Lefkada is only barely an island; it was joined to the mainland until the Corinthians created a 20 metre canal in the sixth century BC to ease the passage of ships down the western coast of Greece. The channel still exists, with an artery and bridge that is raised on the hour to let boats through.

It is an attractive setting, with a lagoon nearby and low lying mountains almost immediately behind the town. The town was almost flattened in 1953 by a major earthquake, and hurried rebuilding has not produced a pretty result.

Some of the artefacts found by Dorpfeld are on display in the small Archaeological Museum in Lefkada town. The little jumble of a Folklore Museum is more interesting, with scale models of some of the digs that Dorpfeld carried out, as well as photographs showing what the town looked like before the 1953 earthquake.