Paxos may seem small compared to Corfu, but it is incredibly beautiful, with hidden beaches that feel like treasures. You could easily spend a week exploring its various beaches and enjoying water activities.
However, if you're short on time, our blog will help you plan a day trip to Paxos and Anti Paxos from Corfu.
Where are Paxos and Anti Paxos located:
Paxos and Anti Paxos are two small Islands in the Ionian Sea. These Islands are located on the south of Corfu Island and the western coast of mainland Greece.
Paxos is located around 20 km away from the southern shore of Corfu Island. Antipaxos is closer to Paxos and located around 5 km from the southern east of Paxos.
Full-day trip to Paxos, Anti Paxos, and Blue Caves:
If you’re looking for a hassle-free day trip to Paxos, Anti Paxos, and the Blue Caves, we highly recommend booking through a tour operator. Several companies offer full-day trips covering all three destinations.
Let’s jump into our experience on a Full-day trip to Paxos, Anti Paxos, and Blue Caves:
From where to book a Full-day trip to Paxos, Anti Paxos, and Blue Caves:
As we were staying in Ypsos, Corfu, we noticed that there were several tour operator offices offering trips to Paxos, Anti Paxos, and the Blue Caves. Initially, visiting Paxos and Anti Paxos wasn't part of our plan, but we were completely tempted by their beauty and decided to explore day trip options with these tour operators for the following days.
Unfortunately, the tour operators were fully booked, so we started looking for options online. That's when we came across availability for a full-day trip with Ionian Cruises for the very next day.
Yes!! We’re going—we just booked the trip with hotel transfers included. The cost of the trip was €60 per person, including hotel pick-up and drop-off. But, there are different pricing options from €50-€75 tour depending on the tour company you selected.
Our Experience on Full-day Trip to Paxos, Anti Paxos, and Blue Caves:
As we mentioned, it was a last-minute decision to visit Paxos and Anti Paxos. We booked the trip the evening before, and while our ticket stated that hotel pick-up and drop-off were included, it didn’t specify the exact pick-up location or time.
We believe this information should have been provided in the confirmation email.
To be honest, despite booking the trip, we weren’t very confident that we would actually be picked up from our hotel.
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Our cruise was scheduled to depart at 8:40 AM from Corfu Old Town Port, and since it’s about a 40-minute bus ride from our hotel in Ypsos, we left around 7:30 AM and walked to the nearby bus station, which was just a 3-4 minute walk away.
When we arrived at the bus station, we saw a large tour bus (not a public bus). On a whim, we asked the bus driver if his bus was going to Corfu Port. He kindly asked if we had booked a tour with Ionian Cruises and checked our names on his list. Yayy! Our names were on the list, and that was indeed the tour bus picking up guests from their hotels.
On the way to Corfu Port, the bus made additional stops to pick up other passengers. In fact, there was more than one bus collecting guests for the tour.
Lesson learned: It’s always better to book your trip in advance, and don’t hesitate to ask questions when you’re unsure during your travels.
Departure from Corfu Port to Paxos & Anti Paxos:
The bus dropped us right in front of the cruise ship and after checking the tickets by their staff, we were allowed to board the ship.
At the entrance of the ship, there was a photographer who was taking pictures.
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It was around 28 degrees Celsius and the temperature was supposed to go up to 35 degrees on that day in July, it’s always a difficult decision where to sit. We were definitely looking for the place where we don’t get the direct sun and we also enjoy the view.
One more thing, they also placed our name on the seats on the upper deck but it was in the direction of direct sun and it was also allowed to take up the other empty seats aswell. There was also a beach bar on the top deck to keep yourself hydrated during the trip.
Cruising in the Ionian Sea:
As we departed from the Corfu port at 8:40 AM (exactly the same time), we enjoyed a beautiful view of Corfu harbor and its beautiful old town.
We passed by two Venetian fortresses. As we started our journey towards the south, we enjoyed the view of the Kanoni peninsula and the Palace of Mon Repos – the birthplace of Prince Phillip. There’s a guided announcement taking place in different languages including English, German, French, and Greek.
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We almost sailed for 60 minutes and passed by the other villages of Corfu like Perama, Benirses, and Kavos. Our Cruise ship stopped at Lefkimi Port and picked up the guests from there aswell.
Exploring Paxos:
After cruising for around 1 hour, we reached Lakka, Paxos - a charming & picturesque village located on the North of Paxos. We reached Lakka, Paxos around 11 am and we had 2 hours to spend at Lakka.
Lakka is a horseshoe-shaped bay with beautiful crystal clear turquoise waters which makes it the ultimate spot for swimming.
Things to do in Paxos - Lakka:
1. Enjoy the beautiful beaches of Lakka:
Lakka has beautiful beaches including Harami Beach, Kanoni Beach, Planos Beach, and Komeno Beach. Most of these beaches are pebble beaches with calm water to swim and relax.
We have walked almost 10 minutes from the Lakka Shore to Planos Beach. There were several sunbed chairs with umbrellas. So we rented a sunbed - normally it costs between Euro 20-30.
After relaxing for a while, we went swimming in the beautiful water. Even though it was a bit crowdy near the beach it was quite relaxing.
home to several serene beaches, including Harami and Kanoni beaches, both of which offer pebbled shores and calm, shallow waters. These beaches are ideal for swimming or simply relaxing by the sea.
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2. Water Activities:
If you’re into water sports, you can also do water activities such as paddleboarding, kayaking, and sailing. There’s also an option to rent a boat and explore the surroundings.
3. Exploring the Lakka Village and Hiking:
Lakka Village has beautiful narrow streets and colorful villas. There are several Tavernas, Cafes, and shops. There are also many walking tracks where you can explore the lush landscapes and views of the Ionian Sea.
During our day trip to Paxos, we didn’t have much time to explore the village. We spent most of the time on the beach.
You can read our other blog about things to do in Paxos in which we will share our experience of staying in Paxos for two days.
So, after enjoying the refreshing swim and some snacks, we came back to your ship.
Exploring Blue Caves in Paxos:
Our ship started the cruise to the west coast of Paxos, where there are massive rocks and coastline and some rare Sandy beaches. After the short ride, we reached the unique sea caves.
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The opening of the caves doesn’t look so high but what really impressed us was that our well-trained caption took the boat inside the cave. The water near and inside the cave was so beautiful and clear. The view was totally mesmerizing.
What we would like to recommend is that you should either go to the front on the top deck or at least the front of the boat to enjoy the view of entering the cave.
We went to the front of the top deck and when our top was inside the cave, we were even able to touch the cave with our hand. If you are lucky, you might also find a Mediterranean monk seal inside the cave.
We have been to 3 caves - Ypapanti Cave, Blue Cave, and Cave Pappanikoli and the experience totally amazing. While sailing across the coastline, we have also passed by Tripitos Arch which is a stone bridge formed due to geological formation.
Exploring Anti Paxos:
After touring the caves, we sailed towards Anti Paxos which is undoubtedly the Caribbean of Europe - the crystal clear blue water.
But there’s a little twist, the boat didn’t deck on the shore or the beach but it was a deck a little further from the shore of Paradise Beach (Voutoumi). and the water was around 6 feet. For a person like me who doesn’t know how to swim, it was a bit challenging to go into the water.
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I was a bit reluctant in the beginning but it was announced that they also have life jackets. So, I wore a life jacket and went inside the water. There were few people who were jumping from the deck whereas some people like me were taking the stairs to go into the water.
Even though it was with a life jacket, we had a very nice swim of almost 30-40 minutes and we also went near the beach.
After the swim, there was also a shower where you could wash yourself before going into the boat. We almost had a stay of 1 hour there and we started our way back to Corfu.
Our Journey back to Corfu:
We started our journey back to Corfu around 16:30 from Antipaxos. On the way back, we passed by Gaios village in Paxos. On our way back, it got pretty hot as the sun was directly coming to us. We went inside where they had an air conditioner but it was quite full of people so it was a bit humid. So, we decided to come on the top deck of the boat.
Actually, there were two boats from the Ionian Cruise company. After dropping off the guests at Lefkimmi, for the entertainment for the guests, the friendly staff of the cruise started a little competition with the other sister boat which started sailing next to us.
Within a few minutes, the upper deck changed into a dancing floor where the DJ was playing a song, and the guests were dancing and cheering the guests from the other boat.
At one point, the other boat came next to our boat. One of the staff members threw the flag into our boat and the staff member from our hold the edge of the flag and they both waved the flag which was cheered by the guests. It was a fun ride. Even though it was pretty warm everyone was enjoying the music and dance.
After passing by the Old Town Corfu, we reached back the Corfu Old Town boat around 18:45 where our bus was waiting for the hotel drop off. As we wanted to spend some time in Corfu Old Town, we skipped the drop-off service and went to Old Town.
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Ending Note:
To summarize our blog, we would like to highlight the things that we liked and disliked which will help you to make your decision on whether to book a day trip to Paxos, Anti Paxos, and Blue Caves via Ionian Sea Cruise.
Why you should take a Day Cruise to Paxos, Antipaxos, and the Blue Caves:
If you’re short on time, you can visit different destinations including Paxos, Antipaxos, and the Blue Cave, and enjoy the beautiful beaches
You can take a back seat and let the Ionian Sea Cruise company plan your trip. You don’t need to worry about organizing boats, transfers, or schedules yourself.
There is also a bar where you can grab drinks and snacks.
It’s a great value for money as we had ultimate fun and activities at such a reasonable price.
Why you shouldn’t take a Day Cruise to Paxos, Antipaxos, and the Blue Caves:
One of the downsides of day trips is that you have a limited time on each spot with less flexibility as you have to stick with a fixed schedule.
In total, we spent 5-6 hours in commuting back and forth. In our opinion, it would have been better if we had a smaller high-speed boat which reduces the time of traveling and we would have a chance to spend more time on the other spot.
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