For our final day with the car (Tuesday 14/08/2012), we headed North from Sivota to a beach at Drepano (Δρέπανο).
Drepano is located just to the North of Igoumenitsa (Ιγουμενίτσα), where the ferries come in from Italy, Corfu and the other Ionian islands.
Driving through Igoumenitsa is actually quite interesting; it is a proper working Greek city, not somewhere built purely for the tourists. I’ve never had a proper look round, but it would be nice to sometime. OK, its perhaps not the most ‘exciting’ of places. But there are still some interesting places. For a start, we drove past the local government building, a proper police station (!), bakeries, shops (not just touristy shops), and the main port (not for the first time, we nearly ended up on the ferry to Corfu when Dad took a wrong turn).
Taking the coastal road signed to Drepano, you are soon outside the city. Drepano is a nice beach, and considering its proximity to Igoumenitsa, it is surprising to note that there are no sunbeds and it is very quiet. Not only is it sandy, its also shallow for quite a way out, and you even get a view of the ferries going in and out. Try not to get seasick when the waves come in!! The end closest to Igoumenitsa is busier; there are a couple of tavernas with sunbeds next to them. We like to go beyond those – right to the far end (past the little power station) where there is a small car park and a little caravan selling drinks and snacks.
I quite like Drepano and would happily spend all day there! We didn’t though – later in the afternoon we drove back towards Sivota, stopping at Plataria (Πλαταριά) – a fishing village which is between Igoumenitsa and Sivota. Smaller than Sivota, but there are a few tavernas there and I’d imagine its quite nice in the evenings to sit along the sea front and eat. The beach is quite nice too, that’s sandy and not as busy as the ones at Sivota.
I’d recommend a visit to both Plataria and Igoumenitsa as well as Drepano Beach. None of them are too far from Sivota.
Here’s the updated map: Use the + and – buttons to zoom in and out, and click the icons to see what they’re marking.
View Sivota 2012 – Σύβοτα 2012 in a larger map
Tomorrow: A final round-up of my week in Greece.
FH.
