Corfu Tours – Itinerary 5 Kerkyra – Kanali – Viros – Kastellanoi – Sinarades – Agios Gordios – Garouna – Pavliana – Agios Matthaios – Gardiki – Return through: Strongyli – Agii Deka – Kinopiastes – Kerkyra.
CORFU TOURS
Tours of the beautiful island of Corfu will have its main town as starting point. The good road network makes the most important sites, and some of the most characteristic villages easily accessible, whether you choose to rent a car, or follow an organised tour, or get the local KTEL bus.
ITINERARY 5
Kerkyra – Kanali – Viros – Kastellanoi – Sinarades – Agios Gordios – Garouna – Pavliana – Agios Matthaios – Gardiki – Return through: Strongyli – Agii Deka – Kinopiastes – Kerkyra.
From the town of Corfu we take a southwesterly direction. We pass the branch for Kanali and continue further south to Viro, Kastellanoi, Sinarades (18 kms from Corfu town).
Sinarades is an old Corfiot village. The 15th-century Venetian belfry of its church is of particular interest, as is also its historical and folk art museum, housed in a traditional home, which exhibits items belonging to the rural households of the area. The road continues southwards, along the western coast. A small winding branch leads us through well-tended olive groves, planted on terraces descending all the way down to the sea, and the beach of Ai-Gordis. The view, as we drive downwards, is magnificent. The golden sands, together with the vivid blue of the sea and the dark green hues of the hills form a beautiful picture. On the left side of the bay a conical rock, the Ortholithi, rises sharply from the sea. Ai-Gordis is one of the most popular tourist resorts of the island, and oilers ample accommodation, tavernas, bars etc. Four kilometres to the northeast is the site of Aerostato, a sheer rock from which there is a panoramic view.
Agios Gordios Beach
Gardiki Fortress
The road turns inland and continues southwards towards Garouna, a village actually consisting of two separate settlements – those of Ano and Kato Garouna – built amphitheatrically on opposite hills. The village retains its vernacular architectural style, with its arches, wlta, stone stairways, its traditional skills in stone carving and its local fetes. The belfry of the church of St. Nicholas, carved by the able hands of local artisans, is an example of the traditional stonework.
Further to the south lies another pair of “twin” communities: Ano and Kato Pavliana (20 kms from Corfu town). They too are traditional villages in a verdant setting, with a superb view. The road continues southwards to Aghios Matthaios, a large inland village, 22.5 kms from Corfu town, built amphitheatrically at the foot of Mathios mountain, on a luxuriantly green hill, which also offers a beautiful view. On a slope of the same mountain stands the monastery of Christ Pantocrator (mid-14th century), and not far is a cave dating from Palaeolithic times.