Paxos and Antipaxos

Paxos is the smallest of the seven main Ionian islands: about 10 km long, up to 3 km wide and 25.3 km² in area, about 15 km off Parga. Most of the hilly island is covered in olive groves. The west coast is a line of steep white cliffs with sea caves; the three main villages, Gaios, Lakka and Longos, are on the east coast. In myth, Poseidon made the island by striking Corfu with his trident, to have some quiet with Amphitrite.

Gaios, the main town and port, sits on a narrow channel sheltered by two islets: Agios Nikolaos, and Panagia with its church and monastery. The Paxos Museum, opened in 1996 in a neoclassical building of 1905, tells the island's story, from the 1864 vote of the Ionian Parliament for union with Greece to a traditional Paxiot room.

Antipaxos lies about 3 km south: a small island of vineyards with 21 residents (2021), and three main beaches, Vrika (white sand), Mesovrika and Voutoumi (pebbles). Sea taxis cross from Gaios in about 15 minutes.

Car and passenger ferries run all year from Igoumenitsa (about 1.5 hours), which is 86 km (1 hour 15 minutes) from Preveza. In summer, boats also run from Parga, an hour from Preveza.