"We had a lovely holiday at Liapades Beach Hotel, but it's one of those places where the location does a lot of the heavy lifting. If you're after stunning scenery, crystal-clear water and a relaxing base to explore Corfu, you'll probably enjoy it. Just don't expect everything to run like clockwork.
The Pros
The setting is absolutely gorgeous. The hotel is perched on a hillside with a short (but steep) walk down to the beach. It's picturesque, although the hill claimed its first victim on day one when my 15-year-old slipped and grazed his knee and ankle quite badly. The beach itself is all shingle, so beach shoes are a must unless you enjoy walking on Lego.
Despite arriving around 10:30pm, we were greeted with sandwiches, fruit and cake, which was a thoughtful touch after travelling all day.
Our two-bedroom apartment was spacious with two modern bathrooms, a large balcony with plenty of seating and even a couple of loungers. There was a kettle, although tea and coffee didn't make an appearance until day six... perhaps they were still on holiday themselves. Rooms were cleaned daily and fresh towels and bedding were provided regularly.
The covered seating area outside reception became one of our favourite places. Comfortable sofas, a cool breeze and welcome relief from the Corfu heat.
The food was generally good. Breakfast was fairly standard but the fried eggs were cooked perfectly most mornings. Lunch and dinner always had something worth eating, think top end school dinners with the chicken kebabs, pitta and one particularly delicious lamb dish being stand-out meals.
A special mention goes to Rose in the restaurant, who was absolutely wonderful throughout our stay. The manager was also usually around and happy to help.
The Cons
The biggest frustration was the air conditioning. One bedroom unit didn't work from day one. We reported it immediately and were confidently told it was "definitely working." By day three an engineer confirmed it was completely broken and needed replacing. Great... except nothing happened until 11am on the morning we were leaving. Perfect timing if your goal is to unpack your suitcase again while trying to check out.
The pool is quite small with sunbeds packed tightly around it. It was always busy and only accessible by ladder, so not ideal for everyone.
Now onto what I'll call... The Great Butter Mystery. One lunchtime I simply wanted toast with butter. I asked a member of staff, who disappeared into the kitchen before returning to announce there was no butter in the entire hotel. I accepted my fate and sat eating dry toast until my husband asked the manager five minutes later... who magically appeared with butter. A true Mediterranean miracle.
The all-inclusive drinks were disappointing. The soft drinks were all unbranded, very sweet and surprisingly flat. We ended up buying drinks from the supermarket instead. Coffee from the dining room machine was barely drinkable, although the coffee from the pool bar was much better.
Speaking of the bar... I ordered an Irish Coffee only to discover the barman had omitted one tiny ingredient... the Irish part. Apparently the young bartender didn't realise it was supposed to contain alcohol.
Also, despite my repeated holiday mission, I never managed to obtain a frozen strawberry margarita anywhere in or around the hotel. It became something of a running joke by the end of the week.
The bar also closes at 11pm, and the dining chairs seem to have been specially designed to encourage you not to linger too long.
Getting Around
Liapades itself is peaceful but quite isolated. If you're planning to explore Corfu, hire a car if you're confident driving very narrow, steep roads. An automatic would definitely be preferable.
Taxi prices felt excessive. The hotel quoted €25 each way for the 4km journey to Paleokastritsa. We found a WhatsApp taxi company charging €20, which still seemed expensive for such a short distance.
One disappointment was that reception never mentioned the Green Bus services, despite recommending taxis. Bus No.10 goes into Corfu Town from the main road (about a 25-minute uphill walk), and Bus No.9 runs towards Paleokastritsa from near the Steak House. We only discovered these ourselves later.
Highlights Outside the Hotel
Our favourite experiences weren't actually at the hotel.
Captain Nickolas' fishing trip was fantastic. Catching red snapper, having it cooked fresh for lunch and then wandering around beautiful Corfu Old Town made for a brilliant day.
Another highlight was Dassia. My teenage son loved wakeboarding with Dassia Watersports, progressing from beginner to attempting backflips within an hour. The beach was beautiful, the water crystal clear, and spending our last full day on comfortable sunbeds at Malibu Beach Resort with great food and the frozen strawberry margarita I'd been searching for all week was the perfect ending.
Overall
Liapades Beach Hotel has an incredible location, spacious rooms, friendly staff and enough good food to keep most guests happy. However, maintenance issues, disappointing drinks, expensive transport options and a few communication problems stop it from being truly excellent.
Would I return? Probably yes—for the scenery alone. But I'd pack beach shoes, hire a car, buy my own Coke, and bring emergency butter... just in case."
