Dragon Drascombe

Lugger Sailing in the Greek Ionian

Family Activity Holidays

Hilsden Family

From the South Ionian Sea to the Pindos mountains of northern Greece

The smile on our daughter’s face as she helms Katrina says it all! Like many Heather, Jessie, and I had been anticipating this holiday for over two years – it lived up to all of our expectations.

Our arrival was seamless – a friendly taxi transfer, a warm welcome from Phil at Gialos Taverna with a wonderful mezze lunch, before being delivered by boat to Geni Garden Apartments. Here, Sandra and her family could not have been more helpful and friendly, and we cannot speak highly enough of the freshly baked goodies delivered to our terrace table each morning! Or being able to tumble into the pool after a day at sea!

We had a splendid week of sailing to beautiful bays, swimming, snorkelling, lazing on beaches, picnics, tavernas and ice creams galore!

There were any number of larger, more expensive, and swankier yachts about, but, I think it is fair to say that we had the most fun on the smallest boat, and as has been noted in many previous reviews, others went out of their way to pay their compliments as to how pretty Katrina was. (Take a bow Phil!)

The highlight of the week was the final day’s circumnavigation of Meganisi. We left a little later than planned, courtesy of a lovely dinner at Gialos Taverna the night before, and had an idyllic run down the Strait of Meganisi, sailing along the southern coast taking in the sight of Papa Nicolis’ cave, and distant views of Ithaca. We anchored in a small bay, and ate lunch gently bobbing on a sparkling, aquamarine sea set against the dazzling white cliffs, feeling pretty pleased with ourselves.

However, that all changed when we rounded the tail of Meganisi, by now the wind had piped up from the north, along with the sea. Now Katrina showed what a Drascombe is capable of, she handled the conditions, and looked after us, admirably – although I did lose my hat to the wind! Tired, bedraggled, and wiser we made it back.

We were sorry to say goodbye to Katrina, but were cheered by the thought of a further week in Greece. Hiring a car we headed north to the Pindos Mountains and the village of Konitsa. Here we stayed in a delightful hotel by the banks of the river where it flows out of the Aoos Gorge and under the iconic stone arched bridge, to spill out onto the plains. This was to be our base for the next few days as we explored this stunningly beautiful area.

The mountain roads are not for the fainthearted, but the reward of picturesque remote villages, herdsmen and their dogs tending their flocks of goat and sheep, vertigo-inducing views down into the spectacular Vikos Gorge, hidden monasteries, peaceful forest walks, and mouth watering menus at roadside tavernas made it all worthwhile.

We broke our journey to and from Konitsa with a stop at the ancient city of Ioannina, situated on the shores of Lake Pamvotis. Here we enjoyed exploring the ancient citadel and learning the tales of Ali Pasha, strolling by the lakeside, indulging in baklava, and descending into the majestic Perama Cave.

During all of our holiday Jessie, (and mum and dad!), enjoyed, what to us, was the novelty of geo caching, it certainly added a different dimension to our sightseeing, and must have amused others no end, as we spent an age rooting around in undergrowth/poking around in walls/pacing to and fro as we sought the elusive treasure!

All in all, I cannot recommend Phil’s Dragon Drascombe highly enough, we hope to return… Thank you!

Caleb & family

Worth the wait…

I originally booked our holiday with Phil back in 2019 but of course the pandemic got in the way and so, come 2022, it was a matter of third time lucky – and we certainly did feel lucky enjoying our week in Lefkas.

As a keen sailor but with a family reserving their judgement (at least at the outset) it was a perfect arrangement – having full use of a boat but not being tied to it. The apartment at Geni had all we needed, set in lovely gardens with a view of mountains in the distance, the pool in the foreground and Vilho bay (and our boat) in between. Our host, Sandra, and her family could not have been more accommodating.

Ellie, the Drascombe Lugger allocated to us for the week, was immaculately prepared and Phil was a constant source of good advice and support, including regular weather forecast updates. We found her easy to sail and with a reliable engine when needed. What’s more, she drew heads at every turn. We were applauded by one passing sailor and filmed by passengers aboard a colossal superyacht.

We used the boat every single day of the holiday, discovering countless secluded, sometimes even deserted, beaches. Our two boys (and us!) enjoyed jumping from the boat into the clear blue water of the Ionian. We also made a couple of trips across to Meganisi. On one we explored the old town of Spartochori and the bays to its East. On the other occasion we visited a spectacular cave on the West coast, in which we were able to anchor Ellie and have a swim. An unforgettable experience.

The lugger was our transport for the week and it was a joy to be car free. She took us across the bay when we needed to visit the supermarket and in the evening to visit our favourite tavernas. All in all it was a perfect holiday, with relaxation and adventure in equal measure in beautiful surroundings.

Family Inglis

“Yip, a grand and successful family holiday, Phil. It ticked all the boxes for us.”

From our late evening arrival at Geni Garden, the Family Apartment was just outstanding. We sat on the balcony to catch our breath, a cold beer in hand which Phil had waiting in the fridge, looking over the bay still active with boats arriving and departing. This was going to be our ‘backdrop’ view for the coming week: what a way to commence this adventure for our kids Gabe and Becki.

Our first morning was a leisurely start. Phil had organised a breakfast with Poldi in their outside garden dining area, and for our remaining mornings we would visit the bakery by Lugger and collect bread and pastries for a breakfast on our balcony, which gave the kids an extra hour or so in bed.

Now to the start of the sailing stuff and getting to know Paxi. Whilst I have a lot of experience in bigger boats, the Lugger is a more Traditional Rig, loose footed mainsail and lots of bits of string for the kids to pull. After a comprehensive introduction to the boat we ventured off the pontoon and out into Vliho Bay, quickly to realise and understand her qualities as a very safe, stable, easy to manage craft and great fun to sail to boot!

Vliho Bay is such an ideal area to sail with kids, there are no tides, the winds blows either from the north or the south and with the outboard engine running you are no more than 10 minutes from the shore. We soon got the hang of Paxi, the kids had their various jobs to perform. Gabe was exceptionally quick to jump on the tiller of the outboard, as boys do and soon became a very adept crew member. However for Becki she took the view of “letting the boys play” after all it was “Dads new toy”. For her it was to be first on the swimming ladder and overboard for a swim.

With this intro over it was time to break out of Vliho Bay, rounding the Geni Peninsula, leaving Agio Ekklisis Church to starboard and heading for the island of Skorpios, this renowned as the one time residence of Jacqui Kennedy, lately Onassis. I couldn’t help wondering of the life she once led, her little Idaho Cyclades style house on the southern tip of the island, looking across at Meganissi and far south towards Kephalonia.

The Bimini Phil provided was superb and made crossings with it up just great with just Jib and Mizen out. Our reliable pal,the outboard deployed we covered good ground, stopping in coves and bays to swim, snorkel and have picnic lunches.

A highlight of the week for Gabe and Ceiran was the mountain bike trail ride with Simon at Get Active on the Wednesday late afternoon. It proved to have surpassed their expectations; the bikes were good quality, well maintained and the trails were appropriately graded, my thanks to Get Active for that.

Now it was time for me to collect them from Nidri by Lugger, late evening. The wind had got up and the sea was very lumpy, yes and I was on my own! Who else to rely on? Phil came to my rescue, a quick text and he was in the power boat heading for the pontoon near Nidri where they were both waiting. Their motor back to Geni Garden was a wet one, but safely back and thrilled by the adventure.

The week was excellently managed and organised by Phil, he was always available and there for us, but one never felt he was intruding on our privacy. The presentation of boats show a high level of maintenance with excellent safety equipment, a credit to his hard work.

What I have begun to appreciate about the Lugger is its classic lines; for a small boat her sea keeping qualities are incredible and at no time did the kids feel at risk. I must say over the week we as a family developed a “relationship” with Paxi which I’m sure will be a long lasting affection for “Dads new toy”.

You successfully brought together for us new activities, great places to eat like our favourite The Gialos Taverna, wonderful bays to swim and snorkel, providing Gabe with the chance to be able to helm the boat under engine and last but not least the truly wonderful Geni Garden Apartment, owned and run so efficiently by Franz, Poldi and Daughter Sandra, many thanks to all of them.

Who knows Phil when we will return, certainly after this complete family holiday experience and with so many places to explore I hope it will be soon.

Simon & Lucy Atkinson

We decided to get out of the mountains and into the sea to celebrate Simon’s birthday last month and were lucky enough to take a Drascombe Lugger for the day. Phil from Dragon Drascombe met us at the pontoon in Geni and gave us a thorough briefing on the boat before escorting us out of the bay, with some final instruction on putting up the sails, and then waving us off.

The boat was very responsive and glided through the water effortlessly; it was a pleasure to sail. There was plenty of room for us and our two boys and not forgetting our picnic hamper! We sailed around the islands that dot our coastline and anchored for a swim when the mood took us. It was a wonderfully relaxing day and one we hope to repeat!

Drascombe Lugger holidays are ideal for travellers looking for a different sailing holiday, one where you can get back to the basics, where you can be as active as you like – sail some days and perhaps read by the pool the next or take a MTB tour with us – a holiday where your lugger is simply at the bottom of the garden for you to hop on and off whenever you wish. Seems perfect to us!

Drascombe Lugger Sailing

The Vaughan Family

We have just returned from a ten day stay at Geni Garden courtesy of Dragon Drascombe. We had a superb holiday, sailing ‘Ellie’ all around Nydri, Meganissi and the Greek mainland. Thanks to Phil, the entire trip went without any hiccups and he was on hand everyday to help with sailing tips and advice. All in all a fabulous holiday, where I learned so much about the Lugger.