How to get from Ksamil to Corfu?

Ksamil is one of the most popular destinations in Albania for the beauty of its crystal clear waters, and tourists tend to take long holidays in this area to enjoy the beach and night life.

Furthermore, this location is used as a base for visiting many other adjacent areas, one of which is Corfu.

As for us, we stayed almost ten days in Ksamil (I don’t know if I’d do it again). We rented a scooter and we also went to visit many adjacent areas. One day we took a trip to Corfu.

In this post I want to talk about how to get from Ksamil to Corfu. Well, I don’t want to mislead you so first, I’m telling you straight out that there is no direct connection from Ksamil to Corfu. However, a day trip from Ksamil to Corfu is not that difficult.

In this blog post called “How to get from Ksamil to Corfu,” I will detail all the information you need to get from Ksamil to Corfu. This means how to get from Ksamil to Sarande, how to to take the ferry from Sarande to Corfu. Including how long the ferry from Sarande to Corfu takes, how much a ferry ticket costs, links to ferry timetables, car ferries vs speed ferries and where you can get a ferry ticket or book a ferry ticket online.

First step to get from Ksamil to Corfu

As I said previously, there is no direct connection from Ksamil to Corfu. So… what you have to do first is drive to Port of Sarandë and then take the ferry to Port of Corfu. Alternatively, you can take a bus from Ksamil to Port of Sarandë. It takes around an hour even though the distance is very short. I mean it is only about 15 KM but it stops everywhere and the route is heavily trafficked so the journey becomes quite long. The two main advantages of the bus from Ksamil to Sarande are that it runs frequently, almost every half an hour, and it is cheap. It costs only 1.50 euros.  

There is another option to travel from Ksamil to Sarande, which is a taxi, but to be honest I have never been confortable with this service in Albania because they always (constantly) tried to cheat me. Anyway, it must cost not more than € 10.00.

So repeating once again, to date there is no direct boat connection from Ksamil to Corfu. The only way to catch the ferry from Ksamil to Corfu is from the Port of Sarande.

Ferry runs per day from Saranda to Corfu.

The ferry route from Sarande to Corfu is operated all year round. Depending on the season and the frequency of the visitors, there are between 2 to 15 ferry departures from Sarande to Corfu per day. 

Ksamil and Seranda have a big tourist invasion during the summer months, so expect big crowds even if the runs are frequent.

How much does a ferry cost from Sarande to Corfu?

The ferry ticket price from Sarande to Corfu depends on “speed ferry or slow ferry.” Yes they have these two services, and given the very low price difference between them, I’d suggest that you take the speedy one because it is really worth it.

Well, to date the speed boat to Corfu (Hydrofoil) costs € 25.00 while the slow boat to Corfu costs € 20.00.

There are several boat lines from Sarande to Corfu and whatever you choose to take, the price is always the same and the ferry journey from Saranda to Corfu seems to be organized pretty well. Or at least, our journey was perfect.

Where to get the ticket for the ferry ride from Saranda to Corfu 

Tickets for the ferry ride from Sarande to Ksamil can be purchased everywhere around Ksamil and Sarande.

There are several authorised shops where you can get them from, and also you can see men along the beach who sell these tickets. In our case we bought the tickets for the ferry ride from Sarande to Corfu on the ferry terminal road (Ruga Mitat Hoxha) in Sarande. There are many ticket offices along this road, like one after another. Everyone sells all the available options. We just went into one of those and bought the tickets for IONIAN SEAWAYS.

IMPORTANT:

1) You have to know that ferry tickets from Sarande to Corfu are not sold at the ferry terminal .

2) Since you are moving from one country to another, a document for each passenger is required to issue a ticket.

3) All the ticket agencies along the Ruga Mitat Hoxha accept card payments (this is not so obvious for Albania)

How long is the ferry from Sarande to Corfu

The distance between the Port of Sarande and the Port of Corfu is 35 kilometers. The speed boat journey will take about 40 minutes and the slow one, car/passenger ferry, takes about 2 hours.

In summery, important things to know for Ksamil to Corfu

• To date there is no direct connection from Ksamil to Corfu. You have to go thorugh Saranda.
• There are two types of ferry boats between Saranda and Corfu: high-speed hydrofoil and the regular car ferry or passenger ship. 
• If you are travelling from Sarande to Corfu, tickets can’t be purchased at the ferry terminal.
• Remember that you are moving from one country to another: from Albania to Greece. That means you have to reach the ferry terminal at least an hour before the departure to complete all the check-in procedures.
• Ferries leave quite punctually, so make sure you get there on time. If you are late they don’t wait. Let me repeat once again: Boarding starts an hour before the departure time indicated on the ticket.
• There is a 1 hour time difference between Ksamil/Saranda and Corfu. Basically, Corfu is 1 hour ahead of Saranda. So when you leave Saranda at 14:00 PM, then it is already 15:00 PM in Corfu. This info is extremely important if you are going to Corfu to catch a flight from Corfu airport.
• In the winter months, 1-2 ferries will operate per day. 
• Ferry tickets from Saranda to Corfu are more expensive in the high-season from Mid-June until Mid-September. If you are traveling in the low season, you pay less.
• Once the check-in procedures are completed and you are ready to go ashore, always check if you are at the right ferry stop. There are many ferries departuring from Saranda and they didn’t check our tickets on the way, so if you make a mistake you risk ending up at the wrong destination.
• Last  but not least, I highly recommend that you buy the ferry tickets for your trip from Ksamil to Corfu at the authorized stores. This warning isn’t for nothing… in Albania, just to sell something they tried to fool us many times so in order to avoid the risk of not taking the ferry (maybe you are going to Corfu to catch a flight…) it is better to be sure.

From Ksamil to Corfu by ferry: Our experience

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We went from Ksamil to Sarande by bus. Actually we bought our ticket in Ruga Mitat Hoxha in Sarande the day before our departure. When we were holidaying in Ksamil, we used to get together with a couple of tourists who were living in Sarande, so going to Sarande often was not a big deal for us.

After taking a look at all the authorized points along the Ruga Mitat Hoxha, we bought our ticket at the first shop. As I said earlier, all the stores had similar selling criteria.

We gave our documents and once it was issued we paid with our card. They took €50.00 for both the hydrofoil tickets.

The day of our departure, we went to the ferry terminal in Sarande by bus. It cost 150 Lek each.

Once in Sarande we had a small brunch and we went to the ferry terminal an hour before the time indicated on our ticket. The lady who sold us the tickets told us repeatedly to do this so we felt that being an hour early was important. And indeed it was. After all, there are several departures from Sarande so there were queues.

It took us about half an hour before clearing our check-in. Our hydrofoil was departing at 1 pm. They started to board at 12.30 and they finished at 12.57. Exactly at 1 pm they turned on the motor and they left the Port of Sarande.

We reached Corfu at 1.40 pm. The ferry will bring you to the Port of Corfu.

Out of the custom exit, inside the port area, there is a public bus stop which takes you to the town.

We took that bus and went to the old town. This is where our hotel was. The bus ticket from Corfu ferry terminal to the old town can be purchased on the bus itself and paid by card. It costs €1.70.

If you don’t want to take a bus, you can opt for a taxi.

I would conclude this paragraph by saying that deciding to visit Corfu while staying in Ksamil was a great idea. We enjoyed this stay a lot.

What else from Ksamil to Corfu.

Taking a trip to Corfù while staying in Ksamil is a great idea, especially if you are spending a long time in Ksamil. Besides being able to experience a different country, everything is well organized and made easy so you can only end up by saying wow!

I hope I gave all the information about how to get from Ksamil to Sarande, and how to take the ferry from Saranda to Corfu. Including how long the ferry from Saranda to Corfu takes, how much a ferry ticket costs, links to ferry timetables, car ferries vs speed ferries, and where you can get a ferry ticket or book a ferry ticket online.

In case I missed something about the ferry from Ksamil to Corfu, kindly let me know in the comment box here.