Eleni Studios Lourdas

Exceptionaly clean and very friendly, Kostas is a chef to behold and his new restaurant is an absolute delight to eat out at. The food is that little bit special from the other restaurants. The location of the apartments is a bit out of the way if you are not too steady on your feet. The weather was superb, as I said it is rather hilly the beach is about 20 minutes down hill but you do have to come back the taxis aren't to keen to bring you back if you have a wet costume or sand on you. If you don't mind driving there is a good car rental called express, he will do you a good deal. All the restaurants except one which has a cart horse outside and is painted blue were very good and reasonable BUT you wont beat Andromeda, Kostas restaurant trust me on that one, the beaches are brill if you have a car other wise local ones are quite stony.

Our first visit to Kefalonia. We stayed for two weeks and have to agree with a lot of what was written last year.
The decent sized room (for two adults) appeared recently decorated, very well maintained and it was generally clean. However, there was lots of dust under the bed, the pillows (not the cases) were badly stained, and the shower curtain was heavily coated with mildew for the bottom 6".
Linen and towels were changed a couple of times a week. All staff very polite and pleasant.
The immediate area was very quiet and the apartment block is in an isolated area. Fine if you just want a pool and quiet, but two weeks may leave you feeling bored and/or trapped, unless you hire a car or take the opportunity to go on a few excursions - recommend the "Discovery Kefalonia" and "Night in Argostoli" trips.
We like walking and consider ourselves to be above average in terms of fitness. We found the steep hill back from the local shops/tavernas/restaurants more of a nuisance than anything, but the full walk all the way up from the beach at Lourdes was an absolute killer. If you do go, and you should, make sure you get the bus (1 Euro each).
Most of the people we met had been before and were clearly disappointed that Kostas has ceased to provide evening meals, the BBQ, and his quizzes. The Eleni Bar is closed all night...every night, so you must face the hill or drink in your room1! The Eleni Studios Web Site is completely wrong...
Kostas clearly has other business interests at the moment - namely 'Andromeda', a beautiful, brand new restaurant (you guessed it - down the hill). The decor, cutlery, crockery, food, wine and views, are without doubt the very best in the area and only marginally more expensive. It's grand scale with chandeliers and is clearly aimed at those wishing to marry in the sun.
Do not consider this location if you have mobility problems, are aged, or have children in pushchairs - unless you hire a car.

The people that run this place make it absolutely fantastic. Kostas is a great cook and now he has his new quiz book even his questions at the weekly bbq make some sense!
Nothing is too much trouble, the pool area is lovely and every meal we ate there was some of the best food I have ever tasted. As my girlfriend was vegetarian he even went out of his way to make sure she was well catered for!
Teresa, who worked there during the day, was very friendly but her quiz questions weren't as good as Kostas', relying more on knowledge rather than blind luck, which has never really suited me :)
The room was fine and cleaned regularly, but to be honest it was really only used for sleeping and changing in - all the relaxing was done by the pool!
There is a fairly steep hill down to the beach, and it is some way, but it is also a pleasant walk (provided you avoid the middle of the day and take some water with you) and there is always a bus if you can't face it.
Lourdas has some lovely restaurants (although none as good as Kostas' cooking ;)) but is fairly small and does not have a cash point so be warned - the nearest one is in Argostoli, but they do take cards at the Eleni.
I would recommend hiring a car, especially if you are there for two weeks, as there is lots of the island to see and public transport is a bit hit and miss.
The roads are fine, if a bit scary due to their proximity to sudden death down 100ft drops, but I managed to get round them so everyone else should be fine.
The best praise I can give this place is that I have never been back to the same place twice on holiday and if we can, we would definitely go back there in the future!

We thoroughly enjoyed our fortnight at the Eleni Studios (our second visit). The rooms are a good size and well equipped if you want to cook, but we chose to eat the gorgeous meals that Costas perpared every evening.
The menu changes daily and is usually priced at less than 10 euros per head for two courses, you won't be disappointed and you certainly won't get a better meal anywhere else in Lourdas. Go along to the BBQ and quiz night which is great fun.
The views from the bedroom and bathroom and absolutely stunning and you can while away a happy evening watching the stars and ships on your balcony with a well deserved night cap.
The welcome at Eleni is great and Costas made us feel very welcome - all round a great holiday, we're going back this year!

We booked our holiday accommodation directly with Kostas and he was most helpful with the whole process. Having read so many favourable reviews of Eleni I felt sure we would be disappointed by something.
My wife and I and our 2 daughters (14&12) were located in Eleni 3, a short walk across the donkey field to the hotel and its facilities. The rooms were very clean and linen was changed every couple of days. The sea views across to Zante and the general area around were to die for.
Personally, we cannot speak highly enough of Kosta and his very helpful staff, all of whom made this a wonderful holiday. The atmosphere around the Hotel and pool area during both the day and evening were very relaxed and Kosta could not do enough to assist. Car hire was arranged at a discount and taxi for the return flight were arranged.
My wife and daughters are all vegetarians and Kostas creative cuisine kept them happy for the 2 weeks.
We eat mainly at Kosta's in the evening mainly because the food was so delicious and reasonably priced.
The only downside to Lourdas is the walk to and from the beach. Strongly suggest that you ensure the beach bus is running before walking down.
If you are looking for a relaxing holiday, great food and a relaxed atmosphere I would highly recommend the Eleni Studios.

Although we stayed next door at the Summer dreams apartments we used the pool and bar facilities at Eleni almost every day during our two week break.
Kostas and his team were the perfect hosts and I can not speak highly enough of the guy. There are always things that will disappoint with a holiday, it is human nature, whether it is food / beach / weather especially in a place like Greece when standards vary from place to place.
However this guy was born to work in the trade and he did a superb job of making us welcome even though we were staying over the road. The bar and pool were excellent the food was nicely prepared and enjoyable.
I hope if you get the chance to visit Lourdas you will seek this place out.

Stayed for 2 weeks in July. We thought the apartments were basic but clean and airy with air con which was needed! Glorious views out to sea also olive groves too nothing interrupting the view apart from small buildings in the distance. The view from the door of the apartment was lovely too, looking down to the pool and up to the mountains, could not have been nicer.
Very quiet just the general chit chat and laughter of guests. Kostas and his family were very welcoming indeed. I cannot fault this holiday at all the only reason I did not give a 10 is the hill which goes down to the shops and local restaurants etc it is very steep coming back up but doesn’t take long, but not to be attempted until either evening or very early morning. But that certainly would not stop us going again.
A very small price to pay for such a lovely place. The area near the apartments (at the bottom of the hill) has a few shops etc and restaurants, but these are no where near noisy apart from a few motorbikes but again not a problem at all. I found the local people lovely, only too happy to help you with anything and welcome you if you try to speak their language! All in all a lovely place.
We took our teenaged daughter who was a little bored, but teenagers get bored very easily! If anyone has booked this summer it is a lovely place to stay.

Had previously read all the excellent reviews about the Eleni. We always book when the children are at school to ensure a peaceful holiday.
The whole area was overrun with screaming kids from morning til night. The only time they were quiet was when they had an ice-cream in there mouths. Irresponsible parents just left them running around the 3m pool. Rooms were okay, toilet seat broken, which I repaired, we hadn't even sat on it and it fell off. Loads of dust in the room too.
Pillows had sweat marks all over them. Lovely view from Room 11, but get a top room if you are going otherwise you'll hear inconsiderate guests stomping around above you! Building works were going on in front of the Eleni, with the owner kangoing and drilling from 7.45am (nice!) Too noisy for us, would not go back. Sorry Kostas!