Ágios Geórgios (St George South), Argirades
Some 35 kilometres south from Corfu Town, Ágios
Geórgios is popular with both Corfiotes and tourists, with regular coach
loads of the former arriving from Corfu Town at the weekends and during
public holidays. There are two main ways to get to the resort -- the bus
from Corfu Town to Ágios Geórgios costs around EUR 3.00, while a taxi will
be in the region of EUR 65 and approximately EUR55 from the airport (May
2023). During the height of summer, there are four buses each
way Monday - Saturday (2023) and two on Sundays - the times do get changed so
check the timetable at the bus stops. It is also worth noting that the
bus coming down from Corfu Town is often late arriving at the resort and
also that it can take at least 15 minutes to get round the resort before
heading back to town. The timetable shows the same time at all bus
stops in the resort, but it can be, for example, after 10:30 before the
10:10 bus
reaches the latter stops in the resort (so make sure you wait in a shady
area if you are planning to travel up to Corfu Town - you could be waiting
for a long time!). The online bus timetable can be found
here.
There is also a good amount of parking in the resort. Be aware
when travelling from Corfu Town or the Airport, there are several towns of
the same or similar names - make sure when getting directions or a taxi,
that you ask for the right one (mention of Argirades and St George South
normally helps)!.
The resort grew rapidly in the late 1990's, although it is still
relatively small. It has, however, suffered from the usual Mediterranean
blight - lack of planning!. It spans two bays with sandy beaches in
each, with a rocky outcrop and the harbour in between. The northern
end is where bars / restaurants / shops sit side by side, a main sandy beach
(Issos Beach), a couple of smaller (rocky) beaches and the harbour can be
found. Moving south some 600-800 metres, things are much more spread out,
with areas of open land between shops and restaurants - it is this area that
contains the second beach (Golden Beach).
To the north, the beach offers many of the usual "sports", including Jet
Ski's and pedalos. Access is very easy, with no steps / slope to the
beach, but with very limited car parking. From this beach it is also
possible to walk (only) to the sand dunes and, behind them, Lake Korission -
a large salt water lagoon which is home to dozens of different types of
birds and insects.
The main area of sandy beach in the "southern" end starts near the XL
Sports Bar, carries on past Malibu and on to the next village further along
the bay. At the start, the beach can be quite narrow and is regularly
affected by the prevailing weather conditions - a storm overnight can reduce
the beach width to such an extent that the sun beds can be surrounded by
shallow water as the waves roll in - it brings a whole new meaning to
"drifting away listening to the gentle movement of the transparent Ionian
waves"!. Two hundred metres further on (under Barbayiannis Bar) and the
beach becomes wider - it is at this point that the beach becomes much used.
There are some good tavernas / bars within easy walking distance of the
southern beach - Barbayiannis, Malibu, Kafe Sas, XL and Spiros on the Beach.
Access to the beach along this stretch is by slope /
steps - the further south you go (viz. towards / beyond Malibu) the longer
the slope. Beyond Malibu there is plenty of "free" sand - viz. no
sunbed's or umbrellas (or showers).
Car and Bike hire are available from several places in the resort, both
specialist hire shops and the travel agents shops - from experience, the
rates are pretty similar.
As far as cash is concerned, there are now (September 2023) six ATM's (cash
point's) in the resort - adjacent to Anna's Supermarket (about two hundred metres before the T junction when coming in to Ágios Geórgios - Piraeus
Bank), opposite Hectors Supermarket (EuroBank), outside Esperando's and
Spiro's supermarkets, adjacent to Star Travel and outside Lord Travel - all
major cards are catered for (e.g. MasterCard, Link, Visa, etc). It should
perhaps be noted that the ones outside the travel agencies and supermarkets
are operated by EuroNet and all make extra charges for withdrawals (over and above the
normal "overseas" charges that UK and Greek banks normally apply). Beyond these,
the nearest ATM's are in Moraitika (on the road to Corfu Town) and Lefkimi
(on the south bound road). There are also plenty of ATMs in Corfu Town
itself, although given the difficulty of parking in town, it is often better
to drive down to Lefkimi where several banks have offices and ATM's. Some places
in the resort will also Sterling notes. The exchange rates used in the
official exchange places in the resorts appears to be government controlled
and are often very poor when compared with that offered by the banks in
Corfu Town.
There is a local (private) doctors surgery in the resort - hours of
opening and contact phone numbers are noted outside.
Most of the supermarkets in the resort sell basic
pharmaceutical goods and there is a pharmacy on the main road in Argirades -
unlike in the UK, you can often buy some antibiotics over the counter in the
pharmacy. If you forget some specific medicines, or run out, it is worth
taking the box / bottle in to the pharmacy as they can often get hold of
matching medicines.
There are plenty of Supermarkets in the resort - these normally have a
good range of foodstuffs, fruit / vegetables, water and alcohol as well as
local goods (towels, shoes, gifts, etc. - the beach towels are quite cheap
and often worth purchasing when you arrive rather than using some of your
ever decreasing luggage allowance!). Most supermarkets in the resort
keep long hours, often not closing until around 23:30. Bigger supermarkets
(e.g. Masouti's, Lidl's, Diella's) can be found on the main road near Lefkimi
- a simple 15-20 minute drive. These are normally open until 20:00 but are
normally
closed on Sundays.
Ágios Geórgios has the right recipe for a successful holiday and there
is something for everyone. As St George's geographical position lies in the
south west part of Corfu, some of the most spectacular sunsets are to be
captured from many positions - over a long cool drink from the terrace of a
cafe or restaurant, enjoying a pleasant stroll along the road, or just
relaxing right on the beach watching the sun on the red horizon slowly
dipping in to the waters, making way for the stars to creep out in the
tranquil night sky (if you are a star gazer, there are plenty to watch).
There is an active Facebook Group at
St George
Corfu South where locals and visitors alike post photos and helpful
links, etc.
© Tapscott 1999-2024. Last
revised:
29 February, 2024