How to get to Melissani Cave
Going without a car?Every tour here picks you up in Argostoli and cancels free up to 24 hours before. Reserve the date now, decide later.
Check tour availabilityBy car
The address is Karavomylos, 280 80 Sami; the coordinates are 38.2568 N, 20.6243 E. From Argostoli it is about 30 km across the island, 35 to 40 minutes; from the airport about 30 km and 35 to 45 minutes; from Fiscardo about 35 km and 45 minutes or more on the coast road; from Agia Efimia under 10 km and about ten minutes. Sami itself is 2 km away, five minutes, or a walkable 25 to 30 minutes from the harbour. Distances and the map.
The car park is by the entrance café and free. One July 2026 reviewer found lots of parking; one in June 2026, at the peak, found it terrible, which comes to the same advice as the queue: it fills at midday in summer and is empty at 09:00. Drogarati is five minutes back along the Sami–Argostoli road, so a car does both caves before lunch. Opening hours by season.
By bus
KTEL Kefalonia runs a summer service from Argostoli to Karavomylos and Melissani. The timetable below is valid 6 July to 10 September 2026; outside those dates the service changes and KTEL Kefalonia has the current sheet. The fare Argostoli–Sami is a few euros (one source), and the depot answers on +30 26710 22281.
| Route | Monday–Saturday | Sunday |
|---|---|---|
| Argostoli → Karavomylos/Melissani | 10:00 and 13:00 | 10:00 |
| Karavomylos → Argostoli | 07:50 and 17:50 | 17:50 |
| Argostoli → Sami (for the 2 km walk or a taxi) | 07:15 (ferry-linked), 10:00, 13:00 | — |
Read it against the queue and the bus is an awkward tool: the 10:00 departure lands you at the lake with the coaches, the 13:00 in the thick of the midday wait, and the last bus back is 17:50, which does at least leave room for a visit after 15:30 when the queue has gone. There is no direct bus from the airport; change in Argostoli.
By taxi, and from the ferry
A taxi from the airport is the same 35 to 45 minutes as a car, and from Argostoli 35 to 40. Sami harbour has daily, year-round ferries to Pisaetos on Ithaca in 20 to 30 minutes and mainland services, so a day trip from Ithaca is a ferry, then 2 km on foot or in a taxi.
Getting in: the tunnel, the steps and the balcony
The ticket window is at the top, next to the café, the toilets and a souvenir kiosk. The way down is an artificial tunnel cut in 1963, about 70 m long, sloping, with stone steps and handrails; reviewers count over a hundred steps and there is no official figure, so call it roughly a hundred down and the same back up. The steps are wet near the water and the boat is wet, so wear shoes with grip. What to wear.
The boats are not wheelchair accessible and there is no lift. The alternative is a viewing balcony above the open chamber, which looks down on the lake, the islet and the boats; in the midday hours it is where the turquoise beam is seen from above. The nine-hour island tour adds that mobility scooters and non-folding wheelchairs cannot travel on its coach at all.
Drogarati is the harder of the two caves on the legs: about 150 steep, slippery steps down to the chamber and the same up. Anyone who finds stairs difficult should pick one cave, and Melissani is the one with the balcony. The two caves compared.
When a tour is the easier answer
Without a car, the choice is a twice-daily bus at the wrong hours or a taxi each way against a coach tour, from around forty euros, that picks you up in Argostoli, takes in Drogarati and the Myrtos viewpoint on the same drive, and brings you back. On a cruise morning it is not close: the ship is in port for eight to thirteen hours and the tour is timed to it. The four-hour tour is the one with both cave tickets in the price and a guide in the queue; the semi-private van is the one that reaches the lake first. The day tours from Argostoli.
Book the tour that does the driving
Port or hotel pickup in Argostoli, an air-conditioned coach, both cave tickets included, back in about four hours. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get to Melissani Cave from Argostoli?
By car it is about 30 km and 35 to 40 minutes. The KTEL bus leaves Argostoli for Karavomylos at 10:00 and 13:00 Monday to Saturday (10:00 Sunday) on the summer 2026 timetable, returning at 07:50 and 17:50. Or a day tour does the driving and adds Drogarati.
Is there parking at Melissani Cave?
Yes, a free car park by the entrance café. It fills at midday in summer, when the queue is longest too; at 09:00 opening both are empty. When to arrive.
Is Melissani Cave wheelchair accessible?
Not to the boats: the way down is a sloping tunnel with roughly a hundred steps and no lift. A viewing balcony above the open chamber is the alternative, and it looks down on the lake and the light. What the boat ride involves.
How far is Melissani Cave from the airport?
About 30 km, 35 to 45 minutes by car or taxi. There is no direct bus; change in Argostoli. On the way out of the island it makes a good last morning, at 09:00 before the coaches, with the airport a short drive back across the island. How long to allow.