Things to do in Corfu
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Corfu
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Best months: everything open, swimmable sea, green interior and human-scale crowds.
Spring is greenest and best for the Trail, with a cold sea and resorts reopening around Easter.
Peak heat, crowds and prices at 30 to 35C; run sights early, swim mornings and take long lunches.
The exhale: resorts close progressively, town and village tavernas stay alive, rain begins.
Winter is Corfu Town only: a working Venetian town, Carnival, low prices and frequent rain.
What's on
- Corfiot Easter and Holy Week Holy Week, spring (Orthodox dates)
Processions, philharmonic bands and the Botides clay pots thrown from Old Town balconies on Holy Saturday.
- Corfu Carnival February to early March, three weeks to Clean Monday
Venetian rooted parades, the burning of King Carnival and balcony satire in Corfiot dialect.
- Summer panigiria June to September; big dates 29 June, 20 July, 26 July, 6 and 15 August
Village saint's day feasts with live music, souvlaki and local wine in village squares.
- Saint Spyridon procession, 11 August 11 August
The saint's relics are carried through town with all the philharmonic bands.
- Assumption 15 August
Island-wide feasting and the absolute peak of summer; Paleokastritsa's monastery feast is among the largest.
- Saint Spyridon feast day 12 December
The locals' winter procession of the saint's relics through the town.
Worth the trip for
Best things to do in Corfu
Corfu Old Town
UNESCO Venetian old town of lanes, squares and churches, best explored on foot and slightly lost.
Old Fortress
Venetian fortress on a rocky peninsula with the church of St George and the definitive town panorama.
New Fortress
Quieter tunnels and ramparts above the old port with the better view over the Old Town rooftops.
Paleokastritsa
Six clear coves under green cliffs with a hilltop monastery, best before 10am or after 4pm.
Porto Timoni Beach
Double beach on a narrow isthmus reached by a rocky walk, with no road, bar or shade.
Old Perithia
Corfu's oldest village of stone houses, eight churches and tavernas, built inland to hide from pirates.
Mount Pantokrator
The island's highest summit at 906m, with a monastery and clear morning views to Albania and Italy.
Angelokastro
Ruined Byzantine fortress on a sheer peak above Paleokastritsa, a 45 minute stop for the view.
Where to stay in Corfu
Corfu Town
first trip, all-round base, no-car trips and off-season
Everything walkable, with the island's best restaurants, both bus networks and the port for boats.
North-east coast
coves, boats and the splurge
Olive trees to the water, white pebble coves and waterfront tavernas, with Albania across the channel.
Paleokastritsa and Liapades
scenery-first stays on the west coast
You wake inside the postcard, swim before the day boats arrive and watch the sun set into the sea.
West coast and quiet north-west
sand, sunsets and laid-back weeks
Long sandy beaches, Kaiser's Throne sunsets and Diapontia boats, with early evenings in the north-west.
Benitses, Moraitika and Messonghi
value on the south-east coast, with a car
Marina village eating in Benitses and calm, cheaper family bases handy for the south's fish villages.
Think twice about
- Kavos
Cheap, intense youth party strip with music into the morning, and as far as you can get from the main sights.
- Sidari main strip
Bars, tribute acts and late noise with a busy main beach; the Canal d'Amour end and back streets are quieter.
- Gouvia, Ipsos and Dassia main-road strips
Overdeveloped corridor along a busy main road, charmless as a base for exploring, with road noise complaints.
- Airport and industrial fringe
Sold as Corfu Town but noisy under the flight path, charmless and not pleasantly walkable to the Old Town.
Best restaurants in Corfu
Etrusco
Ettore Botrini's flagship serves modern tasting menus built on Corfiot produce, olive oil and kumquat.
The Venetian Well
Small elegant restaurant around an old Venetian well, known for its six course tasting menu.
Toula's Taverna
The best known of the Agni waterfront tavernas for grilled whole fish and bourdeto by the jetty.
Taverna Agni
Waterfront Agni Bay taverna sharing the bay's standard for fish, prawns and house starters.
Nikolas Taverna
Third of the Agni Bay waterfront trio, a swim and fish lunch stop reached by boat or road.
Rex Restaurant
Town institution for refined Corfiot cooking, from rooster pastitsada to a serious vegetarian menu.
Rouvas Taverna
Workers' taverna near the market serving ready dishes like sofrito and stifado at local prices.
Taverna Tripa
Legendary village taverna for pastitsada, roast lamb, homemade wine and a garden terrace.
Outdoor things to do in Corfu
Paxos and Antipaxos
Boat day to the Blue Caves and an Antipaxos swim in electric turquoise water, with harbour lunch.
Self-drive boat hire, Paleokastritsa
No licence boats reach boat only coves and sea caves, hour for hour the best value adventure on Corfu.
Corfu Trail
Roughly 200km trail from south dunes to Pantokrator, best walked as one or two of its finest days.
Corfu Golf Club
A real 18 hole Harradine course threading tree lined fairways around lakes and a river.
Sea kayaking, Paleokastritsa and north-east coves
Guided kayak mornings paddle past boat only coves and caves with snorkel stops and small groups.
Butrint National Park
Day trip by ferry to Saranda and Butrint, a layered UNESCO ancient city in a lagoon park.
Aqualand Corfu Water Park
One of Greece's biggest waterparks, the engineered fun option for a high energy day.
Diapontia Islands
Erikoussa, Mathraki and Othonoi offer clear water and far smaller crowds than Paxos.
Best hotels in Corfu
Bella Venezia
The town's beloved mid-range boutique, in a neoclassical mansion a few lanes from the Liston.
Arcadion Hotel
Hotel on Spianada itself, where the view over the square is the point.
Siora Vittoria
Small luxury boutique in a walled garden near the Old Fortress.
Hotel Konstantinoupolis
The proven budget hotel in the old port area, simple and central.
Puppet Guesthouse
Character rooms in an Old Town guesthouse, best booked direct.
Corfu Imperial, A Grecotel Resort to Live
Private peninsula grand hotel with four private beaches, the island's grand hotel benchmark.
Grecotel Eva Palace
Kommeno hillside resort of romantic suites and villas above the north-east coast.
Ikos Dassia
All-inclusive luxury benchmark on Dassia Bay, priced so you never think about money on site.
Is Corfu expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | €80 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | €135 a person |
| Splurge | €400 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Paxos and Antipaxos: a few days ahead
- Self-drive boat hire, Paleokastritsa: a few days ahead
- Corfu Golf Club: a few days ahead
- Sea kayaking, Paleokastritsa and north-east coves: a few days ahead
- Butrint National Park: a few days ahead
- Aqualand Corfu Water Park: a few days ahead
- Diapontia Islands: a few days ahead
- Etrusco: weeks ahead
- Book Easter in Corfu Town and the week of 15 August months ahead; the town fills completely.
- Good budget and mid rooms in town, Kassiopi, Paleokastritsa and Arillas go early for late June to early September.
- Etrusco, Venetian Well, Rex at weekends, Tripa, Brouklis and the Agni tavernas need booking days ahead in season.
- Book Paxos boats, charters and self-drive boats for a calm forecast early in the stay, keeping a spare weather day.
Is Corfu safe?
- Check your government's current travel advice before you go.
- Corfu is low-crime; pickpocketing is a crowded Old Town and bus risk only. Emergency 112.
- Drive slowly on narrow slippery roads and never drink-drive the mountain roads.
- Obey signs on eroding Sidari and Loggas sandstone cliffs; do not stand on crumbling overhangs.
- West coast swell is dangerous on windy days; use lifeguarded sections and start summer walks in the morning.
Corfu travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Achilleion Palace interiors have been closed for restoration; go for the gardens and verify the interior before building a day on it.
- Liston cafes charge for the arcade and view; lanes two streets back charge half.
- Agree the weight and kilo price of whole fish before it is cooked, everywhere.
- Ask beach club bed prices and minimum spend at Glyfada and Dassia before towels go down.
- Decide car hire excess cover before the counter; low headline rates can hide an 800 to 1800 euro excess.
Getting around Corfu: public transport and more
- Blue Buses run the town and suburbs; Green Buses (KTEL) run the island from the terminal near the port.
- Rent a small car for any base outside town; double map times on mountain and coastal roads.
- Photograph the bus timetable at the terminal on day one; the last bus back is earlier than expected.
- Tap water is drinkable in town; carry water on every walk and wear swim shoes on pebble coves.
Who Corfu suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | OK |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | OK |
Make Corfu your trip
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