Porto Timoni

Porto Timoni is a double beach: two small bays back to back, joined by a narrow neck of land on the northwestern coast of Corfu, just below the hilltop village of Afionas. From above, the shape is unforgettable: a thin isthmus of pale shingle with water on both sides, each bay a different shade of blue, framed by steep green slopes of scrub. Because the two coves face in different directions, they rarely look the same at the same moment; one may be ruffled by the wind while the other lies flat and glassy.

The beach itself is made of pebbles and coarse shingle rather than sand, and the water is extraordinarily clear, shading from pale aquamarine close to the shore to deep blue a few metres out. The isthmus ties a rocky headland to the coast of Corfu, and there is no building, no road and no service at the water's edge. The charm of the place is exactly this simplicity: you can swim on one side, cross the few metres of stones, and swim on the other.

Getting there is part of the experience. The path down from Afionas begins among the old houses of the village, which sits high on a ridge above the sea, and then drops steeply over rocky, uneven ground. Two viewpoints on the way give the famous view from above, the best moment to understand the shape of the double bay.

Getting there

Porto Timoni lies on the northwestern coast of Corfu, below the village of Afionas; Corfu Town is about 25 km away. The nearest airport is Corfu International Airport (CFU), about 26 km away. The beach is reached on foot from Afionas, where the trail starts in the village: the steep, rocky descent takes around twenty minutes and the climb back a little longer, so good shoes and water are wise. In summer, boats from the beach of Agios Georgios Pagon also come round to the bays.