A much needed reset in Corfu, Greece

I normally don’t do boats or the sea, as I can’t swim. I don’t like heights, so airports are always stressful and full day trips just sound exhausting…. but something hit different this time. A week away on the beautiful island of Corfu was just what was needed to de-stress and reset: personally and professionally.

Running your own business is hard! Especially when you’re a one human band doing it all…I spend more time on the business than I do the photography: the taxes, marketing, social media, website, branding, invoicing, admin, customer service, scheduling, calls, emails, locations visits, bookings for travel/hotels/trains/airlines, training, sourcing packing/suppliers…then the photography and editing. So my goal on vacation is this: eat well, drink plenty, see lots and rest the most…that’s why we always All Inclusive! It’s so stress free and Greece did not disappoint!

This was the first holiday we did for 7 days and so decided to include a full day trip somewhere in our itinerary so we didn’t get board and chose an excursion to the beautiful Saranda, the Albanian Riviera, in southern Albania.

The Hotel

Kairaba Sandy Villas - A 5* All Inclusive, adults only hotel with a private piece of Blue Flag beach on the Ionian Sea…we were even golf carted to our room! (I was banned from pressing the call button for a further ride ¬.¬ ) The Hotel gives you access to the LABRANDA Sandy Beach Resort next door, but we enjoyed the facilities in our hotel so much we didn’t venture over. Different food was available every day of our stay in the main restaurant, 2 bars (1 inside and 1 by the main pool) and 2 pools, plus there’s a little hidden gem by the beach. If you booked a superior room you could have a private pool or share a pool with a swim up room…these looked amazing, but we were happy with our private balcony offering and being able to walk through the beautiful floral gardens, and yes…we made friends with the cats! I couldn’t be happier with our choice and everyone was so kind that you passed.

The Day Trip to Saranda, Albania

We booked our excursion via Jet2 as that’s who we booked with but it was completed with Ionian Cruises. Initially we planned to just take the boat over to Albania to spend the day exploring the beaches and city, but actually booked onto the guided tour once on board and that was the best decision we could have made! The whole day was very easy, including passport control which was super fast and very little waiting around in the port. Once arriving in Saranda and through the port, we transferred to our tour bus (they offered more than 5 different languages - each with their own fully guided tour), we set off to the incredible Butrint National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

I’ll be honest, I’m not the biggest history fan… it’s a bit like books and sends me to sleep a little, but this was beautifully preserved… and they have a Venetian castle! We saw the Venetian Tower by the entrance, the ancient theatre, the Temple of Asclepius, the ancient gymnasium, the Roman Baths (which had little turtles in!), the Roman Baptistery with its priceless mosaic floor and the Lion Gate. Then it was time for lunch a stroll along the beach and back to the port. It was fascinating to learn about the country and our local tour guide was the absolute best!

Butrint National Park | The Roman Baptistery & The Great Basilica

The Hidden Gem by the beach

After our day in Albania, it’s safe to say I was knackered…my feet hurt and it was a little sad to hear about the history that really isn’t so long ago. So it was time for doing pretty much nothing. We watched the sunset 2 nights on the beach, spent a day on the private Blue Flag beach which was beautiful and the sea was so clear and almost warm, with lots of beautiful blue coloured fish. We also found the little hidden gem by the beach for the guests of Kairaba Sandy Villas which included an infinity pool with a swim up pool bar. Many cocktails were enjoyed here before dinner, shopping in the stores and a good tourist mini red train ride around the town.

We spent our last day in the morning by the pool of our hotel with series of cocktails: Tequila Sunrise & Blue Lagoons before heading off to the hidden gem for an afternoon in the pool with Amaretto Sours and more Tequila Sunrises. After dinner we headed into the town for a Mai Tai & Samurai at Amazona Cocktail Bar before heading back for you guessed it…more cocktails at the hotel!

This vacation made me realise: I need to take more breaks and I’m so excited for next years travel plans! I even want to try solo travel…

Have you been to Greece? Where are you travelling next?

Paul at Photo Hotel LABRANDA Sandy Beach Resort | Earrings from Aimelbie Korea