Glyfa Beach Villas

The beach was the highlight for us: we could start each day on a comfortable lounger, wading in warm, clear water with hardly anyone around. The bay is small, with plenty of loungers and parasols. Glyfa Seafood next door sometimes expects guests to buy a reasonably priced drink, but they'll bring it right to your lounger. We ate there several times and loved the varied seafood menu and its quality. There's also a private pool one flight above the apartment, clean and fun for younger guests, though we preferred the sea. We had a peaceful eight-night stay as a mother traveling with my three young adult children. Our newly renovated two-bedroom apartment was right on the beach, with spacious double bedrooms, good bedding, en suite showers, and toiletries. The kitchen had a two-ring hob, oven, DeLonghi coffee maker, and fridge freezer, enough for our needs since we mostly ate out. On arrival, the pantry was unusually generous: bottled water, fizzy drinks, jam, illy coffee capsules, teas, beers, and lots of fresh fruit. A friendly cleaner came every other day, thoroughly cleaning and changing towels and bedding. Gerry made a big difference. He runs this small family-owned complex kindly, replies promptly, and is available without hovering. His English was much better than my Greek. He arranged our return taxi to the airport for €60, including extra hold luggage, which was cheaper than what we could find online. The drive from Corfu Airport takes about 40 minutes, and taxis are easy to find. You may want to hire a car. Barbati is about a 3 km round trip from the villas for shopping at the small, well-stocked supermarkets, plus Coffee Lovers, an independent bakery with pastries, cakes, savoury bakes, filled rolls, and baguettes at reasonable prices. I'm not a coffee drinker, but the takeaway queues suggested it was popular. The two young women there greeted me warmly and gave useful advice in good English. Barbati also has a more traditional bakery selling home-baked bread, cookies, and biscuits. The Green Bus goes past the villas to most nearby destinations, though it doesn't always stick to its schedule. It's more like a large, air-conditioned coach than an English bus. You can buy a €2 ticket from the conductor, and the friendly driver can drop you right outside the villa. The shared pool serves all four villas and was large and clean, with sunbeds around it. The apartment suited our needs and then some. It's a peaceful spot and, for the price, I think it's hard to find a more perfect location. Couples, families, and children should enjoy it, though the 110 steps between the road and beach may be difficult for anyone with limited mobility. We had a wonderful stay and can't recommend Glyfa Beach Villas and Gerry enough.