Paxos
Small Olive Covered Island South Of Corfu With Three Harbour Villages, White Cliffs And Sea Caves On The West Coast, And The Clear Water Of Antipaxos Across A Short Channel · Gaios, Ionian Islands
Paxos is a small green island about 12 km south of Corfu, covered so thickly in old olive terraces that the groves are said to hold hundreds of thousands of trees. Its east coast is sheltered and has three harbour villages - Gaios, screened by two wooded islets, Loggos with its disused soap works on the water, and Lakka in a wide bay at the north end - while the west coast is a wall of white cliffs with sea caves, the Ypapanti cavern and the Ortholithos rock needle standing offshore. Across a short channel lies tiny Antipaxos, whose beaches at Vrika and Voutoumi have water as clear as anywhere in Greece. There is no airport and no large hotel, and marked paths cross the island between stone presses and half-empty hamlets. Honest caveats: the ferry from Corfu takes one to two hours and wind cancels it, day boats crowd Antipaxos and the caves from mid-morning, water is scarce in summer, and most of the island closes from about November to April.
Paxos, Ionian Islands, about 12 km south of Corfu; Gaios harbour, Lakka and Loggos; Antipaxos and the west-coast sea caves by boat, Gaios, Ionian Islands, Greece
Paxos has nothing ticketed and no opening hours: the villages, paths and beaches are free at all hours. What governs a visit is the boat. Ferries from Corfu Town run to Gaios through the day, roughly 1 hour on a fast boat and 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours on a conventional one, with fewer sailings in winter; there are also crossings from Igoumenitsa on the mainland and seasonal day boats from Parga. Strong wind and swell cancel sailings, and the fast craft are the first to stop - confirm the day before. Excursion boats to the west-coast caves, Ypapanti and Antipaxos run roughly 09:30 to late afternoon from about May to October, and the sea state decides whether the caves are reachable at all. Tavernas keep a long midday break in summer and most shut from about November to April, when the island runs on a few village shops. Book a room, a car and any high-season vehicle ferry well ahead.