Welcome to San Stefanos (NW Corfu) > Out and About

How I found San Stefanos.!!!

(1/21) > >>

dimitris:
First time I visited San Stefanos was when I was 6 or 7 years old,
It was a daytrip with our Arillas Local School . We walked down from the school all the way from Arillas Church and ended up outside waves Taverna. At this Year the schooll had about 60 children. my class was consisted by 7 kids. it was me, Noula, Aggelos from waves taverna, Thanassis from Tsaros, Klaudios the Brewmeister from Corfu Beer, Vasillis from Armourada in Arillas , Spiros and Spirodoula Kaloudis from Arillas.
This is my strory,... very simple as we have the privelege to have been born here.
What is yours?

YANNIS26:
I first visited Corfu in approx 1995 and spent 2 excellent holidays at the Costas Golden Beach in St. George North.It was during my 2nd trip we hired a car and toured the North of the island.This is how I first found San Stefanos.The following year we booked The Thomas Bay which in those days was bed & breakfast.Among the waiters were George (ex Mistral) & Vangelis (ex Nafsica).Both of whom I now believe are fisherman based in San Stefanos harbour.These were the days before Little Prince & Athina among others existed.In fact Spiros of Bar 38 was also a waiter in the Thomas Bay.
After 3 wonderful years at the Thomas Bay it went half board.It was now time to find somewhere else, as a major part of my holiday is to eat out in the evening at one of the many excellent Tavernas in the village.
One day I followed the path from the beach to the top of cardiac hill & discovered the Romanza. In those days Leo & Jenny now at the Mythica ran the Taverna.Katie in those days ran reception and when Leo and Jenny left,she along with her son Andreas took over the Taverna.I must say what a brilliant job they are doing but I could be biased as this years visit will be my 12th.To get back to the early years Demetra(ex Delfino Blu Pool bar) who now runs Sotto Zero ice cream parlour in the village ran the Romanza pool bar.Also from those days was Aris a young waiter who spoke very limited English.He is now at the Nafsika and his English has come on a ton & is now far better than my Greek will ever be.

Yammas
Yiannis

don:
After 20+ years of holiday abroad I made my first visit to Corfu in 1999 after seeing the Thomas Bay Hotel advertised in Lunn Poly window. Lunn Poly the younger folks ask? Thomson bought them out. At this stage of my life I had stuck to my promise of never visiting the same resort twice.
I don't know what happened but as I arrived home on the friday night I recalled the great welcome that we'd had and the wonderful people that we'd met and by 9.00am next day I was in the travel agents booking up for 2000.
I have stayed in many places throughout the village and never felt at all disappointed in any that I've stayed at. June this year will see us making our 25th visit.
It is the welcome from all our Corfiot friends that we have made over the years and the multitude of characters that we have met there who have also made it a home from home.
Roll on june...

tonyco1:
We found it - - - - - Completely by accident!
Up to 1982 we had gone to holiday in the UK, once to Tenerife, & Majorca - we were not too impressed, the Brits were relatively poor compared to the Germans who could tip well, so the Spanish Waiters didn't give good service in those days.

Now a year later & it's 1983 - we just could not afford a holiday this year, money in those days was really tight, as we had started a mortgage on our house, 5 years before.
Inflation was rife and we struggled. I was doing a part time job as well, getting around 4-6 hours sleep in those days, Linda had gone back to work and mum-in-law looked after the kids. The Mortgage rate had gone through the roof - I'll never know how we survived some of those years!
All of a sudden, my company had negotiated the annual pay rise with the Trade Union, months after it was due -
we got an unbelievable 23% pay rise with the owed back pay thrown in as well. I was due to have 3 weeks holiday,
I arranged to work for my part-time job for the first 6 days, and was looking for a caravan holiday.

We suddenly had enough for a holiday for two abroad and mum-in-law was happy to look after the kids.

We bought the Sunday Mail, and saw a holiday cancellation advertised by Greek Connection Holidays, with a good discount, I phoned, booked it,
drove to Fleet and paid the next day, collected our tickets, and caught the night flight to some funny place in Corfu I had never heard of, called Agios Stefanos.
We arrived outside the Golden Beach Hotel at 05.00am. Katie the rep, (now Katie Mouzakitis via Michalis), showed us to the Apartment above the Old Harbour.

I looked at Linda - and said (tired and exhausted), we are going to have to make the best of it, nothing here, what can we do? It's a disaster!!
We got up hours later and spent a few hours lunch and drinks, at the Nafsika Pool, ate at Golden Beach in the evening (now Fantasea Restaurant),
Stefanos (Condor) and Nikos ran the bar and restaurant  and Stefanos said it's too late  - pay tomorrow!!
This was the start of a love affair with Agios (San) Stefanos (NW).

Next day we got up early, having shopped at Margarita's mini Market for Breakfast cereals and rolls etc, we saw a strange VW camper van drive down onto the beach.
It turned from a van into the Kantina, beach snacks and water sports, including wind surfing, run by Captain Nikos and his little son Leon!! Angelina sold the food and drink.

No beach beds in those days, but big beach and loads of fun.
Only the Church, the Golden Beach, Nafsika Hotels, Manthos Taverna, Margarita's Cafe' Bar & Mini Market, Barras and Sunset Taverna's were open there then,
plus a selection of Apartments and villas were there.
The people there were fantastic, friendly and like no one we had ever met before, so different to England and better than Spain.
We returned with the kids in '84 to be greeted like family, and we have been back every year since! We love it like no other place, it always feels like home.
This feeling and the local people, the new generations, has never changed, in spite of the growth.
Tony & Linda

H A S:
Hi 1986 we went to the parks hotel Guivia we got off the plane and had to walk to the shed as it was then  i think there was 1 carosel for cases.
Guivia then was smelly with open drains and rubish just left out in the roadway.
went out first night to a taverna  the man said you pay layter we were driking until time to go . went to pay bill only charged us a small amount of dracmas i thought it would be a lot more than it was .
Went in a shop next day picked somthink up to look at the shop keeper saide you take if you like come back and pay later.
We saide we would not come back to corfu at the time as it was not devoped then.
Thenn we found San Stef and have returned i dont no how many times and if i had my way would not go anywere else.
Harry

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page

San Stefanos

Where to eat Cafés and Bars Holiday Info Tourist info

Local Walks

Walk to Arillas Walk to AG Georgios Walk to Afionas Walk to Porto Timoni
Go to full version