By Air
Most - but by no means all - of The Gecko's guests arrive from the UK, flying into Preveza Airport. Preveza is served from most northern European countries, but only over the summer season, usually from late April until mid to late October. It's a three hour flight from the UK, and it's easy to book seats on the regular charter flights serving Preveza. From the UK these tend to be well known names such as Monarch, Thomas Cook and Thomson, but can also find direct flights from Small Planet Airlines, BA (from Heathrow) and Germania. From 2015 onwards there's now an EasyJet scheduled service into Preveza - and about time too! It operates on Wednesdays and Sundays between May and October. For details go to the EasyJet site for the Gatwick to Preveza route. By using a combination of SkyScanner and Charterflights.co.uk you should find most of the avaiable options - but if you need advice, or are travelling from countries other than the UK, please ask and I'll help as much as possible.
You could also fly to Corfu with Ryanair or EasyJet, much closer than either Athens or Thessaloniki, and if you are lucky you might connect with one of the small planes flying operated by Sky Express that fly between Preveza, Corfu and Kefalonia. If you're very lucky, that is... From Corfu you can also jump on a ferry for the short crossing to Igoumenitsa and then drive to Lefkada, but by the time you've crossed to the mainland and driven an hour or so to Lefkada, it's probably just as quick to fly into Athens, which has the benefit of many flights per day.
It's really no hardship to come via Athens or Thessaloniki, as both offer a very easy drive (approx five hours) to The Gecko on excellent roads. You don't have to drive through the middle of either city (ahhh ... happy memories of getting lost for hours in the centre of Athens before the ring road was completed for the Olympics ☺, and before I was even able to decipher the Greek alphabet for a sign to Corinth ...). The other benefit of flying into one of these two cities is the opportunity to add a few days onto your stay at The Gecko. Both are fascinating in their own right - the relatively little visited Thessaloniki is a beautiful and cultured city with a fascinating and turbulent history, and of course Athens has the Parthenon and Acropolis, together with a magnificent new museum just waiting for the return of the Elgin Marbles. En route between Athens and The Gecko you could stop for a day or more to visit the spellbinding ancient site of Delphi, visit the ancient Greek capital of Napflion, or explore the rugged mountains of the northern Peleponnese. Travelling from Thessaloniki to Lefkada gives you easy access to the spectacular and mysterious site of Meteora, or you could combine a week at The Gecko with some days in the hills and scenery of the lovely Zagoria region.
By Sea
If time is not an issue, and you enjoy the journey, why not drive from home, taking one of the modern and comfortable ferries crossing between Italy and Greece?
Previous guests from Italy and Switzerland have taken this option, and the route from London to Lefkada has become a well beaten track for me over the years. I love it. Add a few days to either end of a week at The Gecko, and you have an opportunity to drop in to any number of places en route - Venice, Milan, the Swiss or Austrian Alps, Alsace, the Rhone or Burgundian vineyards, Paris - it's an endless list. Ferries dock at Igoumenitsa in Greece, close to Corfu, and well under two hours drive south to The Gecko. Or you could stay on board to the final destination of Patras to enjoy the spectacular cruise through the Ionian islands. Catch the ferry from Venice, Ancona, Bari or Brindisi in Italy. Coasting out past the terracotta rooftops and ancient canals of Venice is quite a sight. The main companies are Anek, Superfast and Minoan, although there are several others operating the southern routes from Bari and Brindisi. If you don't fancy the drive, you could always catch the train all the way to Venice. The ferry port is just a few hundred yards away from the station. Pick up a car when you arrive in Igoumenitsa (arrangements can be made to meet you from the ferry) and Bob's your uncle.
All the ferry routes and tickets can be found and booked through the very helpful and efficient agency Paleologos (the website is www.ferries.gr).
By Bus
There are modern, comfortable, safe and air-conditioned coaches running several times a day from Athens (Kiffisos Bus Station) to Lefkada. The journey takes between five and six hours. From Athens airport there is a cheap and efficient bus service - X-93 - that takes you to Kiffisos Bus Station, where you can buy a ticket for immediate travel. At busy times it pays to reserve your ticket in advance, which can easily be done online. There's a very useful website with all the routes, departure times and online ticketing at KTEL Lefkada.
