Talk to me about Corfu please

[Iamblossom]

Looking at booking for next August. Found somewhere gorgeous in Arillas and somewhere else near Kassiopi. Anyone been to either of those and why are they like?

TIA

not been to either, but i stupidly didnt realise they had a major wasp issue in september. husband cant stand them and it ruined the holiday.....along with the snakes on the paiio and rodent in the loft. I'd not stay anywhere rural again - and we've had snakes in our garden in uk so fairly easy about the odd bit of wildlife

We have just returned from Corfu, travelling around and spent the last few nights in Arillas. We chose here when we drove through while staying elsewhere. It has a nice, relaxed fell to it. A row of small hotels, pools and restaurants behind a nice beach with plenty of sun loungers and a lovely fish restaurant hanging over the sea. There are enough places to eat and drink without it being too lively. We also went to Kassiopi and liked that too. Life there seemed to revolve around the harbour so would suit you if you enjoy boating. I didn't see much of a beach in the town but there would be others near by I'm sure.

Plenty of beaches near Kassiopi away from the harbour. Stayed near there for many years as a teenager and cannot wait to take my own family.

We found that beaches on the west coast were generally sandy but those on the north east were generally stony so if you prefer sandy beaches the west coast would suit you better. Also, do you plan on having a car? If you are in Arillas you will be able to walk to the beach.

My favourite bit in all of Greece is the area around Kassiopi - Kalami/Koulouri/Agni.

Utter heaven!

We always go to the North East of Corfu ;Kalami, Agios Stefanos, Agni, Kaminaki., and Kerasia Beach we find Kassiopi itself a bit busy but the area around is great. Don't know Arillas

@Peaseblossum22

We always go to the North East of Corfu ;Kalami, Agios Stefanos, Agni, Kaminaki., and Kerasia Beach we find Kassiopi itself a bit busy but the area around is great. Don't know Arillas

Can I ask where you usually stay? Who you use for accommodation?

Thinking of a villa for next year for 2-3 weeks.

We generally use Villa plus or Ionian Island Travel Our favourites have been a villa above the beach at Kaminaki, nice small beach with easy access to water sports at Nissaki and Aphrodite’s famous supermarket/pizza takeaway/bakery. But a very steep descent. Or we also like Kerasia beach and Agios Stefanos.Avlaki is also nice with a lovely beach restaurant and pedaloes We had a nice villa with Ionian just above Avlaki in 2018.

Dh prefers agios stefanos/Avlaki but the boys liked being in Kaminaki because of the water donuts etc in Nissaki. We had a very nice villa with villa plus above Kassiopi but as I say we are not so keen on Kassiopi itself.

The highlight is always getting a boat taxi to Agni bay for dinner and also renting a boat for the day and just pootling along the coast stopping for lunch and snorkelling . And a final dinner at Cava Barbaro on Avlaki.

The only downsides are the mosquitoes and also Corfu has had a massive rubbish problem which at one stage resulted in the mayor being sent to prison, I’m not sure if it’s sorted but we had thought we might try Kefalonia if they don’t get it sorted.

www.ionianislandholidays.com/

Sorry I got the name a little wrong .

I'm a little late to the party but another beautiful place with a bit going on but not 'too much' is Paleokastritsa. Was there in August/September X2020.

Stunning scenery, traditional bars and restaurants.

A little hilly/steep in places but nothing too mad. Went horse riding on the most laidback horse in the world plodding through the shade in the mountains.
Some gorgeous beaches around with many empty or with very few people.

Corfu is so beautiful and if you're driving you can get anywhere in a couple of hours.

Just looking up accommodation now to go back August/September 2022

Also stayed in Kassiopi but just for 3 nights in a resort so didn't spend a lot of time out near the harbour. Some beautiful walkways/boardwalks around the area, great view of Albania too.

I was hoping to make it across there in 2020 but covid wouldn't allow. Maybe later this year !

We stayed in Arillas years ago, it was very quiet and even less developed than it is now. We quickly exhausted the range of restaurants and got bored of it, but that was about 2002 and it's a bit better now.

However we LOVE Kassiopi, have stayed there many times. We hire a car from the apartment owners (they also do airport transfers which makes it even easier, as their vehicle can carry our luggage better than a little hire car!) so we can take ourselves to Aqualand, Corfu Town, the Donkey sanctuary, Paleokastritsa, Perithia, Kalami beach, St Spiridon beach with pedalos, Sidari...

There are beaches on either side of the harbour, but they are pebbly. This means they are great for snorkelling as the water is so clear. We like to hire a boat in the harbour and go along the coast, stopping for lunch in tavernas along the way. We've also booked boat trips to Paxos and Antipaxos (in pre-covid times) and an evening boat to Corfu Town, which is magical by night. The restaurants in Kassiopi are fantastic, we have stayed there for three weeks at a time and not tired of them. We always go self catering so have breakfast in our apartment, make a picnic lunch or go out for the day and have lunch out. Dinner always in the restaurants.

They did have a problem with rubbish (as the EU imposed laws about landfill which aren't appropriate for everywhere in Europe) but we were there last year and they seem to have found a solution. There are less mosquitoes there than other parts of Greece, we've never had a problem with them.

We are so looking forward to going again this year.

Jumping on this, also spent three teenage holidays in kassiopi / nissaki and feel it would be perfect for our first ‘sunshine abroad holiday’ in many years. Kids are DD13 and DS 10 who bicker & so I’m erring towards a hotel but breakfast only. I think a villa would be too much like home with screens or arguing - a hotel might offer other children to meet? Or at least dilute the pain for DH & me!

Any recommendations would be really helpful. I’m keen to go to Corfu town again, snorkelling and water sports would go down well and I want to eat Greek food in tavernas each evening.

@Iamblossom - Obviously nothing to do with either of the villages discussed, but Corfu airport and the approach to the runway are one of the most delightful you'll come across. If anyone in the family likes aircraft they'll be in heaven, as there are so many vantage points (conveniently, there are often cafes there which is handy) to watch them from, including the causeway and the lovely Mouse Island. Corfu is just lovely!