Vlikho Bay

From CruisersWiki

An online cruising guide for yachts sailing to Vlikho Bay, Lefkas, Greece.

Vlikho Bay/wiki/Vlikho_Bay

Vlikho Bay 38°41.2′N, 20°42.4′E38.686666666667;20.706666666667 destination

lat=38_41.2_N | lon=20_42.4_E | zoom=14 | y

Vlikho Bay from S

Yachts share Nidri quay with large tripper boats
Click for larger view

A yacht may find space on one of the many pontoons along the W shore of Vlikho Bay

There are several boatyards along the W shore which can haul out yachts

The jetty at Vlikho Town is crammed with charter yachts on handover at weekends

Yacht anchored in Vlikho Bay

Elena's Taverna in Taverna Bay

Vlikho Bay is situated on the east coast of the island of Lefkas in the Ionian Sea of Greece, five miles S of the southern entrance to the Lefkas Canal. A shallow gulf around 1.5 miles long and little over half a mile wide at its widest point, depths are nowhere greater than 10 metres and most of the bay is only 5.0 – 7.0 metres. The bay is entered from NNE via a 200-metre wide channel at the busy tourist town of Nidri and the channel continues for S for half a mile before widening out into a sheltered bay that can accommodate several hundred yachts at anchor or moored on its various quays. Shelter in the S part of the bay is excellent and yachts have weathered strong winds from all directions in its various anchorages. Apart from the town quay at Nidri, there is a series of pontoons and boatyard jetties on the W side where a yacht can usually negotiate a berth; a further town quay and jetty at the town of Vlikho Town at the SW end of the bay; the extremely popular anchorage of Tranquil Bay on the E side of the entrance or the numerous anchorages around the shores of the S part of the bay. There are good facilities around the bay, including several boatyards, numerous tavernas and provisions shops and bakeries at Nidri and Vlikho Town.

Cruising the bay is mostly a trouble-free experience, particularly since the shelter is probably better than almost anywhere in the Ionian Sea. The principal hazard is the sheer number of yachts, RIBs and even water ski boats charging around the bay, especially off the town of Nidri at the entrance. Also, Tranquil Bay, the anchorage on the E side of the entrance, is so popular that often yachts anchor foolishly right in the fairway without displaying anchor balls or even anchor lights at night, making entry at busy periods and in poor light an unnecessarily hazardous endeavour.

Charts

British Admiralty

203 Zakinthos to Paxoi

Imray-Tetra

G11 – North Ionian Islands

Greek

21 Ionio Sea - Northern Part Othonoi I. to Zakynthos I.

Weather

Vlikho Bay is well sheltered in virtually all conditions and it is always possible to find good shelter in the various parts of the bay. In settled weather, a seabreeze sets in from N/NE during the afternoons, which rarely gets up much above F4. While it can cause a chop in the S part of the bay at Vlikho, it is generally no more than uncomfortable (many yachts are often laid up on the quay here). In the mornings, it will sometimes blow from S/SE in the S part of the bay until the N seabreeze gets into its stride. However, at least two severe weather systems passed Vlikho in recent years, one in Sep 2011 that was localised to Vlikho bay and one in Sep 2017 that affected also Preveza. Both very short with extremely strong winds.

Sources for weather information:

• Weather online Preveza An accurate guide to local weather, the weather station is based at Aktio airport.
• See Ionian Sea Weather
• Also see Ionian Sea Currents & Tides

Currents & Tides

There is usually a slight clockwise current that flows S along the E side of the bay and N along the opposite side. This is never more than 0.5 knot and often will not be apparent at all.

Passages

List popular passages/routes, timing, etc.

Communication

Add here VHF channel for coastguard, harbor masters. etc.

Also see Cruiser's Nets

Navigation

The bay is entered from NE. The small islands of Madhouri lying half a mile E of the entrance and Sparti a mile NE can be left on either side. The smaller islet of Heloni just off the coast a mile NNE of the entrance has least depths of 6.0 metres in the centre of the channel between it and the shore.

Berthing

Ports

The bay has quays and/or pontoons at the towns of Nidri at the entrance and Vlikho at its SW corner. It is also possible to anchor virtually anywhere in the bay that takes your fancy, as depths are mostly little more than 7.0 metres except in the entrance. See Map of mooring options in Vlikho Bay for summary details.

• Nidri Nidri /wiki/Nidri |  – harbour |
• Vlikho Vlikho /wiki/Vlikho |  – harbour ||  – marina |

Anchorages

Tracking clockwise from the entrance to the bay, the most popular anchorages are as follows.

Tranquil Bay

Tranquil Bay/wiki/Vlikho_Bay#Tranquil_Bay

anchorage Tranquil Bay [[Vlikho Bay#Tranquil Bay|Tranquil Bay]] 38°42.12′N, 20°42.72′ETranquil Bay38.702;20.712

The anchorage of Tranquil Bay bay lies immediately inside the entrance to the bay on the E side, half a mile due E of the town or Nidri. A very popular anchorage in a charming setting, it consists of a horseshoe shaped cove ringed with trees and offering good shelter from most winds. The depths here range from 2.0 metres close inshore to 12 metres in the fairway. Depths at the S end of the cove are much less owing to shoals, so most yachts anchor in the centre or towards the N side. Holding is reasonable in mud and weed once your anchor is well dug in. There is space here for around 30 – 40 yachts free anchored or anchor moored with lines ashore on the N side, but during the season as many as 50 - 60 will be found here, often anchored right across the fairway. Note: if you do this, at least display an anchor ball and an anchor light at night as you will not have a leg to stand on if someone runs you down.

Taverna Bay

Taverna Bay/wiki/Vlikho_Bay#Taverna_Bay

anchorage Taverna Bay [[Vlikho Bay#Taverna Bay|Taverna Bay]] 38°41.22′N, 20°42.54′ETaverna Bay38.687;20.709

The anchorage of Taverna Bay lies just over half a mile S of Tranquil Bay on the E side of Vlikho Bay. There are three tavernas on the shore here, Elenas Taverna, Dimitris Taverna and Taverna Gialos, all with dinghy landing stages, and this anchorage is therefore popular with the lunch and dinner crowd. There is room for some 20 – 30 yachts anchored in depths of 2.0 – 6.0 metres. Most yachts anchor around 50 – 60 metres off the shore here as the shoreline itself is shallow and very weedy and few anchors can hold in it. Further off, however, the holding is better in mud and weed (although it is not unusual to need two or three attempts to get the anchor to hold). Shelter here is excellent – probably the best in the bay in the prevailing winds – but it is exposed in strong W winds, which cause a chop.

Solitude Bay

Solitude Bay/wiki/Vlikho_Bay#Solitude_Bay

anchorage Solitude Bay [[Vlikho Bay#Solitude Bay|Solitude Bay]] 38°40.86′N, 21°42.18′ESolitude Bay38.681;21.703

Solitude Bay – so called because it’s the perfect resort for those who ‘wish to be alone’ - is at the extreme S end of Vlikho Bay. Smaller or shallow draft yachts can anchor in depths of 2.0 – 4.0 metres around 200 metres off the shore in peaceful and undisturbed surroundings (unless the water ski boats come visiting). Holding is moderate to good in sand, mud and weed. Shelter here is good in all but strong N winds.

Boatyard Bay

Boatyard Bay/wiki/Vlikho_Bay#Boatyard_Bay

anchorage Boatyard Bay [[Vlikho Bay#Boatyard Bay|Boatyard Bay]] 38°41.52′N, 20°42.24′EBoatyard Bay38.692;20.704

Boatyard Bay lies at the NW side of the bay, half a mile S of Nidri and immediately S of the boatyards. It is a peaceful and quiet anchorage (except for the boatyard noises) and offers better shelter than Taverna Bay in fresh to strong W winds. Around 10 – 15 yachts can anchor here in depths of 5.0 – 6.0 metres. Holding is moderate to good in sand, mud and weed. Shelter is good in most conditions although strong southerlies send a chop across the bay.

Amenities

See Lefkas.

Provisioning

See Lefkas.

Eating out

Elena's Taverna in Taverna Bay is recommended.

Transportation

See Lefkas.

Tourism

See Lefkas.

Friends

Contact details of "Cruiser's Friends" that can be contacted for local information or assistance.

Forums

List links to discussion threads on partnering forums. (see link for requirements)

Links

List links external to the wiki such as in Wikipedia & Wikivoyage.

References

See Ionian Sea.

Comments

We welcome users' contributions to the Wiki. Please click on Comments to view other users' comments, add your own personal experiences or recommend any changes to this page following your visit.

• The anchorage of Taverna Bay is a favourite of ours – as is Elena's Taverna there. Why people crowd into Tranquil Bay when Taverna Bay is nothing like as busy and always much quieter defeats me. --Athene of Lymington

Verified by

Date of member's last visit to Vlikho Bay and this page's details validated:

• June 2013 --Athene of Lymington

Contributors to this page
Names: Athene of Lymington