length, 40m in width and 36m in height. It is a geological phenomenon, created by a mechanical and chemical process called karstikopoiisi (dissolution of rocks), during which water enters calcareous rocks, erodes them and creates hollows.

Greece is home to lots of incredible natural gems from the towering rocky stacks of Meteora to the almost-too-perfect-to-be-real beaches of Balos and everything in between. Those who have found a vacation rental in Greece will quickly discover that the variety and quality of both ancient man-made tourist attractions and architectural gems for which Greece is famous is very much matched by an equal abundance of diverse and extraordinary natural phenomena and beauties. No matter where you are headed, there will, no doubt, be astounding landscapes and natural features to uncover and devour with your eyes and if you have found a vacation rental in Kefalonia, in particular, and you are exploring her landscape, then the most obvious pick among her rich selection of natural gems is the Cave of Melissani.

This truly unique and picturesque cave seems like something plucked from the pages of a fantasy novel: too ethereal and stunning in the soft morning rays or warm golden glow of the evening to be real. But, real it is! Located just outside Sami, the Cave of Melissani is home to an underwater lake so clear that visitors often report it felt like they were on a boat floating through the air and which is visible from above through a large opening in the top of the chamber. This opening is hugged by the lush trees of the forest and this paints a vividly colourful and picturesque image when it is viewed from both above and from inside the cave itself. B-shaped, the cave is 3.5km long, 40m wide, and 36m high and made up of two chambers that are separated by an island at the centre. In Greek mythology, the cave was said to be the home of nymphs – something that seems entirely plausible when one visits this hauntingly beautiful space – and it is actually named after a nymph called Melissani who killed herself and fell in the lake after Pan failed to return her love in one tale.

Zakynthos Island is a beautiful Greek island where there is plenty to see and a lot to do from hiking to scuba-diving and swimming. However, in spite of its great wealth of natural beauty, there is one corner of the island that garners more attention and love than the rest: Navagio Beach. One of the most extraordinary and photogenic beaches in Greece and the world, it is located on the north-west of the island and is home to a famous shipwreck, called Panagiotis. Originally a smuggler ship, that washed ashore after losing engine power in 1981, it has lent the beach the nickname ‘Smugglers Cove’.

If it seems familiar, it is probably because of its prevalence in Greek tourist board ads, thousands of photographs from visitors and, more recently, as a backdrop to scenes from the blockbuster South Korean television drama, “Descendants of the Sun” that swept across Asia with feverish popularity last year. In fact, the drama has increased the fame of the site hundredfold and locals report a growing influx of fans of the show from China and Korea, in particular.