The Mini Rough Guide to Corfu (Travel Guide eBook)

Rough Guides

• Publisher: Rough Guides
• Year: 2022
• ISBN:
  9781839058073
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Personal Development
• Subtopic: Travel

This pocket-sized guide is a convenient, quick-reference companion to discovering what to do, what to see and how to get around Corfu. It covers top attractions like Angelokastro, Liston and Paxi, as well as hidden gems, including Paleokastritsa - the islands most beautiful spot, the pebbly coves of the northcoast and sandy beaches of the west. This will save you time, and enhance your exploration of this fascinating island. This title has been fully updated post-COVID-19. This Mini Rough Guide to Corfu  covers: The south, North of Kerkyra Town, The northeast, The north, The northwest, The west, Paxi, Andipaxi, PargaIn this travel guide you will find: RECOMMENDATIONS FOR EVERY TYPE OF TRAVELLER
Experiences selected for every kind of trip to Corfu, from cultural explorations to family activities in child-friendly places or chilled-out breaks in popular tourist areas. TOP TEN ATTRACTIONS
Covers the destination's top ten attractions not to miss, including Byzantine Museum, Paxi and Andipaxi, Angelokastro, Monastery of Paleokastritsa and a Perfect Day/Tour itinerary suggestions. COMPACT FORMAT
Compact, concise, and packed with essential information, with a sharp design and colour-coded sections, this is the perfect on-the-move companion when you're exploring Corfu. HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL INSIGHTS
Includes an insightful overview of landscape, history and culture. WHAT TO DO
Detailed description of entertainment, shopping, nightlife, festivals and events, and children's activities. PRACTICAL MAPS
Handy colour maps on the inside cover flaps will help you find your way around. PRACTICAL TRAVEL INFORMATION
Practical information on eating out, including a handy glossary and detailed restaurant listings, as well as a comprehensive A-Z of travel tips on everything from getting around to health and tourist information. STRIKING PICTURES
Inspirational colour photography throughout.

Out and About

Although Kérkyra Town (Corfu Town) is the heart and soul of the island, like most capitals it is not very representative. Unless you are travelling independently or just visiting Corfu briefly, it is unlikely that you will stay overnight in Kérkyra Town.

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Corfu’s pastel-toned skyline

The vast majority of Corfu’s visitors are on package tours and stay on the coast at accommodation ranging from modest apartments to luxury complexes. Nonetheless, Kérkyra Town acts as a magnet for shoppers, culture vultures, or the merely curious, and it rarely disappoints. Located about halfway down the east coast, it is within striking distance of any spot on the island and makes a useful reference point for us to begin our island tour.

We shall divide this tour as follows:

The South. The long, narrow southern portion of the island is often described (usually by people who haven’t been to Corfu) as nothing more than a party zone. This is certainly true of its extremity (Kávos) but is not the case when applied to the whole area. The Achilleion Palace is Corfu’s most-visited cultural attraction, while the long laid-back beaches of Ágios Geórgios Argyrádon and peaceful fishing villages such as Boúkari provide a sharp contrast to the busy resorts of Benítses, Moraïtika and Mesongí.

North of Kérkyra Town. Immediately north of the capital is the most developed part of the island. Its resorts are mostly hidden from the main road, occupying the large bays and inlets on this stretch of coastline.

The Northeast. Look at any website or brochure for expensive Corfu villas and you will find most are in the small area between Barbáti and Kassiópi. The Durrells made Kalámi the most famous resort on this stretch, but there are many similar ones nestling in the exquisite tiny coves that constitute ‘Kensington-on-Sea’. A short distance inland looms Mt Pandokrátor.

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Locals chatting

The North and Northwest. While the north coast is well developed and dominated by the resorts of Sidári, Róda and Aharávi, the northwest remains something of a mystery to many visitors. Ágios Geórgios Págon and Ágios Stéfanos Gýrou are very different from namesake resorts south and east, respectively. The jewel of the northwest is Paleokastrítsa, boasting one of the most beautiful bays in all of Europe and retaining some charm despite its huge popularity.

The West. Between Érmones and Ágios Górdis, the west coast has superb sandy beaches. Despite often-tricky road access, they are no longer secret, and mostly well developed.

Kérkyra Town

Kérkyra Town 1 [map] (Corfu Town) is a beguiling place, with a relaxed, old-world elegance that rivals other Mediterranean cities many times its size. Its predominantly Venetian architecture is harmoniously flavoured with French and Georgian-English building styles, reflecting the influence of several centuries of foreign occupation. A cosmopolitan nature prevails, especially at night, when Corfiots and visitors stroll along the Listón and rendezvous at the many cafés and restaurants. In early August the atmosphere is very Italian.

Around the Spianáda (Esplanade)

The focal point of Kérkyra Town is the Spianáda (Esplanade) A [map] . Families promenade, marching bands parade and festive occasions are frequently celebrated on this broad green expanse separating the Old Fort from the rest of town. Buildings formerly here were razed in Venetian times to give a clear field of fire against enemy assault, and it was also used for fairs and jousting tournaments. The French later planted the trees and flower gardens.

Arriving in the capital

If you are driving into Kérkyra Town, it’s best to park just south of the Old Town, in the vicinity of the Archaeological Museum, especially along Dimokratías Avenue, where street parking is free. Parking at the old harbour, or along the Spianáda, tempting as that might seem, is heavily controlled and expensive. Driving in Kérkyra Town is less stressful than its myriad streets would suggest, thanks to an efficient one-way system.

Public buses set down either at San Rocco Square (blue urban buses) or near the New Fort (green long-distance buses). San Rocco Square (Sarókko in Greek) can be intimidatingly busy at most times of the day. Although it is only a stone’s throw away from the tourist centre of Corfu, this is a very ‘Greek’ part of town, with most shops and businesses – especially along Georgíou Theotóki leading up to the Puorta Reale entrance to the Old Town – catering to locals. Visitors who arrive by coach excursion disembark close to the Old Fort and the grassy gardens of the Spianáda. Those arriving by ferry at the new harbour will find it a good 1.5km walk into town (occasional buses). For airport details for more information, click here.

Our description of the town inevitably involves some backtracking and close reading of the back-flap map. Kérkyra Town might be a relatively small place, but it is impossible to do justice in a single day. Try to come here on Tuesday, Thursday or Friday, when shops open in the evening.

On the southern half of the Spianáda stands the plain Ionian Monument, which celebrates the island’s union with Greece in 1864. It is surrounded by marble reliefs displaying the symbols of the seven Ionian Islands, known as the Eptánisa in Greek. Nearby are the Victorian bandstand (where Sunday concerts are held in summer) and the Maitland Rotunda, dedicated to the first British high commissioner. At the far south end is the statue of Greece’s first president (1827–31) and Corfu’s greatest son, Ioannis Kapodistrias.

The Esplanade’s most famous landmark is the now somewhat abbreviated cricket pitch dominating its northern half. Corfu adopted this sport during British rule, and enthusiastic local teams keep the tradition alive with matches during the season.

Across the north side of the Spianáda stands the imposing Palace of St Michael and St George B [map] , erected between 1819 and 1824 by Maltese masons as the residence for the British high commissioners, with a neoclassical façade of 32 Doric columns linking triumphal arches. It also housed the Ionian senate. When the British left, Greek royalty used it as a summer residence. The bronze toga-clad figure that stands above a lily pond in front of the palace is Sir Frederick Adam, Britain’s second high commissioner. The pool and its waterspouts are there to remind people that Adam was the first to ensure Kérkyra Town a reliable water supply, with an aqueduct system still in use today.

The palace’s staterooms now house the Museum of Asian Art (www.matk.gr; April–Oct daily 8am–8pm, Nov–March 8.30am–3.30pm). Its collection of nearly 11,000 Asian artefacts, amassed by two Greek diplomats, is one of the most comprehensive of its kind in the world. Pieces in the east wing include funerary statuary and bowls, carved wood, pottery and blue-and-white porcelain from various Chinese dynasties. The west wing features a superb miscellany donated in 1974: Hindu and Jain deities, erotic scenes, Gandhara relief work, and Buddhist devotional art from every south Asian nation. Since 2015 there has been a permanent exhibition of Japanese folding screens and painted hanging scrolls, as well as woodblock prints by such masters as Hokusai and Utamaro. Other displays document the Noh and Kyogen theatre, plus the armour and weaponry of a Samurai warrior.

Kevin Cummins/Apa Publications

Palace of St Michael and St George

Around the back of the palace (on the Old Fort side), facing lovely sea-view gardens, is the lesser-known Municipal Art Gallery (www.artcorfu.gr; Tues–Sun 10am–4pm), a modest, eight-room collection comprising mostly 19th and 20th century works by Corfiot artists. Look for the Assassination of Kapodistrias in Room 2 – portraying the murder of the island’s most famous native son – as well as George Samartzis’ charming, French-inspired Night in Corfu in Room 5, which shows that even in 1913, the Listón was the place to be.

The elegant arcades of the Listón C [map] border the west side of the Spianáda. Modelled on the Rue de Rivoli in Paris, it was erected by the French in 1807. Its name comes from the ‘list’ of noble families who were the only ones initially permitted to walk here. These days everyone gathers at the many cafés and bars under the arches or beneath the trees along the green. During the evening pedestrianized Eleftherías out front is transformed into a bustling promenade of Corfiots and visitors alike, from dapper elderly men to smartly dressed families.

That's cricket

Kérkyra Tow...

Table of contents

• 10 Things Not To Miss
• A Perfect Tour in Corfu
• Overview
• History and Culture
• Out and About
• Things To Do
• Food and Drink
• Where To Eat
• A–Z Travel Tips
• Where To Stay