Benitses Village: A Beautiful Holiday Resort

Last updated on June 23rd, 2020 at 03:28 pm

What is Benitses Corfu today?

Benitses village is a very old traditional village of Corfu and one of the original holiday resorts in Greece. A charming combination of mountains and sea. When speaking of tourism on Corfu, this is where it started.

Perhaps one of the most famous seaside villages in the country. Due to the strange and strong attraction exerted to almost every visitor to Corfu that is difficult to describe in words.

May be is the lush vegetation on the surrounding mountains. The notorious nightlife of the recent past. The beautiful history of the place or the famous first guests and residents of the 50s..no one can say.

Forget anything you knew about the past. The resort with the notorious nightlife is nothing but a distant memory. Benitses today is an idyllic lively place, with a great past and future that every visitor to Corfu will want to discover and share with their friends.

Check out this video of Nektarios Spinoulas, here is his youtube channel

About the name of Benitses

The official name of the village is Benitses in the plural, which refers to a set of settlements or regions.

But the village is more familiar to locals in the singular as Benitsa(Mpenitsa) or Binitsa(Mpinitsa). So there are several variations of the name that might confuse visitors.

However, any way you name it is the same.

Benitses Resort in Corfu – Outdoor activities

Benitses has expanded in recent years due to the tourism of the 70s and 80s into a large tourist resort in Corfu.

Today boasts the wonderful yacht harbor (Marina). A project that, among other things includes a large parking area. Has berths for hundreds of private boats, as well as the local pleasure craft and other facilities.

Hotels, apartments, villas, and rooms are ideal for cheap holidays in a wonderful place which is a perfect marriage of mountain and sea.

Restaurants and tavernas cater to every taste. From traditional Greek cuisine to pizzas, pasta, and even Chinese food.

Benitses offers a low key but pleasant nightlife with many bars. Most of them around the new yacht harbor (Marina)

The beaches are very clean, of the cleanest on the island, with crystal clear water, and have been awarded the EU blue flag. They are a mix of shingle and sand, sunbeds can be rented, and water sports enjoyed here. And these beaches have been considerably enlarged in recent years, and are well maintained for the visitor’s enjoyment.

In Benitses you can do many outdoor activities. You can go fishing, do windsurfing, sailing, snorkeling and almost all watersports. If you’re a real outdoor enthusiast, Globo Surf has some great tips and guides for almost every outdoor activity.

Residents of Benitses are hospitable, friendly, and familiar with most foreign cultures. They enjoy helping you to enjoy your holiday to the full!

Location

Benitses(Mpenitses) is on the east coast in the center of the island. Only 12 kilometers south of Corfu Town and 9 kilometers from the international airport Ioannis Kapodistrias.

The traditional part lies in a beautiful location in the middle of a green valley. It sweeps down to the sea and has kept its natural beauty intact. Despite the intense activity and large touristic development since mass tourism that started in the 1960s.

The village is literally resting on the green mountains where there are several isolated small churches hidden in the trees. Such as Agia Paraskevi, Agia Triada on an amazing knoll, and others. Therefore conditions are ideal for biking and hiking. On numerous trails leading to the mountainous village of Stavros. From there the view of the middle and south part of the island is amazing.

The existence of sources created a river which many years ago passed through the current path of the old village. The diversion of the river was earlier last century.
These sources are until today the aqueduct. And is the reason that Benitses been inhabited since ancient times and the origin of its name.

But for all these, there are more details on the page dedicated to the history of Benitses.

The main street offers to the visitor every kind of stores. Supermarkets, travel agencies, tourist shops, car rentals, restaurants, cafes, bars, etc.

Despite the enormous development of tourism, the village has retained almost intact all its natural beauty. The old buildings are preserved, and the village combines the attractions of both sea and mountains.

Population

The village’s population is 1,000 residents, most of which deal with tourism. But in the past, their traditional occupations were fishing, cultivating the olives and citrus fruit. In the distant past, the operation of watermills for flour production in the mountainside of the village. Some old occupations like fishing are reviving now especially during winter.

The village has also Doctors, Pharmacy, Surgery, Travel Agencies, laundry, Water Sports, etc….

The 5 settlements

The village consists of five settlements.

The traditional part that is located between the mountains and is called Panochori (that means “the upper village”).

Another settlement is around the aqueduct and is named Vaska (reservoir).

The settlement around the old port is called Skaloma and it is the current commercial center of the village with the most shops.

The village expanded south through the part called Chontrakia or Kontrakia along the main road to Lefkimi. Up to Tsaki area, that is the last settlement, and where Benitses ends.

Benitses map

Maps of Benitses wide area can be found here.

What Benitses offering today

For the prospective visitor is useful to emphasize that Benitses of today have nothing common whatsoever with the lively tourist center of the 80s and 90s.

There are vast improvements in infrastructure. In accommodation such as hotels, apartments, and rooms as well as in the shops, the roads, and beaches.

Also here are some of the best for their food quality and flavors restaurants on the island. We could say that Benitses is now a culinary paradise, and these at surprisingly low prices!

Benitses is also one of the safest destinations, don’t worry if you lost something, even money, someone will find them for you.

Also, the young tourists of the 80s and 90s have moved South and are nothing but a memory.

Also, the location of the village in the middle of the island makes it an ideal base to explore the rest of the island. The best sandy beaches which are located on the west and southern coast of Corfu are just a few miles away. And the City of Corfu just 8 miles away.

Also from the yacht marina sail daily large and small boats for small excursions-cruises to every beautiful part of the island. To the opposite mainland coast or to the island of Paxos. Heavenly places as Sivota on the mainland are only one to two hours away.

The Beaches

The beaches in Benitses are not like the narrow pebble beaches of the past.

Τhey have improved significantly, have grown in wide and length. They are comfortable and with supportive infrastructures. Such as lifeguards and sunbeds with umbrellas everywhere. With water sports and above all with the most crystal clear waters of the Eastern coast of Corfu.

They have been awarded the European Union Blue Flag because of the purity of water. Benitses is an ideal place for swimming, sailing, and water sports.

There is a beach at the north entrance of the village called Laopetra beach, with shallow and warm waters.

Another beach is next to the new port. At the center of the Skaloma settlement, close to most shops and restaurants.

A very busy beach with water sports is the Chontrakia or Loutrouvia. It extends from Potamaki hotel up to the bay of Koutsomaroula, a natural fishing port.

More small beaches can be found along the road to the south until the Tsaki settlement.

The village now has strengthened its traditional color. There are many traditional customs and cultural happenings throughout the summer. It is focusing on safety and infrastructure. Offering sea and sun on blue flag beaches and green mountains.

Tourist facilities

Every hotel or group of rooms small or large provides free broadband internet access to all costumers.

The village of Benitses is the perfect destination for families, young and older couples. Also to anyone who is looking for a relaxing time in the sun whilst enjoying good hospitality by the friendly and hospitable locals.

Benitses is a tourist destination for a relaxing and unforgettable vacation.

The clean sea

The sea in Benitses is remarkably clean, thanks to a marine plant named Posidonia which you may see on the sea-bed.

This may not appeal to swimmers because of the dark color. But it cleans the water by filtering toxic substances, heavy minerals, and carbon dioxide. It provides oxygen and also valuable shelter and food for the small fish. Generally, it is responsible for the delicious seafood available, as well as for the purity of the water.

The Posidonia meadows are green, but when the leaves get old they take a dark brown color. Separate from the plant and with the help of the tides they end up on the beaches. Which are cleaned after the winter storms so that they are beautifully clean and visitors can enjoy them?

Posidonia is not seaweed as some people mistakenly think. But a valuable marine plant that grows, blooms, and multiplies like terrestrial plants. It`s biggest enemies are the trawlers, intensive fishing, and human ignorance.

It is a sign of a clean sea and a well-balanced environment and only thrives in the cleanest waters of the Mediterranean sea.

Plenty of Sightseeing

There are many sights you can see and admire in the wide area of Benitses.

Don’t forget to visit Achilleion palace three km north of the village center. Don’t miss the famous Shell museum, or else Sea museum, housed in the lobby of Potamaki hotel.

Admire the large rock with a thin base called Laopetra (people’s rock) in the sea at the north entrance of the village. And of course the ruins of the hot Roman baths in the center of the village.

You can walk inside the vast yacht marina. Or you can use the plethora of small mountain paths through the lush vegetation. Between old abandoned churches and other buildings that may lead you to the mountainous villages of Stavros and Agioi Deka.

Finally enjoy the exceptional beauty of Benitse’s old traditional village with friendly residents.

More details and posts about Benitses