2019 has been our busiest season yet and Villa Loukia does not have an empty night all season.  Our great team over in Kassiopi is coping well.   Guests who plan ahead are winning too as I have taken bookings for 2020 and 2021!   It really does pay to plan ahead, especially if you have very inflexible dates.

We have just one week left of the 2019 season from Saturday 17th - Saturday 24th August.  Once it's gone it's gone!  We have, however, started taking bookings for 2020 so why not plan ahead to avoid disappointment!   It is always good to have a holiday to look forward to.  Our forward planning booking  record is currently at 21 months!

We loved everything about Villa Loukia – just for example: the cream and green external colour scheme, the comfort and spaciousness, the clear instructions, the sharp kitchen knives, the swing-seat, living in an olive grove, the ping-pong table, the bathrooms, the beautiful heated pool and the exceptional view. The kitchen is well-organised and equipped, and well lit - very easy to use. The lighting throughout the villa is good: there are good reading lamps, and movement-sensitive low-level lights to guide night-time steps! It was lovely to have emergency rations waiting for us on arrival. We admired the effort and thought which has gone into being carbon-neutral. The villa is in the north-east of Corfu, on the lower slopes of Mount Pantokrator, easily accessible from the main coast road, with excellent directions provided by the owners. Unspoilt beaches and coastal paths are within easy reach by car, as is more mountainous country. The nearby village of Kassiopi is within walking distance, has a pleasant atmosphere, a range of small supermarkets (so it's not necessary to go further to shop for food) and a pretty port area with plenty of options for eating out. Even outside high season there are activities such as scuba-diving available: our son had a great day with Dive Corfu at Acharavi, about 20 minutes' drive along the coast. We liked the undeveloped parts of the coastline best (and there is still plenty) and the quiet mountain villages. We were impressed by the villa's support team – for example, the delightful people who maintain the pool to perfection, and are evidently anxious not to be a bother. We saw and heard so much wildlife during our stay, but thankfully none in the villa itself! We were not there at a time when mosquitoes were a problem, but the mosquito nets which were in place looked very effective. The whole week was a delight.

For 2019 we have created a futuristic table tennis table in its own court, nestled into the olive grove above the pool.  Perfect way to get some exercise after a day lounging by the pool.  We think this is going to be a very popular feature.  Bats and balls are provided. 

'Kassiopi is a delightful little village with a great selection of restaurants clustered around the harbour. Villa Loukia, on the hill behind, is a great place to stay to enjoy it all. The villa has been fantastically equipped and the layout is perfect for a family or small group of friends. Many little extras set it apart.. luxury linen, towels and toiletries are provided and the air con and fitted mosquito blinds are brilliant. Lots of idyllic outside seating areas to enjoy the amazing views over the sea. The pool is a good size and fluffy pool towels are provided. You will need a car though. The owner Lucy was a pleasure to deal with and provided lots of helpful information. Would most definitely recommend.'

Happy New Year to you all.  

We are once again looking forward to a busy season at Villa Loukia.  Bookings for 2019 are coming in fast but there are a few very nice weeks left available, so do get in there quickly.

I have also just taken my first booking for 2020.  Without a doubt it is worth booking early, especially if you are wanting a particular date for that special occasion. 

Best Wishes

Lucy

Our goal is to make Villa Loukia carbon neutral and we are committed to reducing climate change.  Carbon offsetting is used to balance out our emissions by helping to pay for emission savings in other parts of the world.

We pledge to offset each year  the carbon connected to the use of Villa Loukia as a holiday rental.  This includes electricity, car usage by guests and staff, laundry and ALL guest flights.

We are really pleased that in 2018 Villa Loukia produced 80% of the electricity used (including air conditioning and pool heating) from the Photovoltaic Panel System on the roof and the Solar Water System. 

In total for 2018, we have calculated that Villa Loukia used some 38.4 tonnes of carbon.  We have rounded this up to 40 tonnes and this has been offset with a donation to carbonfootprint.com and their Community Projects Portfolio in Developing Countries.

The pledge we make is personal and on behalf of our Grandaughter, Imogen, so that she and her descendants can have a future.  It does not come at any financial cost to our guests.

We have just installed 3 bird boxes around the olive grove at Villa Loukia, in the hope that we might encourage some Scops Owls to next there on their return to the island.  The Scops Owl is the one you will hear frequently when sitting up on the terrace at Villa Loukia and it has a very distinctive whistle.   Although we have been listening to them for years, we have never actually seen one.  They are actually very small!  Fingers firmly crossed.

There are some big changes happening on Corfu regarding rubbish.  Rubbish removal has become a bit of an issue in recent times and it is fantastic that Corfu is now getting to grips with the problem and we at Villa Loukia are doing our bit to  help.   All the local bins have been removed from Kassiopi so that Kassiopi is now clean.  We have signed up to a recycling collection once per week from the villa and the new blue bin has just been installed for this purpose.  This removes all paper, cardboard, tin and hard plastic from the rubbish and also collected seperately, the glass.  The remaining dirty rubbish is removed by the cleaners every week or can be taken outside of Kassiopi to the green bins.  All good news!

We have spent 5 of the last 6 weeks in Corfu upgrading the whole of the downstairs to match the upstairs (refurbished in 2016 & 2015).  At last all is finished, although the process was incredibly hard work!   The results are fabulous and Villa Loukia is now completely re-tiled, all bedrooms and bathrooms are new and up-to-date and the kitchen has been re-modeled and now is a wonderful space to cook in, with all new appliances, lots of usable granite worktop and a 4-door American style fridge with filtered water and ice.   It really is a joy to work in so if you go on holiday and like to have time to cook - this is where to go!  Enjoy!  

Nick and I have just got back from a fabulous 3 week trip to Corfu and back - the long way down!

We rode the Harley 4164 miles through 10 countries: England, France, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania and Greece.

We have also twice in the past done the 'short route' via Italy.

If anyone ever wants any information or advice on how to plan such an adventure (in a car works too!), then we are happy to share our experience - just message me.  

Hope you are all enjoying the 2nd Series of the Durrells on a Sunday evening.  Corfu is being shown in all its beauty.  Think it is the finale this weekend.  Nick recently caught sight of Series 3 being filmed on a beautiful day in early May.  The 'Durrell House' is at Kontokali, just north of Corfu Town.

Hi Lucy,

Just a short message to let you know we have arrived safely at Villa Loukia :-) The house was easy to find, is just beautifull and the view... it seems almost unreal. Such a magnificent place. The kids jumped right into the pool, the sun is shining so we are just going to lie back and relax ;-)

Bye for now and all the best from all of us!!

Many greetings from Corfu

May has to be one of the best months on Corfu.  It is beautifully warm but not too hot.  The grass is green rather than baked brown.  The spring flowers are in flower!  There are lambs and goats grazing through the olive groves.  And best of all the fireflies twinkle like fairies in the olive grove after dark.   I do have some availability left for May if you want a last minute break.  Message me for a good price.

We have had a wonderful break at Villa Loukia over Easter.  The weather was great and just right for really enjoying this island.  Spring really is a brilliant time for walking up the mountain or along the coastal paths,  enjoying the spring flowers and the wildlife.  With wetsuits on we enjoyed the water too by paddle board.    Corfu has so much to offer at other times than Peak Season with the great advantage too that it is beautifully quiet and the flights are cheaper.   I do still have a couple of weeks available in May if you are tempted.....

I do hate having to disappoint people when their chosen weeks are already taken.  Booking early, particularly if you want high season, makes so much sense. My record to date is a guest who booked 23 months ahead to make sure she got the two weeks she wanted.   The ideal time is by the end of the previous summer as EasyJet release their flight schedules in September -November.  This means you are in a great position to pick up the best value flights.  Waiting until January (which is peak booking time) is risky and flights will be more.  If you are after a low season holiday in May or October then those weeks tend to book later.  Hope this helps!

This week (December 2016) we came to Villa Loukia to finish the Phase 2 of the upgrading work and to get the house all set up for 2017.  As ever in winter the lack of direct flights is a headache but the route via Thessaloniki is rather lovely.  A few days before we left home we heard that the seamen were all on strike for two days in Greece.  Not a problem, they would be back at work before we got there.  The day before we left they extended the strike by a further 2 days - ok a night in Igoumenitsa would be necessary.  Having flown on Monday to Thessaloniki we then drove the 200  miles across northern Greece to Igoumentisa but on arrival discovered that the strike had been extended to Friday!  We were flying home again on Saturday.....  So on the advice of a German friend, on Tuesday morning we drove to the Greek border, left our car, walked the 1/4 mile to the Albanian border, found a taxi and a wonderful Albanian called Mouzo, he drove us to Serande (seen in the photo across the water from Villa Loukia) and we then took the hydrofoil back to Corfu Town.  It worked despite many Greeks trying to tell us we couldn't do it.  The only hassle was going in and out of the EU with the consequent border checks and customs of course.  We managed to blag our way back into Greece without incurring some hefty import tariffs on the goods we were bringing to the house.  On Saturday we have to do the return trip.....

Phase 2 of the Villa Loukia upgrade is now complete.  All ready for season 2017.  The Blue Bedroom and its ensuite bathroom have been completely remodelled.  The layout was always wrong so we have moved the wall between the two rooms, giving a much bigger and better shaped ensuite shower room.  It really is luxurious; wet room style shower, loads of modern lighting, automatic night lights, heated mirror and magnified shaving mirror.  As with all our projects it was a  year in the planning and it is fantastic to see it at last take shape.  The bedroom itself is now laid out so that the beds are opposite the view and the floor is now the same wonderful tiles as in the master suite. 

So what will Phase 3 be.......  watch this space.

Villa Loukia was originally built in 2007 by the extremely charismatic Andreas  Vlachos.  However the upgrading work of 2016 and 2017 has been completed by Chris Giannoukas.  We can not speak more highly  of Chris and his team.  I have never seen men work so hard or listen more carefully to what the client wants.  He has to be one of the finest builders on the island.

Villa Loukia has been mainly furnished with hand-made items made by local craftsmen.  All the iron furniture in the bedrooms and some in the living room was made for us by the wonderful Kostas Mastrantonis.  His work  receives many compliments.  We have also recently discovered Corfu Glass and they have hand crafted all our wall lights - an example is above. 

When it comes to the art in Villa Loukia that has come from our village back in England.  Above the fire place is an Elizabeth Dalziel photo of a corn flower, taken in the olive grove at the villa.  A Tina Hunter painting hangs at the bottom of the stairs and the ponies at the top of the stairs were painted for me by our eldest son, Robbie.  I hope to add to this collection.

I am a cat lover - I have two gorgeous Bengals back in the UK.  But cats on Corfu are wild.  If they are fed through the summer then they suffer in the winter when all the guests (and food supply) are gone. The cats are also a big nuisance if they are hanging around villas  - they bring disease and fleas, sit on all the cushions leaving them dirty, etc.  And of course some of our guests might be cat intolerant. It only takes one guest to feed them for the cats to stay close to the villas.  So please please don't!  We don't generally have a problem at Villa Loukia because we do not encourage them.     If you want to help the  cats on Corfu then please leave them alone and help through one of the many charities such as agni-animal-welfare-fund.co.uk or corfuanimalwelfare.com.   Thank-you!