Design Your Own Odyssey Around Paxos

GETTING THERE

Qatar Airways (qatarairways.com) and Aegean Airlines

(aegeanair.com) offer connecting flights to Corfu with stopovers in Doha and Athens. From Corfu, you can catch a ferry to Gaios, the capital of Paxos.

STAY

The Thinking Traveller (thethinkingtraveller. com) has a handpicked collection of soulful villas on Paxos. Demand has been high since European travel reopened last summer, but weekly rates are surprisingly affordable and include transfers from Corfu—as well as a never-toomuch-trouble concierge service. Aperghis, which sleeps eight, starts at `4,78,051 per week. For pull-out-all-the-stops villas equipped with extravagant accessories (speedboats, chefs, and yoga instructors), look towards Five Star Greece (fivestargreece. com). Patrizia Peracchio’s estate, Paxos PTR, sleeps up to 22 and costs `20,16,778 per week.

EAT & DRINK

Averto

This trendy spot has a lovely backyard enveloped by greenery. Go for brunch (the coffee and eggs Benedict are excellent) or a twilit aperitif. Entrées `896–`1,568; Magazia; instagram.com/averto paxos

Bouloukos

Don’t let the booming Greek ballads put you off— this seaside taverna is a knockout. Order a Jenga tower of battered zucchini shavings dunked in blush-pink taramasalata, unctuous octopus with orzo, and the homemade pistachio gelato. Entrées `822–`1,419; Levrechio; bouloukostaverna.gr

Bournaos

Stop for a Greek coffee at this old-fashioned kafenio across the road from Averto. Magazia; 30-2662-030239

Café Kalimera

A prime spot for watching all the comings and goings in the capital, this local hangout has a split personality: al fresco tables under a bower of bougainvillaea for breakfast and a lively dive-bar vibe after hours. Gaios; 30-26620-32318

Carnayo

Gold Lounge Café Thin-crust pizzas, legit Greek salad, and spinetingling mojitos on a deck floating above a blue lagoon—this is what you came for. Entrées `822– `1,718; Mongonissi; 30-26620-32650

Le Rocher

Hidden down an alley beside a bakery, this tiny bar has a secret terrace on the water’s edge, just big enough for a handful of tables. Pitch-perfect at dusk as the horizon turns lavender and lilac. Loggos; 30-26620-31115

Vassilis

Run by the same family since 1957, this quaint-looking taverna has evolved into one of Paxos’s most sophisticated dining spots. Sea-urchin bruschetta with taramasalata and samphire with black rock salt are served quayside by a polished crew. Entrées `971–`1,867; Loggos; vassilisrestaurant.com