CORFU - Aug/Sept 2016
We arrived at Corfu airport around 9:30pm UK time (11:30pm Greek time), so thankfully not feeling too bad, however we had an hours drive in the dark ahead of us. A young girl from the car rental company (Value Plus) was waiting for us; we followed her out of the airport and across a car park, heading towards a small group of people. Reaching the people it was clearer to see it was an outdoor table and chairs, making them a temporary out door office, but from a distance it looked somewhat dodgy.
The guy sorting the paperwork was very friendly, he had a card machine at hand, but in the end we decided to pay cash. Whilst we were paying and sorting the paperwork another gentlemen loaded our bags into the boot, although we were quite surprised we had been given a Peugeot 308, when we'd seen a red Peugeot 206 and expected that was ours, he did have to squash the bags in a little to get them all in the boot.
My wife was the main driver as usual, with me navigating, however there was no way of following the map they had given us in the dark, but luckily I had downloaded a couple of offline map apps from the Google Play Store. The app we used to get to the apartment was called offline maps; I had predownloaded the Greece maps and saved the location of our apartments (VA Apartments). It was a good app, I turned the volume down, deciding it was better to provide my wife a more running commentary on the road ahead, which proved very good having to navigate a few hairpin bends. The only criticism I have is the size of the arrow marking our position, it's so big it virtually covered some of the more complicated junctions, meaning we did actually take a wrong turn at one point.
After a long hour navigating some of Corfu’s more minor roads, tight hairpin bends and the odd complicated junction, we found VA Apartments no problem. Just before I got out of the car to find someone, two ladies (mother and daughter) came to the car to greet us, firstly directing us to a parking spot just a little further past the apartment block.
We got all our cases out of the boot and followed them inside, immediately being greeted by steps, not ideal, but they had no lift. They took us to our apartment (number 5), as it was late they didn't want to bother us too much, however they did take our passports off us, which I thought was a little strange, but my wife said they do that in several places. We unpacked our main bag and then went to bed.
We arrived at Corfu airport around 9:30pm UK time (11:30pm Greek time), so thankfully not feeling too bad, however we had an hours drive in the dark ahead of us. A young girl from the car rental company (Value Plus) was waiting for us; we followed her out of the airport and across a car park, heading towards a small group of people. Reaching the people it was clearer to see it was an outdoor table and chairs, making them a temporary out door office, but from a distance it looked somewhat dodgy.
The guy sorting the paperwork was very friendly, he had a card machine at hand, but in the end we decided to pay cash. Whilst we were paying and sorting the paperwork another gentlemen loaded our bags into the boot, although we were quite surprised we had been given a Peugeot 308, when we'd seen a red Peugeot 206 and expected that was ours, he did have to squash the bags in a little to get them all in the boot.
My wife was the main driver as usual, with me navigating, however there was no way of following the map they had given us in the dark, but luckily I had downloaded a couple of offline map apps from the Google Play Store. The app we used to get to the apartment was called offline maps; I had predownloaded the Greece maps and saved the location of our apartments (VA Apartments). It was a good app, I turned the volume down, deciding it was better to provide my wife a more running commentary on the road ahead, which proved very good having to navigate a few hairpin bends. The only criticism I have is the size of the arrow marking our position, it's so big it virtually covered some of the more complicated junctions, meaning we did actually take a wrong turn at one point.
After a long hour navigating some of Corfu’s more minor roads, tight hairpin bends and the odd complicated junction, we found VA Apartments no problem. Just before I got out of the car to find someone, two ladies (mother and daughter) came to the car to greet us, firstly directing us to a parking spot just a little further past the apartment block.
We got all our cases out of the boot and followed them inside, immediately being greeted by steps, not ideal, but they had no lift. They took us to our apartment (number 5), as it was late they didn't want to bother us too much, however they did take our passports off us, which I thought was a little strange, but my wife said they do that in several places. We unpacked our main bag and then went to bed.
VA Boutique Apartments
The apartment was two bedroom, both rooms were twin rooms, with air conditioning and both had a balcony, albeit tiny balconies. The beds had a large net covering them to stop mosquitos through the night (our room had a pink one and was a bit like what you've find in a 5 year old girls "princess" themed bedroom), it was worth having, but kept separating at the opening part, which was annoying. The kitchen was small, with cooker, kettle, coffee machine and a good size fridge with small freezer at the top. The bathroom was disappointing, it had a small wall light above the sink and to stop mosquitos and heat getting in we had the outer shutters on the window closed, meaning it was quite dingy. Getting a shower was not enjoyable, it was like getting a shower on a postage stamp having such a small square shower tray and virtually impossible to stop the flood on the floor and would benefit greatly from a full makeover into a wet room with better lighting. In the hallway there was a dining table, which may get used by families, but not by us and this was the only seating area, sadly no other living room.
Outside was lovely; they had made a real effort to make the gardens look pretty, with plenty of different seating areas. At the back they also had a pool, however it was more like a large bath tub, probably fit no more than a maximum of 6 people comfortably, waist high stood up, but we did get an afternoon with the pool to ourselves, so nice to cool off.
Staying at VA Apartments meant we were only a two minute walk to Acharavi beach in one direction and the main high street about 5 minutes in the opposite direction.
The apartment was two bedroom, both rooms were twin rooms, with air conditioning and both had a balcony, albeit tiny balconies. The beds had a large net covering them to stop mosquitos through the night (our room had a pink one and was a bit like what you've find in a 5 year old girls "princess" themed bedroom), it was worth having, but kept separating at the opening part, which was annoying. The kitchen was small, with cooker, kettle, coffee machine and a good size fridge with small freezer at the top. The bathroom was disappointing, it had a small wall light above the sink and to stop mosquitos and heat getting in we had the outer shutters on the window closed, meaning it was quite dingy. Getting a shower was not enjoyable, it was like getting a shower on a postage stamp having such a small square shower tray and virtually impossible to stop the flood on the floor and would benefit greatly from a full makeover into a wet room with better lighting. In the hallway there was a dining table, which may get used by families, but not by us and this was the only seating area, sadly no other living room.
Outside was lovely; they had made a real effort to make the gardens look pretty, with plenty of different seating areas. At the back they also had a pool, however it was more like a large bath tub, probably fit no more than a maximum of 6 people comfortably, waist high stood up, but we did get an afternoon with the pool to ourselves, so nice to cool off.
Staying at VA Apartments meant we were only a two minute walk to Acharavi beach in one direction and the main high street about 5 minutes in the opposite direction.
Acharavi
On the northern coast of Corfu, Acharavi was a lovely place to stay, a pebble beach that turns to sand as you walk out into the lovely mild temperature sea and find yourself back to waist deep again.
The seafront has a nice selection of restaurants; the Navigator was closest to us, just at the bottom of our road around the corner. It has a very nice look and feel including a pool, although the pool is a little outdated. They do a lovely breakfast and it's a nice place for an evening meal, it was just a shame when we visited one evening there was only us left by 11pm. We visited again on our last day, firstly to enjoy the sun, having the previous day been raining and then later on for an early evening meal before heading to the airport.
Roda is about a 15-20 minute walk, depending on where your hotel/apartment is located, but 5 minutes in the opposite direction there's a group of restaurants, including Woody's, Faros and Fuego Beach Bar.
On the northern coast of Corfu, Acharavi was a lovely place to stay, a pebble beach that turns to sand as you walk out into the lovely mild temperature sea and find yourself back to waist deep again.
The seafront has a nice selection of restaurants; the Navigator was closest to us, just at the bottom of our road around the corner. It has a very nice look and feel including a pool, although the pool is a little outdated. They do a lovely breakfast and it's a nice place for an evening meal, it was just a shame when we visited one evening there was only us left by 11pm. We visited again on our last day, firstly to enjoy the sun, having the previous day been raining and then later on for an early evening meal before heading to the airport.
Roda is about a 15-20 minute walk, depending on where your hotel/apartment is located, but 5 minutes in the opposite direction there's a group of restaurants, including Woody's, Faros and Fuego Beach Bar.
Woody's
Highly rated on Trip Advisor we had to try Woody's, it's a lovely restaurant, with a great feel/atmosphere, that does beautiful food and would recommend you visit. We visited again for breakfast, if you drive down street number 6, there's a good size car park near the bottom on the right.
Highly rated on Trip Advisor we had to try Woody's, it's a lovely restaurant, with a great feel/atmosphere, that does beautiful food and would recommend you visit. We visited again for breakfast, if you drive down street number 6, there's a good size car park near the bottom on the right.
Faro's restaurant is right next door to Woody's and also has a great atmosphere and lovely food, two of us had pizza and they were beautiful, another restaurant I would recommend you visit.
If like us you don't have a large pool at your hotel/apartment, the Sun Rose Resort has a public pool. It was a nice peaceful place to relax sunbath and go for a swim in the pool, which is a very good size and deceivingly deeper than it looks. There's also a small bar (La Vague) that do food and drinks, although the selections are not massive and the food quality was not as good as we'd had eating out. Just two minutes from the Sun Rose Resort is a lovely place called Lavender, we had a break from the heat and came here for lunch one day.
The main road also has a good selection of shops (including a fairly large supermarket), restaurants and bars. Acharavi Park restaurant has a nice holiday look and feel about it, with its bridge over water style entrance and two water walls. It was a nice place to eat out; the warm pitta with houmous was lovely and big enough for two to share. I had swordfish kebab for main which was lovely, my wife and her friend both went for the mixed grill, which they both enjoyed, but it was a little too much. Conveniently there's an ice cream shop next door, a nice refreshing desert as we strolled back down to the seafront.
If like us you don't have a large pool at your hotel/apartment, the Sun Rose Resort has a public pool. It was a nice peaceful place to relax sunbath and go for a swim in the pool, which is a very good size and deceivingly deeper than it looks. There's also a small bar (La Vague) that do food and drinks, although the selections are not massive and the food quality was not as good as we'd had eating out. Just two minutes from the Sun Rose Resort is a lovely place called Lavender, we had a break from the heat and came here for lunch one day.
The main road also has a good selection of shops (including a fairly large supermarket), restaurants and bars. Acharavi Park restaurant has a nice holiday look and feel about it, with its bridge over water style entrance and two water walls. It was a nice place to eat out; the warm pitta with houmous was lovely and big enough for two to share. I had swordfish kebab for main which was lovely, my wife and her friend both went for the mixed grill, which they both enjoyed, but it was a little too much. Conveniently there's an ice cream shop next door, a nice refreshing desert as we strolled back down to the seafront.
Kerkyra (Corfu Town)
At first I was a little concerned about parking in Corfu town, having read several reviews leading me to believe it would challenging, especially in August. However I noted one review said there's a large car park on the right opposite the port, so I had a quick look on Google maps satellite mode, found the car park, pinned it on my Map Of Greece app and off we went. We arrived at the car park, paid 3 euros for all day and the attendant pointed us to a space.
Corfu town is large, with many narrow streets full of shops and restaurants; however the more obvious landmarks are the new fortress located near the car park mentioned above and the old fortress at the seafront guarding the town. We took a train ride from the gardens in front of the old fortress, it went along the front past some old ruins and back around past the old fortress to the gardens, however the English translation came a little late, so you were listening to most of it after you had passed the landmark (train route on map at bottom of page highlighted in orange) and the green routes highlighted on the map are where we walked around the town.
At first I was a little concerned about parking in Corfu town, having read several reviews leading me to believe it would challenging, especially in August. However I noted one review said there's a large car park on the right opposite the port, so I had a quick look on Google maps satellite mode, found the car park, pinned it on my Map Of Greece app and off we went. We arrived at the car park, paid 3 euros for all day and the attendant pointed us to a space.
Corfu town is large, with many narrow streets full of shops and restaurants; however the more obvious landmarks are the new fortress located near the car park mentioned above and the old fortress at the seafront guarding the town. We took a train ride from the gardens in front of the old fortress, it went along the front past some old ruins and back around past the old fortress to the gardens, however the English translation came a little late, so you were listening to most of it after you had passed the landmark (train route on map at bottom of page highlighted in orange) and the green routes highlighted on the map are where we walked around the town.
Kassiopi
Our first visit to Kassiopi didn't start well, we had driven right down to the harbour front, turned 'round and just as we pulled up someone kindly told us we had a flat tyre, thankfully a local shop owner (not any of the British sat on a table next to where we'd parked) came and helped me change the wheel to the spare, lucky it happened when it did, as he had to use a hammer to tap the stuck wheel off.
After getting the wheel changed we stopped at a small cafe for a drink and so I could go wash my hands, we then walked around the harbour, at this point it was starting to get dark, you can see in my pictures below we caught the end of the sunset reflecting off the water. We then went to The Old School restaurant for our evening meal, which was nice, but it was busier than other places we had visited, the tables were much closer together and we were right in the back corner.
On our last day we mad a return visit to Kassiopi, however this time earlier in the day and we decided to park in the car park on the main road into Kassiopi at 3 euro. Walking down the high street towards the harbour it's full of beachwear and gift shops, along with many cafes and restaurants. We saw a sign pointing up some steps to the castle, so decided to take a walk up, the path got worse becoming more the remains of a path. Finally at the castle you can through an archway and to the right there's some steps and an entrance leading into a vantage point, with a great view of the distant Albanian mountains and Kassiopi harbour below.
Part of the harbour stick out like a jetty for boats to moor up, at the beginning is a small pebble beach, with beautiful crystal clear water. Walk to the end of the jetty and you have the beautiful open ocean view with (on a clear day) the fantastic Albanian mountains for a back drop.
I highly recommend you visit Kassiopi; it has a peaceful, calming atmosphere during the day and a more vibrant night life. There is also the opportunity to take the ferry from here to Kerkyra (Corfu town), I’m not sure what tome it leaves, but we saw it return late, around 10:30pm.
Our first visit to Kassiopi didn't start well, we had driven right down to the harbour front, turned 'round and just as we pulled up someone kindly told us we had a flat tyre, thankfully a local shop owner (not any of the British sat on a table next to where we'd parked) came and helped me change the wheel to the spare, lucky it happened when it did, as he had to use a hammer to tap the stuck wheel off.
After getting the wheel changed we stopped at a small cafe for a drink and so I could go wash my hands, we then walked around the harbour, at this point it was starting to get dark, you can see in my pictures below we caught the end of the sunset reflecting off the water. We then went to The Old School restaurant for our evening meal, which was nice, but it was busier than other places we had visited, the tables were much closer together and we were right in the back corner.
On our last day we mad a return visit to Kassiopi, however this time earlier in the day and we decided to park in the car park on the main road into Kassiopi at 3 euro. Walking down the high street towards the harbour it's full of beachwear and gift shops, along with many cafes and restaurants. We saw a sign pointing up some steps to the castle, so decided to take a walk up, the path got worse becoming more the remains of a path. Finally at the castle you can through an archway and to the right there's some steps and an entrance leading into a vantage point, with a great view of the distant Albanian mountains and Kassiopi harbour below.
Part of the harbour stick out like a jetty for boats to moor up, at the beginning is a small pebble beach, with beautiful crystal clear water. Walk to the end of the jetty and you have the beautiful open ocean view with (on a clear day) the fantastic Albanian mountains for a back drop.
I highly recommend you visit Kassiopi; it has a peaceful, calming atmosphere during the day and a more vibrant night life. There is also the opportunity to take the ferry from here to Kerkyra (Corfu town), I’m not sure what tome it leaves, but we saw it return late, around 10:30pm.
Palaiokastritsa
A popular hot spot for beach lovers, Palaiokastritsa can get very busy and even though there is a large car park, getting there early is advisable. There are two beaches; the bigger one appears to be the most popular, just on the opposite side of the road to the large car park. Here you'll find sunbeds are located quite close together and in patches at either end of the beach, the beach is sand, but it is easy to stand on a pebble and its more pebbly going into the water. Once in the water you'll find it turns to boulders under foot, but if your a good swimmer, it doesn't matter, you can swim right out. There are a few restaurants and cafes around, with tables looking out to the bay. At one end of the car park is a smaller beach, again with limited sunbeds, here it's a pebble beach, but the water is crystal clear and again once in there are boulders under foot, much lighter in colour and much slipier, you also notice there's more of a breeze.
A popular hot spot for beach lovers, Palaiokastritsa can get very busy and even though there is a large car park, getting there early is advisable. There are two beaches; the bigger one appears to be the most popular, just on the opposite side of the road to the large car park. Here you'll find sunbeds are located quite close together and in patches at either end of the beach, the beach is sand, but it is easy to stand on a pebble and its more pebbly going into the water. Once in the water you'll find it turns to boulders under foot, but if your a good swimmer, it doesn't matter, you can swim right out. There are a few restaurants and cafes around, with tables looking out to the bay. At one end of the car park is a smaller beach, again with limited sunbeds, here it's a pebble beach, but the water is crystal clear and again once in there are boulders under foot, much lighter in colour and much slipier, you also notice there's more of a breeze.
San Stefanos /So Tiris Boat Hire
Hiring a boat was suggested to us by my wife’s boss and they recommended we hire from So Tiris in San Stefanos. My wife emailed them a few days before to check costs and availability, there are different size engine boats, we opted for the smallest 30hp, as we felt this was adequate, we weren't in any speed race.
Arriving in San Stefanos there is a parking area, however it's spread across both sides of the road under trees, there wasn't much space for us to get in and we didn't fancy dropping of the edge of the road to get parked there, so we carried on 'round and luckily found a spot on the front. The gentleman at So Tiris was very friendly, after doing the paperwork he took us to the boat and showed us the controls and correct manoeuvres when arriving/leaving a jetty etc.
I've driven large boats on the local canals at home, Norfolk Broads and the River Thames, but in a small 6 person boat, it takes some getting used to rocking side to side hitting the waves and there were many others out in small boats, more confident then me bombing past us, however I was quite happy to take a slightly more leisurely pace whilst I got comfortable with the boat.
Our first plan was to stop in a little cove, drop anchor and go for a swim, but it didn't go to plan. At the back of the boat between the anchor rope and engine was a ladder, a very basic two rung ladder, getting in was a case of climbing over and jumping in, but getting back on there was nothing to grab at the top to pull yourself up.
After getting back in the boat we carried on down the coast, it's not easy to see where is a good/safe place to moor without driving in closer to every bay. We arrived at Agni and could see there were three jetties, so headed in; thankfully someone came to help us, making it much easier than jumping off yourself.
Hiring a boat was suggested to us by my wife’s boss and they recommended we hire from So Tiris in San Stefanos. My wife emailed them a few days before to check costs and availability, there are different size engine boats, we opted for the smallest 30hp, as we felt this was adequate, we weren't in any speed race.
Arriving in San Stefanos there is a parking area, however it's spread across both sides of the road under trees, there wasn't much space for us to get in and we didn't fancy dropping of the edge of the road to get parked there, so we carried on 'round and luckily found a spot on the front. The gentleman at So Tiris was very friendly, after doing the paperwork he took us to the boat and showed us the controls and correct manoeuvres when arriving/leaving a jetty etc.
I've driven large boats on the local canals at home, Norfolk Broads and the River Thames, but in a small 6 person boat, it takes some getting used to rocking side to side hitting the waves and there were many others out in small boats, more confident then me bombing past us, however I was quite happy to take a slightly more leisurely pace whilst I got comfortable with the boat.
Our first plan was to stop in a little cove, drop anchor and go for a swim, but it didn't go to plan. At the back of the boat between the anchor rope and engine was a ladder, a very basic two rung ladder, getting in was a case of climbing over and jumping in, but getting back on there was nothing to grab at the top to pull yourself up.
After getting back in the boat we carried on down the coast, it's not easy to see where is a good/safe place to moor without driving in closer to every bay. We arrived at Agni and could see there were three jetties, so headed in; thankfully someone came to help us, making it much easier than jumping off yourself.
Agni is a beautiful place, there are several restaurants/cafes to grab some refreshments, crystal clear water for a swim, although you do need to watch where you swim, as boats are constantly coming and going.
After leaving Agni we travelled a little further south before turning back, on our way back we drove into Kalami Bay and noticed a jetty, moored up and walked along a narrow path to a pebble beach area. Once again crystal clear waters, however it was much quieter, more open just the perfect peaceful spot. Sadly by this point we didn't have much time left, so we then headed back to return the boat to San Stefanos.
I would recommend hiring a boat, but you need to be confident, it rocks about alot more than I expected, maybe feel worse having to stand up to drive and not much weight with only three of us. Knowing where there are jetties to moor up at is definitely a benefit, although some coves are nice to drive in, especially when there's a superyacht moored there.
After leaving Agni we travelled a little further south before turning back, on our way back we drove into Kalami Bay and noticed a jetty, moored up and walked along a narrow path to a pebble beach area. Once again crystal clear waters, however it was much quieter, more open just the perfect peaceful spot. Sadly by this point we didn't have much time left, so we then headed back to return the boat to San Stefanos.
I would recommend hiring a boat, but you need to be confident, it rocks about alot more than I expected, maybe feel worse having to stand up to drive and not much weight with only three of us. Knowing where there are jetties to moor up at is definitely a benefit, although some coves are nice to drive in, especially when there's a superyacht moored there.
Roda
As mentioned before, Roda is about a 15-20 minute walk along the seafront from Acharavi and has a bit more of a tourist feel than Acharavi. The seafront has a narrow street full of restaurants and shops, but the main attraction is the beach and having sand under your feet instead of the pebbles we'd had so far made it more comfortable going into what was a shallow sea for a good distance, meaning by mid afternoon the water had a lovely warm feel.
As mentioned before, Roda is about a 15-20 minute walk along the seafront from Acharavi and has a bit more of a tourist feel than Acharavi. The seafront has a narrow street full of restaurants and shops, but the main attraction is the beach and having sand under your feet instead of the pebbles we'd had so far made it more comfortable going into what was a shallow sea for a good distance, meaning by mid afternoon the water had a lovely warm feel.
Skouna Beach Bar and Restaurant
This restaurant was recommended to us by a friend and is located right on the beach front in Roda. We first visited late one evening for a meal, but arrived later than we originally planned, so late the kitchen was closing, however Dimitris kindly put two tables together for us and the waitress took our order. I ordered portobello mushrooms for starter and when it arrived I could tell it was going to be one of the best meals we would have and after three courses, in my opinion, the presentation, quality and taste was the best we had. |
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We returned the following day and hired sunbeds (they have their own sunbeds on the beach at 7 euros per day for two sunbeds and a parasol) and they were the best we'd had, with nice thick cushion, pillow and strong wooden parasol. Hiring the sunbeds also entitled us to a 10% discount off food and drinks, and with the beautiful meal we'd had the night before, I was looking forward to lunch. For lunch we all ordered the chicken club sandwich, which was beautiful and also came with plenty of chips.
The food is fantastic, the setting is beautiful, the restaurant has a great look/feel to it and with the music playing at a reasonable volume, it created a great atmosphere and highly recommend you visit.
The food is fantastic, the setting is beautiful, the restaurant has a great look/feel to it and with the music playing at a reasonable volume, it created a great atmosphere and highly recommend you visit.
Sidari
As you arrive into Sidari you'll come to a small crossroads, straight ahead is the high street, but turn left and then right and you'll find a large car park. Disappointingly it was our only wet day when we visited Sidari, so we didn't see it at its best, but the high street is full of gift shops, cafes, bars and restaurants, however head down a side street and it opens out to the sea.
As you arrive into Sidari you'll come to a small crossroads, straight ahead is the high street, but turn left and then right and you'll find a large car park. Disappointingly it was our only wet day when we visited Sidari, so we didn't see it at its best, but the high street is full of gift shops, cafes, bars and restaurants, however head down a side street and it opens out to the sea.
Driving
As with many other countries we have visited, the roads are unfished, (rough around the edges), narrow and there's no where near the amount of markings and signage we have in the UK. Everyone seems to be in a hurry, have no care for anyone else on the road and know were they want to be, even if it means overtaking you, only to want to turn a few metres later. Having the offline map of Greece on my phone was brilliant, I could see where we were and navigate whilst my wife drove, trying to follow the roads using the free map the car hire place gave us would have been very stressful.
Wi-Fi
It's nice to be able to be able to upload some of your holiday pictures to social media websites and we found all the restaurants/cafes/bars we visited had free Wi-Fi, all you need to do is ask.
If you're on O2 like me, on arrival you will get a text message as below
"Welcome to GREECE. You're on O2 Travel, so keep your phone on and get all the data, minutes and texts you need for just £1.99 a day. You'll only be charged for the days you use it.
Prices include VAT. For more info about O2 Travel, to see the standard roaming rates or opt out of the service call freephone 2266 or visit www.o2.co.uk/travel, Usage terms apply. Call 112 for emergency services. To stop texts call 2220."
It will depend on whether your package includes O2 Travel, mine does and I don't pay any extra, but normally it is priced per text/minute, so I could send texts to family at home when I wanted knowing the exact cost, however this way I would feel the need to do it all in one day and would not be able to make the most of the £1.99/day cost. You can download an app called Tu Go, this is an O2 app that allows you to send/receive texts/calls as normal, but using Wi-Fi, this is great if you have family/friends that don't have other similar apps like Whatsapp or Skype.
As with many other countries we have visited, the roads are unfished, (rough around the edges), narrow and there's no where near the amount of markings and signage we have in the UK. Everyone seems to be in a hurry, have no care for anyone else on the road and know were they want to be, even if it means overtaking you, only to want to turn a few metres later. Having the offline map of Greece on my phone was brilliant, I could see where we were and navigate whilst my wife drove, trying to follow the roads using the free map the car hire place gave us would have been very stressful.
Wi-Fi
It's nice to be able to be able to upload some of your holiday pictures to social media websites and we found all the restaurants/cafes/bars we visited had free Wi-Fi, all you need to do is ask.
If you're on O2 like me, on arrival you will get a text message as below
"Welcome to GREECE. You're on O2 Travel, so keep your phone on and get all the data, minutes and texts you need for just £1.99 a day. You'll only be charged for the days you use it.
Prices include VAT. For more info about O2 Travel, to see the standard roaming rates or opt out of the service call freephone 2266 or visit www.o2.co.uk/travel, Usage terms apply. Call 112 for emergency services. To stop texts call 2220."
It will depend on whether your package includes O2 Travel, mine does and I don't pay any extra, but normally it is priced per text/minute, so I could send texts to family at home when I wanted knowing the exact cost, however this way I would feel the need to do it all in one day and would not be able to make the most of the £1.99/day cost. You can download an app called Tu Go, this is an O2 app that allows you to send/receive texts/calls as normal, but using Wi-Fi, this is great if you have family/friends that don't have other similar apps like Whatsapp or Skype.
The map below shows where we travelled in Corfu, with the majority being black lines, these are the roads we drove along, (you will need to zoom in to see the other lines), the green lines are where we walked (not all walked routes marked), the blue lines are where we travelled when we hired a motor boat from So Tiris in San Stefanos and the orange lines are where the train took us.