Through our carefully planned guided walking tour our guests will experience the beautiful, forgotten trails of Corfu’s landscape as well as discovering Old Town’s Italian architecture, Byzantine history and cobbled streets.
Sole of Corfu aims to promote health and total wellbeing in an idyllic hillside village on the inspiring Greek island of Corfu through walking tours, personal coaching and training.
Accommodation in Corfu
The facility can accommodate up to 10 people. There are 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms and 2 kitchens. All rooms are equipped by air conditioning. Free WiFi is available throughout the house. Wide terrace provides a great view of the courtyard garden, overflowing with scented flowers and shrubs such as jasmine, great for alfresco dining on the outdoor eating area equipped with BBQ.
For catering, we use a variety of local products. Breakfast, lunch and dinner is included with a mix of eating at local tavernas and at the accommodation.
Walking in Corfu
We have a variety of different walks, all guided by our experienced trainer. You will experience mountain paths, hillside walks and coastal trails.
You will come across old abandoned villages in the mountains and encounter the local wildlife and abundance of flora and fauna.
Corfu walking holiday itinerary
Each walk will start and end at the accommodation.
Day 1 – Arrival, introductions and team meeting
On arrival at the villa, you are welcomed by your trainer. Meals and snacks are available throughout the day.
Day 2 – A gentle one and a half hour walk to the neighbouring village of Episkepsi
You awake at daybreak in the Olive Press to the high call of the scops owl. The soft scent of jasmine is drifting through the wooden shutters, blending with the aroma of freshly made coffee, which emanates from the kitchen. Breakfast is served when you’re ready.
After this early start, your trainer Jimmy guides you uphill to the traditional village of Episkepsi. By now the cicadas have struck up their morning chorus. You can feel the sun warm on your skin, and watch as it brings to life the glorious landscape around you. This reaches a climax when you arrive at the village’s traditional kafenio (cafe), to be greeted by spectacular views of northern Corfu and the Ionian Sea beyond.
Lunch follows at a local taverna.
Day 3 – A three and a half hour walk that takes in Antinioti Lagoon, Nissos island, and an abandoned monastery in Almyros
You descend the winding footpath from the Olive Press, which is set about by lemon trees on either side. Past Almyros Beach, you cross a small foot-bridge and enter the nature reserve of Nissos Island. Among the foliage you spot a picturesque abandoned monastery, before you reach the Lagoon of Antinioti. The latter is a haven for threatened species such as the Eurasian otter, as well as sixteen types of orchid, ophrys and serapia. Depending on the time of year, you might also see European and Caspian pond turtles, frogs, and endangered Knipowitschia goerneri fish, a species that is also known as the Corfu dwarf goby.
Twitchers will be pleased to know that 150 species of native and migrating birds have been counted in and around the lagoon. These include spotted eagles, cormorants, falcons, egrets, Egyptian vultures, buzzards, Bonelli’s and Booted Eagles and kestrels.
Lunch follows at a local taverna.
Day 4 – A four to five hour walk to Old Perithia
Starting from the Olive Press, you wind up through olive groves along old cobbled footpaths. En route, you pass through old villages until at length you reach the village of Old Perithia, a Unesco World Heritage Site. Many years ago, the village was a thriving community, but after the advent of tourism, its inhabitants drifted to the coastal towns in search of more lucrative work. Their homes were abandoned and allowed to fall into ruin. The result was to create a uniquely atmospheric place whose natural beauties have begun in turn to lure visitors up from the shoreline.
Lunch follows in the traditional Foros taverna: a restaurant that has received the nod of approval from no less a personage than Rick Stein.
Nestling under the shoulder of Corfu’s highest peak, the village of Old Perithia remains one of Corfu’s best-kept secrets. It is known to have existed as a settlement as long ago as 700BC, making it the oldest village on the island.
Day 5 – A three to four hour circular walk from the Olive Press
You set out from the Olive Press and head up into the stone-walled sheep pastures and vineyards, through woods of poplars, eucalyptus and holm oaks. Depending on the time of year, you might walk over carpets of wild daisies and crocuses, or among pink and white almond blossom trees. Numerous species of birds and butterflies await you on the trail, as well as the occasional pine marten. Then you turn for home across the hills, while admiring the view of lake Spyridon.
You take lunch in a taverna in Acharavi, followed by a leisurely 20 minute walk uphill to the Olive Press.
Day 6 – A three hour-plus hike up Pantokrator Mountain
Setting off from the Olive Press early in the morning, you head up along old donkey tracks and fishermen’s paths towards the highest point of the island — the mighty mountain of Pantokrator, which glowers over the rest of the island from a height of 910m. En route you catch sight of jays, swallows and goldfinches swarming overhead. As you’d expect on such a trek, you’re constantly rewarded with breathtaking views.
Lunch follows at a local taverna.
Day 7 – Breakfast at the Olive Press. Departure to Corfu airport.
Dates and Availability
Start of the season:
April 6th – June 29th
BREAK FOR THE SUMMER (too hot)
Start again:
August 31st – November 8th
September 7th-14th 2019 – only 5 spaces available!
September 14th-21st 2019 – only 5 spaces available!
Bookings are weekly – Saturday to Saturday
The walks can be booked separately without the accommodation. The price for the all the guided walks as a package is €390.- pp
Please contact the holiday provider, through the contact form below, for more information.
