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AUTUMN 2025
NORTH IONIAN CRUISE
This Autumn we planned to explore Paxos and Corfu,
their adjacent islands and the Greek mainland between the Albanian border and
Lefkas. Previously, in 2022, we had only recce’d the area briefly when we first
arrived in the Ionian from the Aegean and simply passed through the islands’
waters in Spring 2025 on our way north to and from Croatia. Our principal
objective of this Autumn cruise was to review recommended overnight anchorages
and harbours.
Like all cruisers, we therefore simply got on with
those jobs that we otherwise might not have done in transit, which were on our
never-ending “To Do List”, and socialised in the evenings with our neighbours.
Testing our new, incremental lightweight 2.5hp Yamaha outboard with Phil Heaton, Vice Commodore of the Ocean Cruising Club, with whom, together with his wife Norma, we enjoyed several sundowners and boat suppers
PAXOS ISLAND GROUP
We at last left the Santa Maura Quay, Levkas, in light
northerly winds and headed north towards the Paxos Island Group.
ANTI-PAXOS ISLAND
The diminutive island of Anti-Paxos lies immediately
south of Paxos Island itself. It has a permanent population of around thirty.
Its two bays are usually full of tripper boats during the season. Since the
locals try to discourage overnight anchoring, on this occasion we decided to
give Anti-Paxos another miss.
PAXOS ISLAND
Gaios Harbour
On our passage north, past Anti-Paxos to Paxos, we
phoned Tony Chancellor. He had been our neighbour for two years in Aktio
boatyard and has lived on Paxos for some 15 years. He advised that the latest
forecast predicted that the northerly winds would significantly increase
overnight and recommended that we pulled into Gaios Harbour in the SW of the
island, which he described as likely to be “bomb proof” in the forecast
conditions.
5
North Quay, Gaios Harbour, Paxos
On arrival in Gaios, we pulled in and rafted, by
invitation, against a large catamaran which was chartered, together with a
professional Greek skipper, by two New Zealand families celebrating the
marriage of their respective offspring, Alex and Charlotte. They live and work
in the UK and were honeymooning on board. It’s a small world – they frequent
the Barley Mow pub in Marylebone, owned by our younger son Will!
Waving
goodbye next morning to our Kiwi hosts
Later in the afternoon, Tony met us (together with our laundry!) in his pick-up truck and drove us up to his house in the hills above Lakka.
Helen relegated (willingly!) to the back of Tony’s pick-up truck!
After a conducted tour of his extensive grounds and
property (which he and his partner Claire have totally renovated from a
derelict shell), two loads of washing, a shower each and a sundowner or two,
Tony drove us in Claire’s old car to Dolos Taverna, a locals’ restaurant nearby
in the centre of the island. There we all enjoyed a delicious, traditional,
locally prepared and cooked meal. (Unfortunately, Claire, an architectural
designer, was away in Corfu on business at the time.) Afterwards, Tony dropped
us back at ID.
Lakka Bay
The next day we sailed up to Lakka Bay at the north of
the island, where we anchored. The bay has a narrow protective entrance and
turquoise water over sand with patches of weed. The surrounding hills are
covered with pines, olives and the occasional cypress tree pointing skywards.
The village of Lakka huddles around the corner at the head of the bay and is
well served with mini-markets, bakeries, tavernas, bars and even a Vet’s
surgery. There are, however, surprisingly only two hotels on Paxos, albeit there
are many luxurious rental villas.
Lakka Bay
viewed from Tony’s villa in the hills above
We decided to take some R&R in Lakka’s lovely
surroundings for a couple of days where the facilities and swimming were so
good. Tony joined us on board for supper one evening.
CORFU ISLAND
Corfu is a 60-mile long, heavily wooded island. It was
once a British Protectorate. (Incidentally, Prince Philip, the late Duke of
Edinburgh, was born in Corfu Town.) Today it is a major holiday island. Its
size, however, means that it is still able to accommodate visitors “relatively
easily” – apart from in certain locations.
WEST COAST OF CORFU
Most of the west coast, south of Paleokastritsa, has
devoted itself to accommodating package holidaymakers. There is therefore
little left of authentic Corfiot life there and certainly no reasonable
overnight anchorages. Indeed, there are only two supposedly safe overnight
anchorages on the rest of Corfu’s west coast, as the prevailing wind sets
directly on to it. Stefanos Harbour is
described as one of them, it is shallow, silts up, and is dominated by small
local craft and ferries, but in our opinion Paleokastritsa is the only really
secure harbour on this coast.
Paleokastritsa
We anchored there for a couple of days during our
Ionian recce in 2022, so we didn’t feel that visiting it again this autumn was
the best use of our time. Indeed, when we visited in 2022, having had a package
holiday there in 1971, we hardly recognised anything due to the extensive
“development” that had taken place.
The site is, however, without doubt one of the most
spectacular in the Ionian. From seaward the cliffs rise in jagged pinnacles,
eroded here and there into caves and arches, with small sand and shingle
beaches tucked into coves at the base of the cliffs. The water is turquoise and azure over sand,
weed and rock. Outside the summer season, it is still possible to appreciate
its natural beauty, since not even tour operators have been able to remove all
of its charm.
EAST COAST OF CORFU SOUTH OF CORFU TOWN
The east coast is protected in whole or part from the
prevailing strong northwesterly winds. For that reason, it is the most
developed and the most comfortable to cruise along – one other reason for us
going up that coast from Paxos rather than up Corfu’s west coast.
Petritis Bay
On our third day in Lakka Bay, we prepared to leave at
dawn for Petritis on Corfu, only to find that another yacht was floating
immediately over our anchor. We finally extricated the anchor and ourselves –
with a little aggro, some minor damage and minimal cost!
The bay is shallow and has a small harbour primarily
dominated by fishing boats and charter flotillas. We ended up anchoring with
just 0.3 metres of water under the keel!
There are several tavernas, bars and coffee shops
along the shore, including two excellent fish restaurants. The village behind
the coast is much larger and sophisticated than we expected, with two quality
supermarkets and even a car-hire business. Apparently, the village gets few day
visitors, other than yachties, but has a thriving villa rental business, whose
clients clearly demand high standards.
Benitses
We gave Benitses Marina, the next reasonably practical
stopping point, a miss. The old extended fishing harbour, just 5 miles south of
Corfu Town, now operates as a marina. It resounds to the sounds of amplified
bouzouki and disco music and is host to a considerable number of tourists in
the summer. Not exactly our scene.
CORFU TOWN
After giving Benitses a wide berth, we anchored in
Garitsas Bay off Corfu Town, close to the entrance to the NAOK sailing club. On
our recce in 2022, we had berthed in Mandraki marina. It and the bay are on
opposite sides of the old citadel perched on the top of Sidhero Point. They can
provide shelter from the south or north, depending on wind direction.
Corfu Town’s Old Harbour and new commercial and ferry
ports line the coast immediately west of Mandraki marina. The town itself is a
place to wander around rather than visit monuments and museums, although it
does have some good ones. The streets of the Old Quarter running off the
Esplanade are full of tourist boutiques, most of which are rather tacky. Away
from the tourist quarter, the Old Quarter is a warren of alleys between
Italianate houses, where the sights and sounds approach something closer to everyday
Corfiot life.
EAST COAST NORTH OF CORFU TOWN
Gouvia Marina
The large, almost landlocked, bay of Gouvion lies just
3 miles WNW of Corfu Town. At the south end of the bay, Gouvia Marina has been
established and become the base for many private yachts and charter companies
in the North Ionian. To get there, we turned due west at Sidhero Point (the
citadel) and passed Corfu Town’s old and new commercial and ferry ports, shown
in the photograph below.
We topped up both our fuel and water tanks in the independent fuel station just outside Gouvia Marina – enough to last us for the rest of our autumn cruise.
In 2002 we collected Pierette, a 35ft American
Trapper yacht, from Gouvia Marina and delivered it to Glasson Dock, near
Liverpool, on behalf of the widow of its owner. Gouvia Marina was big then but
has since expanded significantly, making it one of the biggest marinas in the
Ionian.
Open Anchorages
Before heading further north, we took some time to
explore several open anchorages on the coast to the northwest of Gouvia Marina
as far as Ipsos, behind which Corfu’s ribbon development backs the
beaches. They provide good protection
against winds from the south and the prevailing northwesterlies.
North Corfu Channel
The narrow Channel between Corfu and Albania is only 1
mile wide at their closest points. On the Corfu coast there are five
east-facing bays, fringed with sandy beaches, which give varying degrees of
protection, depending on where one anchors. In 2022 we’d anchored in the very
smallest of these bays, Kouloura. On this cruise we pulled into Kalami Bay,
where we remained comfortably for a couple of days.
Kalami Bay is best known for being the location of the
Durrell family’s house – known as and clearly signed “The White House”. The
family lived there in the 1930s and their life has since been turned into a
popular serial by ITV. Series 4 is now being filmed in Corfu!
NORTH COAST OF CORFU
Vroulias Bay
In our opinion there is only one serious all-weather
anchorage on the north coast of Corfu: Vroulias Bay at the eastern end of the
north coast. Within the bay it is possible to move around and find a location
that is well protected from most wind directions. We remained there,
comfortably tucked into the head of the bay, for a couple of days in six metres
of clear water over sand. The long “wild” sandy beach has relatively few day
visitors.
Kassiopi Harbour
The nearby harbour at Kassiopi is small, dominated by
local craft and charter flotillas, and has a number of berths that are
controlled by a company called Sammy Yachts. The former fishing village does,
however – although surrounded by hotels and restaurants – seem to have retained
at least some of its natural charm.
NORTHERN ISLANDS OFF NW CORFU
Erikoussa
Of the four islands northwest of Corfu, Erikoussa is
some eight miles off Corfu. Its only hamlet is in a large bay on the south side
of the island. We pulled into its excellent harbour, where in the absence of
any other yacht we moored alongside the well-protected quay. In the summer the
harbour is said to be crammed full, and the bay’s sandy beach is dominated by
tripper boats up until late afternoon when they return their clients to Corfu.
Boats that cannot get into the harbour in season have ample room to anchor in
good holding in the bay. Water and electricity points are available on the
quay, although one needs a card to operate them – and we couldn’t find the
harbour master to sell us one. At least we avoided paying a harbour fee, if
indeed there was one out of season.
That evening we enjoyed an early supper in Oasis, a
tiny taverna adjoining the village mini market, there being no other place
still open this late in the season. The only main course on offer was
slow-roasted lamb in the oven. It was delicious!
Othoní
We had planned to visit Othoní island, some seven
miles west of Erikoussa. It is larger and
distinctly higher than Erikoussa, with the hamlet of Ammos at the head of its
south-facing bay, where it is possible to anchor. There is also, unlike in
Erikoussa, a good, deserted bay at the north of the island that can be used in
southerly winds. Othoní is the principal island which yachts choose to use to as their stepping
stone to and from Italy, being closer thereto than Erikoussa.
MAINLAND COAST OF GREECE
Pagania
Unfortunately, the weather forecast of strong southerly winds thwarted our plan to visit Othoní and indeed to linger in Erikoussa. We therefore reluctantly got up in the dark and headed back towards the Corfu Channel off the island’s east coast. From there we continued south to Pagania on the thin coastal strip of the Greek mainland only half a mile from the Albanian border.
The approach to Pagania, together with the coast north
and south thereof and Pagania’s almost landlocked inlet itself, is full of
large fish farms, which we had to weave our way through to get to the anchorage
at the head of the bay. There we dropped our hook into what proved to be black
glutinous mud which held us firmly all night. Indeed, we had a very comfortable
night because neither wind nor fetch worked its way past the surrounding hills
into the anchorage.
Sagiada
Since we had pulled into the desolate inlet of Pagania
as it was growing dark and only because we needed a protected anchorage for the
night, we got up early next morning to move to our original objective of
Sagiada. When we raised the anchor, both it and the chain were thoroughly
coated in the mud. We had to swill this off as best we could before cleaning it properly when we relocated. Once we poked our nose out into the open sea,
we again had to weave our way through the numerous fish farms against a strong
southerly wind. It took us some three hours to cover the six miles to Sagiada!
When we approached the entrance to Sagiada’s excellent, albeit small harbour we discovered that it had obviously not been recently
dredged, since our keel “kissed” the sea floor. We therefore reversed out and
anchored behind the harbour’s protective breakwater where there was no fetch
and we were protected to a significant extent from the SE wind.
Once reorganised, we rowed ashore and found an
excellent fish restaurant (Taverna Alekos) on the harbour quay. There we
belatedly celebrated our 56th wedding anniversary, given that 4th October had been “highjacked” by multiple (although necessary and indeed
welcome) visitors AND the final weekend of the Southern Hemisphere Four Nations
Rugby Championship! Mike enjoyed a large plate of fried sardines and Helen had
a plate of grilled prawns, both dishes accompanied by salad, bread and wine.
Igoumenitsa
We remained at anchor for two nights in Sagiada as a
couple of wet, windy weather fronts went through, before moving south to our
next planned destination of Plataria. On the way we passed the entrance to the large,
enclosed bay in which lies the ferry and commercial port of Igoumenitsa. Yachts
can find good shelter in the port, but it is not an attractive location in which to stay.
Before WWII, Igoumenitsa was a small fishing village
and summer-time ferry harbour. It was built up after the war as a modern town
and ferry port for Corfu and Italy. Two reasons for voluntarily stopping there
are that it is a good location from which to visit Ioannina, one of the
better-preserved old Greek towns in the country, and the Sanctuary of Dodona
which was famous for its Oracle long before Delphi. One of the largest theatres
in Greece, still largely intact today, is in Dodona.
Plataria
When we approached the 6-mile-long narrow bay of
Plataria we did so against a F6–7 wind and an aggressive fetch. At one stage we
almost gave up trying to get to the head of the bay where Plataria harbour and
beach are. Fortunately, we kept going, since when we got to within 500 metres
of the beach, the wind and fetch dropped almost completely. Initially we
thought about berthing in the large marina, which has recently been bought by
an Italian company intent on making a serious profit. We declined the Harbour
Master’s kind offer of a berth at 80€ and instead anchored 9 (free of charge) in 6 metres of water over sand off the beach, where we were perfectly
comfortable for the next two nights. Later in the afternoon. once the wind had
dropped, the charter yachts and flotillas started coming in and almost filled
the two quays. Clearly the recently elevated prices do not deter either charter
yachts or flotillas.
Sivota, Mourtos and nearby islands
Just over 5 miles south of Kondramourto Point, the
north entrance to Plataria, lie the Sivota islands and, on the mainland shore
opposite, the village of Mourtos. We had stopped and looked around them in 2022
.
The rugged islands close to the steep-to coast have
always been a popular spot for yachties to hole up in, but there is now more
competition from shore-based holidays. It nevertheless remains an enchanting
spot and Mourtos town quay has been redeveloped in a sympathetic and convivial
way that does not spoil the ambience of the place. By contrast, Sand Bar Bay,
between the island of St Nikolas and the mainland, is overlooked by a monstrous
new concrete hotel which has colonised much of the bay with moorings and
charter berths. The area is plagued by water-ski boats and jet skis going flat
out.
Parga
The coast between the Sivota Islands and Parga has
some wonderful, isolated day-time beaches and small bays. They are, however,
not suitable for overnight stops, other than in mild conditions.
Parga Harbour, however, which is tucked behind to the
east of Cape Totali, is suitable for an overnight stop, other than in strong
southerly winds. It is one of the most, if not the most, attractive locations
on the mainland coast with its two picturesque bays either side of a small
peninsula on which stands an old Venetian castle.
Out of season (when we visited) Parga is a splendid
location. In season we are told that it is mayhem with the beaches covered with
bodies and umbrellas and the water churned up by ski boats, paragliders and
tripper boats.
Parga Harbour itself to the east of the castle is not
suitable for and does not welcome yachts, all of which either anchor off the
enormous beach of Valtau or in the small harbour area to the west of the bay.
PARGA TO PREVEZA
We did not have sufficient time on this cruise to
explore the coast between Parga and Preveza. The bays of Ioannou, Fanari,
Keretsa and “Two Rocks” all look interesting, so we’ll probably plan to visit
them next year.
PREVEZA, AKTIO AND LEFKHADA
On our penultimate passage south to Santa Maura
harbour just north of the floating bridge over the Lefkas canal, we had a
strong favourable wind and enjoyed our best sail of the autumn. Since we had fought against
the wind on many parts of the cruise, it was a pleasure to finish on a good
note.
After a week’s decommissioning of ID on both Santa
Maura quay and in Aktio boatyard, we took a coach to Athens, from where we flew
back to London Heathrow.
If
you’ve stayed awake to read this far, we’d like to wish you a very happy
Christmas and hopefully, post The Budget, a reasonably prosperous 2026!
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