40km south of Corfu town and just 4km from Lefkimmi is the traditional village of Vitalades. The main
occupations for the population, of around 530, are fishing and agriculture. The fish is caught daily and
served in the tavernas of Vitalades or Gardenos beach, nearby.
The festival takes place on 29th June in honour of the Apostles, Saint Peter and Saint Paul. There
is also a 15th century monastery just outside the village, dedicated to Saint Panteleimon, where a
second celebration is held on 27th July. From the village, there is a road that will take you down to
the beautiful sandy beach of Gardenos; where you can hire sunbeds and a parasol. The back drop is
dramatic here, with the hills behind standing guard over the bay like a green blanket. There are three
tavernas here and all of them offer fresh fish; caught locally, the same day. There is a café bar nearby
and a taverna on the hill with fantastic views of the sea and the sunset. There is also a small harbour,
where the locals keep their fishing boats. Here there is mud or clay underfoot which the villagers
cover themselves with, allow to dry, then wash off, to leave themselves with smooth skin. There is a
mini market in the village as well as a couple of kafenions and a grill room which does pizza, to eat
in or take away.
I visited in the early evening on a summer’s night. The men had put square tables on the road
opposite the kafenion and the grill room/pizzeria and sat on white plastic chairs. Here they would
debate the issues of the day while drinking beer, ouzo or coffee and would call over the road for a
plate of souvlaki. The women were on the other side of the road sitting outside their houses, probably
talking about the men! This is a very calm, pretty village where life hasn’t changed much for many a
year... thank the Lord. All this information was kindly supplied from the books written by Steve Ford and the money raised from sales of these goes to Corfu Charities. Please use the link below to download your own copy and find more information on all the villages listed and more from Steve
occupations for the population, of around 530, are fishing and agriculture. The fish is caught daily and
served in the tavernas of Vitalades or Gardenos beach, nearby.
The festival takes place on 29th June in honour of the Apostles, Saint Peter and Saint Paul. There
is also a 15th century monastery just outside the village, dedicated to Saint Panteleimon, where a
second celebration is held on 27th July. From the village, there is a road that will take you down to
the beautiful sandy beach of Gardenos; where you can hire sunbeds and a parasol. The back drop is
dramatic here, with the hills behind standing guard over the bay like a green blanket. There are three
tavernas here and all of them offer fresh fish; caught locally, the same day. There is a café bar nearby
and a taverna on the hill with fantastic views of the sea and the sunset. There is also a small harbour,
where the locals keep their fishing boats. Here there is mud or clay underfoot which the villagers
cover themselves with, allow to dry, then wash off, to leave themselves with smooth skin. There is a
mini market in the village as well as a couple of kafenions and a grill room which does pizza, to eat
in or take away.
I visited in the early evening on a summer’s night. The men had put square tables on the road
opposite the kafenion and the grill room/pizzeria and sat on white plastic chairs. Here they would
debate the issues of the day while drinking beer, ouzo or coffee and would call over the road for a
plate of souvlaki. The women were on the other side of the road sitting outside their houses, probably
talking about the men! This is a very calm, pretty village where life hasn’t changed much for many a
year... thank the Lord. All this information was kindly supplied from the books written by Steve Ford and the money raised from sales of these goes to Corfu Charities. Please use the link below to download your own copy and find more information on all the villages listed and more from Steve
Websitehttps://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=steve+ford+corfu+villages&ref=nb_sb_noss_2
Emailcorfuvillageseu@gmail.com
Location:Unnamed Road, Vitalades 490 80, Greece