Corfu Holidays

The Corfu Trail crosses the island from south to north over roughly 180 kilometres, passing beaches, olive groves, villages and quieter inland landscapes. Visitors can walk individual sections rather than committing to the entire route, making it suitable for anything from a day hike to a longer walking holiday.

Mount Pantokrator is the highest point on Corfu and gives walkers broad views towards the Diapontia Islands and the mainland coast. Routes approach through northern countryside and traditional settlements, with increasingly open scenery as the terrain rises. Summer walks require sensible planning around the heat.

Corfu's underwater landscape includes reefs, caves and varied rocky formations. Several established diving centres operate around the island, with Paleokastritsa highlighted by Corfu's official visitor organisation as a leading diving area. Options are available for different experience levels rather than only experienced divers.

Horse-riding centres around Corfu cater for both beginners and more experienced riders. Routes make use of old paths, rural roads, traditional settlements and stretches of countryside, offering a slower way to see the island away from its main resorts and heavily used coastal roads.

Corfu's broken coastline makes the sea one of the best ways to reach its quieter corners. Organised excursions and boat hire reach bays and beaches that are difficult to approach by road, giving visitors a closer look at cliffs, sheltered coves and the island's strong sailing culture.

Paragliding adds an aerial view to Corfu's outdoor options, with tandem flights available through organised operators when conditions allow. Weather and wind determine whether flights can go ahead, so it is best treated as a flexible activity rather than planned around a guaranteed departure.

The Old Fortress rises from the rocky headland beside Corfu Town and preserves fortifications shaped particularly during Venetian rule, with later British-period additions. A sea moat separates it from the town, while passages and ramparts reveal how strategically important this entrance to the Adriatic once was.

Angelokastro occupies a steep position high above Corfu's north-western coast. The Byzantine castle was an important defensive stronghold, with its elevated setting giving control over a wide section of the surrounding sea. Today, the surviving walls and sweeping coastal views make the original defensive logic easy to understand.

Mon Repos was built in 1831 during the period of British protection and later became a summer residence of the Greek royal family. The surrounding area also forms part of ancient Palaiopolis, allowing visitors to combine a 19th-century neoclassical villa with remains connected to Corfu's much earlier settlement history.

The Archaeological Museum brings together finds from Corfu spanning prehistory through the Roman period. Its standout exhibit is the monumental Gorgon pediment from the Temple of Artemis, alongside artefacts that give a broader picture of the importance of ancient Corcyra.

Built around 580 BC, the Temple of Artemis was one of the earliest monumental Doric temples constructed in stone. Little of the original structure survives in place, but the archaeological site remains important for understanding early Greek temple architecture. Its celebrated western pediment is preserved in the Archaeological Museum of Corfu.

Achilleion was built at the end of the 19th century for Empress Elisabeth of Austria, better known as Sissi, and was later owned by Kaiser Wilhelm II. The outdoor areas and Imperial Gardens are currently accessible to visitors, while the palace is undergoing a new restoration and museum-development phase following the launch of an €11.52 million tender in August 2026.

Corfu's philharmonic societies have been part of island life for almost two centuries. Their bands accompany concerts, national celebrations, Easter processions and the major litanies of Saint Spyridon. Visitors can also learn more at the Museum of the Corfu Philharmonic Society, where instruments, scores and archival material trace this distinctive musical tradition.

The Museum of Asian Art occupies the Palace of Saint Michael and Saint George in Corfu Town. Its collections extend across Chinese, Japanese and other Asian art, giving visitors an unexpected change of subject in a city usually associated with Venetian fortifications, British architecture and Greek religious traditions.

The Byzantine Museum is housed inside the historic Church of Panagia Antivouniotissa, probably built towards the end of the 15th century. Around 90 portable icons date from the 15th to the 19th centuries, helping visitors understand Corfu's important role in the development of post-Byzantine religious painting.

Dionysios Solomos, the poet behind the words of the Greek national anthem, lived in this house from 1828 until his death in 1857. The museum displays personal mementoes and books from his library, giving visitors a small but meaningful introduction to one of modern Greece's most important literary figures.

The Ionian Academy housed the first Greek university and remains closely linked with Corfu's long intellectual tradition. The building is now used by the Ionian University, reflecting a history of higher education that developed on the island well before the establishment of the modern Greek state.

Corfu Carnival takes place in the weeks leading up to Lent, filling the historic centre with music, dancing, period costumes and organised carnival groups. The Grand Carnival Parade is one of the main highlights, while many traditions still reflect the island's long Venetian cultural influence. Dates vary each year.

Easter is one of the island's most distinctive celebrations. Holy Saturday brings the Saint Spyridon procession followed by the Botides tradition at 11:00, when large clay pots are dropped from Old Town balconies. Orthodox Easter changes date each year, so the current programme should be checked before travelling.

Corfu marks 21 May each year as the anniversary of the Union of the Ionian Islands with Greece in 1864. Celebrations typically include official ceremonies, memorial services, wreath-laying and a parade in Corfu Town.

Every 11 August, Corfu commemorates the end of the Ottoman siege of 1716, traditionally associated on the island with Saint Spyridon. The programme includes a procession of the saint's relic through the Old Town, supported by philharmonic bands, with concerts and other commemorative events around the anniversary.