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Holidays in Benitses - Vacations in Benitses

Holidays in Benitses

Benitses is an old traditional fishing village located 12 km south of Corfu town. The old village has a traditional natural color and is surrounded by greenery, walking the old streets one has the feeling that he is in a mountain village in Greece, except that here the sea is near, the coastal road is full of hotels, restaurants and cafes and other shops that offer everything that the most demanding visitor can ask. Benitses is surrounded by the mountains in one side and by the aquamarine waters of the Ionian Sea in the other, this unique combination of nature with the hospitality of the residents, which are very familiar with different cultures, are what make visitors to love the place.

Hiking and biking

Starting from the village there are many trails on the slopes of the mountain that they can be crossed by foot or by bicycle, theese paths are literally lost in the lush vegetation and most of them lead to the mountain villages of Stavros and Agioi Deka, and some others to the sources of aqueduct, in theese paths there are many small churches scattered on the slopes of the mountain, some characteristics is Agia Paraskevi, Agia Triada, Agios Nikolaos Vrysiliotis, Taksiarches, Evaggelistria and others.
the view from the mountain village of Stavros is fantastic

Visit the Sea Museum

A visit to the sea museum is a must.
The museum is owned by a former diver and has a huge collection of shells, fossils, sponges, corals, stuffed large fishes, one of the largest collections of its kind in the Mediterranean.
for more info just call +30 26610 72227 or visit the website of sea Museum

A visit to the Achillion palace

2 miles from Benitses on the way to Gastouri is the Achillion palace, its a two-store building that was built in 1890 by the then Austro-Hungarian Empress Elisabeth who became known as Sissy. The architecture of the building is a combination of Doric and Ionic style, with many statues of ancient gods, philosophers and personalities of the classical era, but above all its dominated by the statues of mythical Achilles, from who it got its name. After the death of Elizabeth the Palace was bought by Kaiser Wilhelm of Prussia and was used as a summer residence, in a period during the First World War it had become a military hospital. for a short period during the 80s it had been used as a casino, today it is a Museum and a destination of many visitors, you should become one of them.

The sandy beaches of the West Coast

If you plan to rent a car, or you have your own is a good idea to explore the vast sandy beaches of the west and southern coast, more in the page about the Corfu beaches...

Daily Cruises in the Greek mainland

Every day there are small boats from Benites port which do day cruises on the mainland in places like Parga and Sivota (Mourtos), also to the southern Corfu in Kavos and Paxos island, Mourtos (the ancient Sivota) especially is an area of unsurpassed beauty, with numerous small islands scattered in front of the beaches which are filled with strange large caves with hundreds of wild pigeons.
The boats can go into the caves where the water is incredibly clean so that the bottom can be seen despite the big depth which can exceed the 20 meters, during the trip you will surely stop to swim between the islands, imagine how it feels to swim between 3-4 and five small islands .. .
During your Benitses vacations you shouldn't miss the opportunity to enjoy such a trip, you can book the trip through your hotel but also if you go at around 9 o`clock in the morning in the harbor and can take the boat on your own..easy as that.

Festivals and celebrations

July 15 to August 15 is the season for most special events and festivals, if you are here this time of the year you will have the opportunity to meet some of the Corfu traditions and customs which over the years become louder and more intense. Some of these are: the feast of St. John the Lampatari on June 22 in Benitses, its a feast in which people are jumping over fires. then on August 6th is the feast of Savior and events take place at the famous Mouse Island. on August 15 is the feast of the Virgin Mary in the nearby village of Stavros. at August 23 another festival in the nearby village of Agioi Deka, the Sardine Festival on 10 August at Benitses and finally on 16 and 17 July, the larger feast of all, the festival of Aghia Marina in Benitses. The Cultural Association of Benitses is the one who organizes and has supervision and responsibility of the event, the folkloric group of Benitses presents traditional Corfu dances wearing traditional costumes, the Association of Women in Benitses offers traditional food, sweets and local products, a traditional orchestra is playing until the early morning hours, there are also dozens of vendors of all kinds. and because there can be no celebration without eating and drinking all kinds of dishes and especially the lamb on the spit are in great abundance.

Restaurants and Corfiot cuisine

In Benitses there are restaurants with great diversity, there are restaurants with traditional Greek and Corfiot cuisine, grills, restaurants, Chinese cuisine, grills with fresh fish, Pizza and many others. The 400 years of Venetian rule left a positive mark on Corfiot cuisine which is a mixture of Greek and Italian with a strong emphasis on fish and seafood in general. your holidays in Benitses is an opportunity for you to try some of the most famous dishes of our tradition as: Sofrito: is thin strips of veal lightly sauteed in a pan with a white sauce of garlic, parsley, white pepper, white wine, salt and vinegar. Served with rice or mashed potatoes. Pastitsada: is the most famous Corfiot dish, cooked beef with garlic, parsley, salt and pepper. for the sauce are used olive oil tomato, onion, cinnamon, cloves garlic, salt, pepper and nutmeg, is always accompanied by pasta. The pastitsada in villages is made with rooster, Pastitsada can also be done with fish. The pastitsada with rooster is the best. Bianco: fish and potatoes cooked in a sauce of finely chopped garlic, parsley, lemon juice and black pepper. Served with cooked potatoes. Bourdeto: boiled fishes, Scorpionfish are the best, but there may be other fish along like bass, cooked with red pepper, chopped onions and lemon at the end, in the traditional Bourdeto we never use tomato sauce, never! Bourdeto is very nice with octopus too, it is made with more onions and chopped potatoes boiled together. Tsigareli: Various herbs cooked with onion, garlic, and plenty of spicy red pepper or tomato. you remember that when leaving you should not forget to take with you the traditional Nougat called Mandolato and kumquat, you will find those in most supermarkets, but mainly in the kinds of traditional shops confectioneries. Some restaurants worth to try is the tavern and grill PAXINOS, Greek and Chinese cuisine ROSE GARDEN, both in the center of the old village, the pizza KAVOURAS with Italian style pizza made in wood-fired oven, restaurants LAOPETRA and TONY & ALEX Both in the main street in front of the harbor, a little more south is FENG SHUI restaurant located on the beach, taverna Zorbas and restaurant CHICKEN GEORGE on the beach. of course there are dozens of other restaurants the same good as the ones we mentioned above

For Coffee, ice cream or drink

There are dozens of bars and cafes in Benitses where you can enjoy coffee, ice cream or drink, especially those in the center of the village use to be meeting places for the local residents is well.

Laying on the beach

If you are bored to do any of the above you can just laying in one of the pristine blue flag beaches, where you will find sun loungers and umbrellas, there are water sports like water skiing, parachutes, pedal boats and motorboats. boats are hired for sailing and there is an opportunity for diving, sailing boats you will find in the port of Benitses, you can request more information or even hire one through your hotel. in the beach outside the harbor there is a lifeguard.