South from Corfu: Paxos, Lefkas, Parga
7 days · 155 nm · starts in Corfu · Greece
Gouvia (Corfu)
Fly into Corfu airport; Gouvia marina is twenty minutes away. Handover and provisioning in town. If there is an evening left, walk the old town and its two Venetian fortresses.
Corfu → Paxos (Gaios)
South along the mainland shore. Gaios is the capital of Paxos, hidden in a channel behind the fortified islet of Agios Nikolaos: from seaward the harbour is invisible. Moor along the quay and take the tavernas on the square in the evening.
Paxos → Antipaxos → Lefkas
The longest day. In the morning, three miles to Antipaxos: Voutoumi and Vrika, beaches with water of the implausible colour every boat in the area comes for. After lunch, the long leg south to Lefkas and the bridge opening into the canal.
Lefkas → Preveza
Back through the canal and north to the entrance of the Amvrakikos gulf. A resident population of bottlenose dolphins lives in the strait off Preveza and is seen on almost every visit. Preveza marina is cheaper than Lefkas, and the town itself is lively and not at all touristy.
Preveza → Parga
North along the mainland shore. Parga is an amphitheatre of coloured houses under a Venetian castle with a beach in the middle of town. Anchor in the bay or lie at the town mole; in season it gets crowded.
Parga → Corfu (Petriti)
Back to the island. Petriti on the south-east of Corfu is a fishing village with three tavernas on the water and not a single hotel: a good contrast for the last day.
Petriti → Gouvia
A short leg up the east coast past the old town, refuelling and handover.
The northern Ionian works differently from the waters around Lefkas: the distances are longer and half the stops are on the mainland. In exchange you get Corfu and its Venetian fortresses, turquoise Antipaxos, the mouth of the Amvrakikos gulf with its dolphins, and Parga, which looks like an Italian town that ended up in Greece by accident. About 155 nm and two legs of thirty-odd.
Practicalities
- Wind: a north-westerly breeze of 10–18 knots in summer, dropping in the evening. It is behind you on the leg from Corfu to Paxos and on the nose coming back from Parga, so the return is planned for the morning.
- Albania is close: the strait between Corfu and the mainland is an international border, and you cannot enter Albanian waters without clearing in. Keep to the Greek side of the channel; the fleet provides a chart with the border marked.
- Berths: Gaios, Preveza and Parga are paid town quays. Antipaxos is a daytime anchorage only — there is no water, no shop and no shelter for the night.
- If the wind will not let you go south, the route reverses: the mainland first (Parga and Preveza), leaving Paxos and Antipaxos for the way back with the wind behind you.
When to go and what it costs
Greece is the cheapest place in the Mediterranean: a median €175 per person per week in winter, and even in summer (€298) it is cheaper than Turkey. Fleet discounts here are the deepest on the market — up to 63% on average for last-minute deals — so look at the price per berth, not the percentage.
RYC Rentals data, 2,062 offers from 2024–2026, as of 13 Aug 2026 · full breakdown →