After ten years of war and ten years of wandering, everything in the Odyssey points to one small, green island in the Ionian Sea — the home Odysseus never stopped longing for. This is Ithaca, the journey’s end, where the hero finally reclaims his kingdom, his throne and his wife Penelope. To sail into its harbour is to complete the oldest voyage in Western literature. This is the final chapter of our In the Wake of the Odyssey series.
The Myth: The Homecoming
Delivered home at last by the Phaeacians, Odysseus arrives on Ithaca in disguise. He finds his palace overrun by suitors pressing his faithful wife Penelope to remarry and consuming his wealth. With his son Telemachus and a handful of loyal servants, he reveals himself, strings the great bow that only he can bend, and takes his revenge — the dramatic climax the poem has been building toward for twenty-four books.
Modern Ithaki, one of the smallest of the Ionian Islands, proudly claims to be that Ithaca. Archaeologists have investigated sites such as the so-called “School of Homer” in the north; some scholars, following the “Odysseus Unbound” theory, argue the Homeric Ithaca was actually a peninsula of neighbouring Kefalonia. The debate only adds to the island’s romance.
Ithaca is not grand — that is precisely the point. Homer’s hero turned down immortality with a goddess for exactly this: a rugged little island, and home.
What to See on Ithaca
- Vathy — the pretty harbour capital wrapped around one of the Mediterranean’s deepest natural bays.
- Kioni & Frikes — postcard fishing villages in the green north.
- The “School of Homer” and Odyssey sites — archaeological excavations linked to the legend.
- Secluded beaches — many, like Gidaki, reached best by boat.
Best Ithaca Tours
Mythical Ithaca Island Tour from Kefalonia — Best Overall
Ferry across from Kefalonia and tour Odysseus’s island — Vathy, the northern villages and a boat cruise with swim stops at beaches reached only from the sea.
Browse more Ithaca tours and cruises on Viator, including private sailing trips from Kefalonia.
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Where to Stay
Stay in Vathy or the northern village of Kioni for the full Ithacan idyll, or base on larger Kefalonia and day-trip across.
Browse hotels and places to stay nearby →
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Ithaca a real place?
Yes. The island of Ithaki in Greece’s Ionian Sea is traditionally Odysseus’s home, though some scholars argue the Homeric Ithaca was part of neighbouring Kefalonia.
How do you get to Ithaca?
By ferry from Kefalonia or the mainland port of Astakos; there is no airport, so most visitors come via Kefalonia, often on a day tour or cruise.
What is there to do on Ithaca?
Explore the harbour town of Vathy, the fishing villages of Kioni and Frikes, Odyssey-linked archaeological sites, and secluded beaches best reached by boat.
The Ithaca Problem
Is modern Ithaki really Odysseus’s Ithaca? The honest answer is that it’s genuinely unresolved — and the evidence is more interesting than a simple yes.
- Ancient Greeks definitely worshipped Odysseus here. A cave at Polis Bay produced a 3rd–2nd century BC dedication reading “a vow to Odysseus”, along with thirteen bronze tripods — tripods being exactly the gift the Phaeacians give Odysseus in the poem. That is hard evidence of a hero-cult on this island.
- The “School of Homer” site adds more. Excavated by the University of Ioannina from 1994, the site at Agios Athanasios in the north shows occupation from the Neolithic to Roman times, with Mycenaean layers of the late 14th–13th century BC, terraces linked by carved staircases, and a large rectangular building.
- Inscriptions there name him. Finds include Hellenistic inscriptions reading ΟΔΥΣΣΕΟΣ and ΟΔΥΣΣΕΙ, a roof tile naming Odysseus, and a miniature bronze bust of him. What this proves is a sanctuary of Odysseus — not that his palace stood here. Excavators have made the stronger claim; it is not the consensus.
- The rival theory — and why it’s wobbling. Robert Bittlestone’s Odysseus Unbound (Cambridge, 2005) argued Homer’s Ithaca was Paliki, the western peninsula of Kefalonia, once separated by a sea channel later filled by earthquakes. Elegant — except that geologist John Underhill’s own subsequent surveys, over roughly twenty years, found no evidence the channel ever existed. The team has since shifted its argument to noting that Homer never actually calls Ithaca an island. It remains a minority hypothesis.
- The Cave of the Nymphs (Marmarospilia), about 3 km northwest of Vathy at ~190 m above Dexa Bay, has two entrances — one traditionally “for gods,” one “for mortals” — and is identified with the cave where Odysseus hid the Phaeacians’ gifts. Traditional identification, unproven.
Practical Details
- There is no airport on Ithaca. You arrive by sea, full stop. Most people fly to Kefalonia (EFL) and take the ferry from Sami, about an hour or less.
- From the mainland: ferries run from Astakos to Piso Aetos, with seasonal links from Lefkada and Zakynthos/Kyllini. Several are summer-only.
- The Cave of the Nymphs is a short drive from Vathy plus roughly a 30-minute uphill walk, signposted from the town’s edge.
- The School of Homer is an open archaeological site in the north near Stavros — not a ticketed museum. Given the island’s length, you’ll want a car or a tour.
- Budget 1–2 days to combine Vathy, the Cave of the Nymphs and the northern sites properly. A day-cruise from Kefalonia only samples it.
