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Getting There
The drive from the centre takes about 40 minutes as the roads are narrow and twisty, a GPS is highly recommended if you are new to the island, but you can follow the signs to Lake Korission and will get you there. The place is well know so asking locals for the lake will get you reliable instructions.
The drive from the centre takes about 40 minutes as the roads are narrow and twisty, a GPS is highly recommended if you are new to the island, but you can follow the signs to Lake Korission and will get you there. The place is well know so asking locals for the lake will get you reliable instructions.
View In Corfu - Things you Can Do in a larger map
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Chalikounas - The windy beach
Chalikounas beach being part of the Korission lagoon is one of the few beaches where little or no development is allowed as it is part of the Natura 2000 areas, so by today's standards one of the few 'wild' beaches left unaltered by human intervention and yes it is also one of the windiest beaches of the island catching the summer north westerlies side on, but still sheltered from large waves good for beginners and intermediates but leaving advanced sailors hungry for larger waves.
The Beach is a long, wide stretch of soft yellow sand backed by bushes and wild vegetation, there are a couple of kiosks which server drinks and basic snacks, beds & umbrellas can be hired at a few locations along with basic showers and changing room so you don't have to carry everything from home, it is perfectly possible to simply drive and have all the essentials for a day on the beach.
Which makes it a luxurious spot for surfers, lots of space to rig up, very few swimmers to worry about, no parking problems or having to carry equipment on your back, leave your stuff on the beach to go for a drink and it will all be there whenever you go back. For surfers this is the closest you can get to 'lounge surfing'.
When windy this beach is never crowded, indeed the crowded can never be used to discribe this beach allowing kiters to freely lay out their lines for takeoff and should a launch go sour all that soft sand provides plenty of crach landing area.
Conditions during the summer are very consistent and prediction accurate as there are few variations in the weather. Typically the island will get a stream of cool dry wind from the North West once a week and will blow for 2-3 sometimes 4 days.
These winds start from the morning from a force 3 and peak early afternoon as they get accelerated by the local sea breeze to a solid 5 going on to 6, gradually fading to a 4 as the sun sets, but will continue to throughout the night dropping to a 2-3.
The best time is between 3-6 pm when the wind is at its peak and before veering to the north when it will become somewhat gusty from the near by mountain of Panaktor. You can continue sailing well into the evening but if you want clean air you need to stay a good 500 meters inshore to avoid the mountains turbulence.
Day two is often the strongest and can pick up to a solid force 6, easily reaching 7 and peaking to a 8+. Yes, it can and does get very windy here, but typically winds are in the region of 4-6.
The Sea on the other hand is moderate at best, even when the winds are howling since the beach is protect by a rocky point further up the coast and no its far too rocky to catch the waves there, so the best you can find are modest rolling waves inshore and short chop along the beach.
This makes it perfect for beginners to intermediate sailors making it very easy to launch and gradually move out to more challenging conditions and knowing that if they cannot restart in deep waters all it will cost them is a long walk back. The beach downwind is present shape, shallow and safe so it will catch any drifters without any worries.
This of course will not make advanced sailors happy who are thirsty for big waves, at least not during the summer months. September onwards when the Southerlies make their appearance it is a different story altogether. Fully exposed to the South the waves often rise above the coastline and into the lagoon. Surfing during the autumn and winters months pose a whole set of new challenges including safety since the beach becomes almost deserted.
Safety during the summer is hardly an issue since there are no currents, tides, shore break and the beach itself has its own safety net to catch any possible drifters unless you are stupid enough to go out for a couple of miles in which case you could be in for a very long drift to mainland Greece, the island of Paxous if lucky.
The local kite and surf schools have rescue ribs and will pick up anyone in trouble but it is always a good idea to let them know if you plan to play deep inshore.
Equipment availability : Update coming early summer.
The Beach is a long, wide stretch of soft yellow sand backed by bushes and wild vegetation, there are a couple of kiosks which server drinks and basic snacks, beds & umbrellas can be hired at a few locations along with basic showers and changing room so you don't have to carry everything from home, it is perfectly possible to simply drive and have all the essentials for a day on the beach.
Which makes it a luxurious spot for surfers, lots of space to rig up, very few swimmers to worry about, no parking problems or having to carry equipment on your back, leave your stuff on the beach to go for a drink and it will all be there whenever you go back. For surfers this is the closest you can get to 'lounge surfing'.
When windy this beach is never crowded, indeed the crowded can never be used to discribe this beach allowing kiters to freely lay out their lines for takeoff and should a launch go sour all that soft sand provides plenty of crach landing area.
Conditions during the summer are very consistent and prediction accurate as there are few variations in the weather. Typically the island will get a stream of cool dry wind from the North West once a week and will blow for 2-3 sometimes 4 days.
These winds start from the morning from a force 3 and peak early afternoon as they get accelerated by the local sea breeze to a solid 5 going on to 6, gradually fading to a 4 as the sun sets, but will continue to throughout the night dropping to a 2-3.
The best time is between 3-6 pm when the wind is at its peak and before veering to the north when it will become somewhat gusty from the near by mountain of Panaktor. You can continue sailing well into the evening but if you want clean air you need to stay a good 500 meters inshore to avoid the mountains turbulence.
Day two is often the strongest and can pick up to a solid force 6, easily reaching 7 and peaking to a 8+. Yes, it can and does get very windy here, but typically winds are in the region of 4-6.
The Sea on the other hand is moderate at best, even when the winds are howling since the beach is protect by a rocky point further up the coast and no its far too rocky to catch the waves there, so the best you can find are modest rolling waves inshore and short chop along the beach.
This makes it perfect for beginners to intermediate sailors making it very easy to launch and gradually move out to more challenging conditions and knowing that if they cannot restart in deep waters all it will cost them is a long walk back. The beach downwind is present shape, shallow and safe so it will catch any drifters without any worries.
This of course will not make advanced sailors happy who are thirsty for big waves, at least not during the summer months. September onwards when the Southerlies make their appearance it is a different story altogether. Fully exposed to the South the waves often rise above the coastline and into the lagoon. Surfing during the autumn and winters months pose a whole set of new challenges including safety since the beach becomes almost deserted.
Safety during the summer is hardly an issue since there are no currents, tides, shore break and the beach itself has its own safety net to catch any possible drifters unless you are stupid enough to go out for a couple of miles in which case you could be in for a very long drift to mainland Greece, the island of Paxous if lucky.
The local kite and surf schools have rescue ribs and will pick up anyone in trouble but it is always a good idea to let them know if you plan to play deep inshore.
Equipment availability : Update coming early summer.
Sporting things you can do In Corfu - Wind & Kite Surfing