Melissani Cave tour reviews
Six GetYourGuide day tours include the boat ride at Melissani, and the written reviews under them agree on the same few things: the guide who stands in the queue is worth the fare in August, the small van gets to the lake before the coaches, the beach umbrellas are the thing people remember about the beach day, and the island day is a full one in the sun. The boat ride is in every ticket and every tour; what a tour sells is the day around it. Each listing is reviewed in full below, with three reviewers quoted as they wrote.
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 availabilityWhich review to read first
The ranking depends on the day you have, not on the star figure. With half a day from Argostoli and the tickets sorted in advance, read the flagship review: the only listing with both cave fees in the price, and the guide holds the place in the line. With a whole day, the island tour review: the highest base of any listing here after the flagship, the lowest fare, and both cave fees paid on arrival. Off a ship, two: the wine-tasting coach at the same low fare, or the small-group van that reviewers say beats the coaches to the lake. For the lake and a swim with no second cave, the beach tour review. For your own car, driver and start time, the private tour review, with a base of sixteen ratings, which the page says plainly.
The six, side by side
Entry fees includedBoth cave tickets includedFrom Argostoli: Melissani Lake & Drogarati Caves Tour
Full island dayKefalonia: Melissani, Myrtos, Fiscardo & Wine Tasting
Cruise passengersArgostoli: Melissani & Drogarati Cave Tour with Wine Tasting
Lake + beachMelissani ticket includedFrom Argostoli: Melissani Lake & Beach Relaxation
Small groupKefalonia: Melissani, Drogarati & Beach Small-Group Tour
PrivateKefalonia: Private Tour The Caves & Myrtos Beach
What the reviews are consistent about
The queue is real and the guide is the answer to it. Under the flagship, Juliane wrote that “Although there was a one-hour wait at the lake, the time passed quickly because Eva stood in line for the whole group.” Joanne, mid-August: “Melissani caves was busy being mid August but our guides saved our place in the line, whilst we could go and grab a coffee and some shade.” Floriana, on the same listing, gives the other side of it: “They stood in line to enter the caves, and it lasted half a day.”
The van gets there first. Three reviewers under the small-group listing say the same thing in different words. Molly: “Great day out, got us to the most popular spots early so we avoided the queues and we had more time then expected at the beach.” Caroline: “We arrived early and avoided the long lines to enter the caves, which gave us an extra hour to enjoy the beach and return at a comfortable time, confident that we wouldn't risk missing the boarding time for the ship.”
The island day is a full day. Ashley called it “Excellent day, unbelievable value for money.” and Sarah, five stars as well, wrote that “The trip ticked off a lot of places, but allowed sufficient time at each stop to explore along with a knowledgeable narrative from our guide.” The page for that listing says how to pace it.
Small children are fine. Juliane took a four-year-old on the flagship; Giulia on the beach tour: “We had our 20-month-old baby with us and there were no problems” The steps in the tunnel are the only part that asks anything of a small child; what the boat ride is like.
The six reviews
From Argostoli: Melissani Lake & Drogarati Caves Tour
The half day with both cave tickets included and a guide who stands in the Melissani queue for the group.
from sixty-odd eurosRead the review ›Kefalonia: Melissani, Myrtos, Fiscardo & Wine Tasting
Nine hours round the island: monastery, winery, both caves, Fiscardo and the Myrtos viewpoint, cave fees paid on arrival.
from around forty eurosRead the review ›Argostoli: Melissani & Drogarati Cave Tour with Wine Tasting
The cruise-passenger shore excursion: both caves, the Myrtos viewpoint and a wine tasting in five hours from the port.
from around forty eurosRead the review ›From Argostoli: Melissani Lake & Beach Relaxation
The lake and a swim: Melissani with the ticket included, the Myrtos viewpoint, then about an hour and a half at Makris Gialos under the tour’s umbrellas.
from around sixty eurosRead the review ›Kefalonia: Melissani, Drogarati & Beach Small-Group Tour
A van from the cruise terminal that reviewers say reaches the lake before the coaches, then a swim at Myrtos or Antisamos.
from sixty-odd eurosRead the review ›Kefalonia: Private Tour The Caves & Myrtos Beach
A private car and driver from your hotel at the time you choose, both caves and a swim at Myrtos, with the order changed on the day to dodge a queue.
from over a hundred eurosRead the review ›Before you pick one
The ticket itself is on tickets and prices: about ten euros for adults, boat included, and in the price of two of these tours. What to expect from the visit is on is it worth it, the light-versus-queue trade is on best time to visit, and every listing with its own two lists is on all tours.
Frequently asked questions
Which Melissani Cave tour has the best reviews?
The private tour has the highest average, 4.9 from 16 ratings, and the island tour the highest average on a large base, 4.8 from 317 ratings. The flagship half day from Argostoli has the most ratings of all, 4.6 from 652 ratings. Each is reviewed on its own page, starting from all tours.
Do the tours include the Melissani ticket?
Only two do. The flagship includes both cave fees; the beach tour includes the Melissani ticket only. The other four leave the fees to be paid on arrival, about ten euros for Melissani and a little more for both caves. Tickets, in detail.
What do reviewers say about the queue?
That it exists, and that the guide is the answer to it. Reviewers under the flagship describe a one-hour wait that passed because the guide stood in line for the group; reviewers under the small-group van describe reaching the lake before the coaches and hardly queuing at all. The light and the queue, by hour.
Why print the number of ratings next to the stars?
Because a 4.9 from sixteen ratings and a 4.6 from 652 are different claims. The two listings under fifty ratings, the small-group van and the private tour, carry their base on every page of this site.
Does this site earn anything from a booking?
Yes, a commission from GetYourGuide on bookings made through its links, at no extra cost to you. The affiliate disclosure sets it out.