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Corfu
Greece / The Ionian Islands / Corfu

Corfu

Venetian Old Town, Green Hills and Turquoise Coves

Plan this trip
3 daysIdeal stay₹6,920From / night₹2,660Food / day₹1,070Entry

The northernmost Ionian island, green with olive and cypress: Corfu Town's Venetian and British old town (UNESCO) between two fortresses, with the Liston arcades and cricket on the Spianada, the Achilleion palace of Empress Sisi, the cliffs and coves of Paleokastritsa, and Kassiopi in the north-east facing Albania. Flights from Athens take an hour, with many from Europe in summer; ferries cross to Igoumenitsa on the mainland in 1.5 hours, and overnight to Bari in Italy. Corfu's Easter is the most famous in Greece. Indian restaurants in town.

Highlights

  • Corfu Old Town and the Liston
  • Old Fortress at sunset
  • Paleokastritsa's coves and monastery
  • Achilleion palace
  • Boat day to Paxos and Antipaxos
  • Kumquat liqueur and Venetian food

Things to do

  • Old Town, Liston and the Old FortressMorning · 3h
  • Paleokastritsa: monastery and a boat to the sea cavesMorning · 5h
  • Achilleion palace and Kanoni viewpointAfternoon · 3h
  • Boat day to Paxos and AntipaxosMay–OctMorning · 9h
  • Kassiopi and the north-east coastAfternoon · 4h

Tours & tickets

Tours & tickets in Corfuvia GetYourGuideTours & tickets in Corfuvia Klook

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When to go

Best time: May – June, September – October

Worth knowing

Wildfire Season

From July to September hot, dry winds spread wildfires in Attica, the Peloponnese, Halkidiki and the islands; in 2023 thousands of tourists were evacuated from resorts on Rhodes. Follow the 112 emergency text alerts (sent in English), obey road closures and evacuation orders, never light a fire or barbecue outdoors, and check the fire-risk map before hiking. Travel insurance should cover cancellations.

Worth knowing

Winter: Fast Boats Stop, Many Hotels Close

From November to March the high-speed ferries stop, island-to-island boats run a few times a week, and most resort hotels, beach bars and boat tours close. The towns stay open with some hotels and tavernas, the conventional ferries and the flights from Athens keep running, and storms can still cancel sailings: keep a spare day before a flight home.

  • Orthodox Easter (Pascha) — Greece's biggest festival: candlelit Good Friday processions, the midnight Resurrection service on Saturday with fireworks and church bells, and lamb roasts on Sunday. Corfu's is the most famous, with clay pots thrown from balconies on Holy Saturday morning. Greeks travel home, so ferries, flights and hotels fill, and shops, museums and sites close or shorten hours from Good Friday to Easter Monday. Book well ahead.
  • Clean Monday and the end of Carnival — The first day of Orthodox Lent and a public holiday: families fly kites (in Athens on Filopappou Hill) and eat a meatless picnic of lagana bread, taramosalata and vegetable dishes, easy for vegetarians. The Carnival (Apokries) parades end the weekend before.
  • Epiphany: the Blessing of the Waters — Priests throw a cross into the sea, a river or the harbour and young men dive to bring it back, at Piraeus, Thessaloniki's seafront and island harbours. A public holiday.
  • St Spyridon processions — The relics of Corfu's patron saint are carried round the old town with bands and clergy four times a year (Palm Sunday, Holy Saturday, 11 August and the first Sunday in November); 11 August marks the lifting of the 1716 siege. The old town is packed and closed to traffic.
  • Dekapentavgoustos (the Assumption) — The feast of the Virgin Mary and the peak of the Greek summer holiday: village festivals (panigiria) with music and food the night before, a great pilgrimage to Paros' Church of a Hundred Doors, and every ferry and island room full in the week around it. Athens empties and many of its shops close.