Argostoli - Kefalonia Tours

[Goldygolfer]

We will be in Argostoli from 7am - 4pm in late May and looking to do a private tour of Cefalonia.

We have had a quote for a mini bus tour from Kathy from Kokolis
Tours, with a driver and guide, which sounds really enticing.
The tour takes in the view above Myrtos Bay, Melissani Lake, Sami, Drogarati Cave and Mt Ainos.

Has anyone else used Kokolis Tours in Cephalonia ? Any comments will be greatly appreciated as there is very little information on this venue on the message boards in comparison with the more popular ports and islands.

Thanks for any help which, hopefully, will be forthcoming.

[Eileen G]

When we stopped in Argostoli last May we rented a car and did a circular drive from Argostoli along the coast to Assos then across the island to Sami and back to the port. You can see my pictures here.

http://travel.webshots.com/photo/2475179260101391319cDGXHR

Before you go you should watch the movie "Captain Corelli's Mandolin" with Nicolas Cage. It was filmed in Cefolonia and gives you a good feel for the island.

[Goldygolfer]

Thank you for sharing your photos Eileen. I have just spent all afternoon trolling through them and had a wonderful time. We are going to all the places you went to, so the photos were of particular interest.

The beaches look quite rocky - not like the fine, white sand we have here on the Gold Coast, Australia - but very picturesque.

We do plan to see "Captain Corelli's Mandolin" before we go. We have both read the book, but not seen the movie yet.

We are going on the Westerdam in May.

You have certainly tweaked my already high sense of excitement.

[Eileen G]

This was a wonderful itenerary. If you would like to read my review the link is in my signiture next to Oosterdam 5/2009.

[diathoney]

When we stopped in Argostoli last May we rented a car and did a circular drive from Argostoli along the coast to Assos then across the island to Sami and back to the port.

Who did you rent a car from? Were you happy with it?

[Eileen G]

We rented a car from Sunbird car rental. We did not reserve a car because we couldn't find any one near the cruise ship pier. We were there in May before the season so we hoped we would find somewhere to rent. We left the pier area and walked to the left. We passed two car rental places that were not opened yet. We finally came across Sunbird. It was opened and ready for all the cruise passangers. We were very happy with the car we rented. The only thing we didn't like is that they kept my DH's drivers license. We also had a international one. It all worked out fine.

[diathoney]

We also had a international one. It all worked out fine. What agency did you get the International Drivers license through? I see that AAA offers an International Driver's license - I assume it's the same card...

[Eileen G]

Yes we got it through AAA.

[sunsetbeachgal]

We loved our stop at Argostoli last September-we opted to do a ship's tour as we priced doing a private tour, but since our ship called on Argostoli on a Sunday the private company we contacted had a pretty substantial Sunday surcharge (forgot their name, but the one you mention sounds familiar). It is a beautiful island-just be aware that it is VERY hilly and mountainous-if you are not comfortable driving on these type of roads with switchbacks, you might want to do a private tour or ships tour.

[diathoney]

We will be in Argostoli from 7am - 4pm in late May and looking to do a private tour of Cefalonia.
We have had a quote for a mini bus tour from Kathy from Kokolis
Tours, with a driver and guide, which sounds really enticing.
The tour takes in the view above Myrtos Bay, Melissani Lake, Sami, Drogarati Cave and Mt Ainos.
Has anyone else used Kokolis Tours in Cephalonia ? Any comments will be greatly appreciated as there is very little information on this venue on the message boards in comparison with the more popular ports and islands.
Thanks for any help which, hopefully, will be forthcoming.

Kefalonia, Cefalonia, Cephalonia looks like a beautiful island, but not a lot of information on tours. I'm very glad you posted this. I contacted Kokolis Tours and booked with them too!

[Goldygolfer]

I'm sure you will have a great day. We did. We finished up with 13 of us from our roll call in a minibus.
Cephalonia was quite a surprise. As you suggest, there is very little information on the CC message boards ( I don't think a lot of cruise lines call there). Therefore we really had no pre-conceived ideas. I think this is why we were agreeably surprised and very glad that we did a tour.
Enjoy.

[diathoney]

I'm sure you will have a great day. We did. We finished up with 13 of us from our roll call in a minibus.
Cephalonia was quite a surprise. As you suggest, there is very little information on the CC message boards ( I don't think a lot of cruise lines call there). Therefore we really had no pre-conceived ideas. I think this is why we were agreeably surprised and very glad that we did a tour.
Enjoy.
I posted it on my roll call too! I think we'll come close to a full minibus. Does it really seat 15?

[Goldygolfer]

Yes. We had at least 2 spare seats.
(Sorry to take so long to reply - went to golf).

[littledogsrcute]

Does anyone have an e-mail or contact info for Kokolis Tours? We will be there 1st part of June on Nieuw Amsterdam and would like to book a tour.

[diathoney]

Does anyone have an e-mail or contact info for Kokolis Tours? We will be there 1st part of June on Nieuw Amsterdam and would like to book a tour.
You can find their website using the name and dot com. Then under Travel, select Tours. We booked the Island Tour

[Goldygolfer]

The contact I had was - kathy@kokolis.com

Cheers

[diathoney]

The contact I had was - kathy@kokolis.com

Cheers
Yep - that's who I'm using too! Very nice and responsive to e-mails

[littledogsrcute]

Thank you for the info!

[lancasterpa]

We are sailing with you on the Nieuw Amsterdam, visiting Argostoli on June 7th. Just wondering if you booked a tour and if you have room for 4 xtra people? If yes, please advise the price. We may be interested in joining you.

[kruzseeka]

I haven't spotted Fiskardo on your proposed trip - we did a ship's tour which included this stop which I would recommend to you. It's a very scenic island and with breath-taking views. I don't know whether Fiskardo could be included in your programme but it may be worth enquiring. (You are right to get out and see something of the island though - it's stunning whereas Argostoli itself isn't too inspiring.) Enjoy!

[diathoney]

We are sailing with you on the Nieuw Amsterdam, visiting Argostoli on June 7th. Just wondering if you booked a tour and if you have room for 4 xtra people? If yes, please advise the price. We may be interested in joining you.

Did you post this on your roll call? You might get more of a response.

[ucanttaketheboy]

Bump. We're visiting Kefalonia in September. I'm thinking of a tour with Kokolis, but would be interested in any feedback anyone has of their island tour. Thanks in advance.

[Marylandlion]

We returned from Kefalonia recently and had a tour for our group with Kokolis. They were very prompt at the port. I was told we were going to be met by Kathy, so was looking for a woman, but it was a different person. The sound in the van was not very good, not sure if it was the actual mike or just the competition from the air conditioner. Our tour guide had a very strong accent, so it was necessary to listen closely in order to understand him, which was difficult with the sound system. We went to both caves. If I were to do it again, I would bypass the caves. I have seen better ones in the US and Bermuda. The cave with the lake was nice. The views were wonderful, but it made me wish we were on a beach. We just had a very limited time. Our driver, Makis, was wonderful - he actually seemed to speak better English than our tour guide and was very knowledgeable.

[LoveGreece]

We went on the Kokolis Kefalonia island tour last Friday. Our guide, Carol, was superb! Very knowledgeable about the island, she was both interesting and helpful. It was a full day and very hot, but we really enjoyed it. Our children especially liked Drogarati and Melisani! We all had a wonderful day and I would highly recommend it. :)

[travelnnana]

We were on the Nieuw Amsterdsam in October and a private tour with Kokolis travel - in fact there were 3 vans booked by our group - Carol was our guide and she was wonderful - American born - the other two vans also had great experiences - it is a large and mountainous island

[inghilch]

Has anyone recently visited Kefalonia/Argostoli using Kokolis Travel? Most of the info on CC is dated. We are on the Splendour stopping there on June 13th and I have a car/van booked for a tour of the island. Was wondering if anyone had used them recently.
Thanks:)