Corfu Town

The Corfu town is beautiful and offers many possibilities to spend the day. It is ideal to combine a visit to the town with a visit to Achilleion, which is located about 10 km from the town. If you have a car, you can also explore the surrounding area, if not, head to the town centre. If you have a car, park around the Venetian Fortress and save yourself the hassle of circling unnecessarily long to find a spot. The old town is a UNESCO world heritage site.

Old town

The city's architecture reflects its colourful history, having been under Venetian, French and British rule. Your steps should certainly lead you to the Church of Saint Spyridon, the most important religious site on the island. Originally built in 1589, this Greek Orthodox church is dedicated to the island's patron saint, Saint Spyridon. The church is famous for its tall bell tower, which is the tallest in the Ionian Islands, and its beautifully painted ceilings. The relic of Saint Spyridon is kept in a silver box and you can see it with your own eyes. Saint Spyridon is highly revered in Corfu for his miraculous deeds, especially for his role in saving the island from famine, plague and Ottoman invasion.

Church of Saint Spyridon

Museum of Asian Art

From the church in the centre, head to the Asian Art Museum. The building is impressive from the outside.

The museum is housed in the historic Palace of St. Michael and St. George. The palace itself was built between 1819 and 1824 during British rule in Corfu and originally served as the residence of the British High Commissioners. After the union of Corfu with Greece in 1864, the palace was used as a summer residence by the Greek royal family until it became the home of the Museum of Asian Art. We didn't go inside since we weren't that attracted to Asian art, but it's definitely worth a walk around.

Museum of Asian Art

Just behind the museum are the incredible gardens, the perfect place to relax on one of the many benches in the cool, shady trees. The gardens offer breathtaking views of both the Byzantine fortress and the sea.

gardens behind the museum

"Old Castle" Fortress

The old Venetian fortress dominates the historic centre, towering over the harbor. Originally built in the 6th century, it was improved by the Venetians between the 14th and 18th centuries to protect them from Ottoman raids. The strategic position of the fortress provided excellent defensive advantages, including high vantage points for early detection of enemy ships. To reach it, you have to cross a bridge over an artificial moat.

"Old Castle" Fortress

As you enter, you'll find two rooms on either side, which now house the incredible Corfu Byzantine Collection and a gift shop. A truly amazing collection of mosaics featuring a variety of animals awaits you here.

Old Castle Fortress mosaics

The truly remarkable St. George's Church is a magnificent Doric-style building constructed by the British in the 19th century. It looks like an ancient, church, unlike any other Christian church we have seen before. The whole building has a much older feel, which is fascinating. It is the central building in a large courtyard that overlooks the whole city.

Church of St. George in the fortress

Another interesting structure is the clock tower, which is waiting for you if you decide to climb to the highest point of the fortress. In addition, there is a Venetian-era prison, an old British hospital and barracks.

clock tower in the fortress

The absolute highlight is the incredible panoramic view from the top of the fortress. The whole city, the harbor and part of the coastline stretch out before you. The fortress offers amazing views in every direction.

View from the highest point of the fortress

In addition, there are also remnants of cannon artillery, which will please especially men and boys.

Maitland Monument

In front of the fortress there is a large park of Leonid Vlachou, which offers many benches, natural shade from the trees, but also interesting gazebos. One of the notable buildings in the park is the Maitland Monument, which was erected in 1821 in honour of Sir Thomas Maitland. An interesting feature of the memorial is that it sits on top of an underground water cistern from the Venetian era, built in 1781. This cistern was essential for the water supply of Corfu Town and the construction of the monument includes two entrances that allowed access to the water reservoir. Bond fans will be thrilled to know they may have encountered it in the 1981 film "For Your Eyes Only".

Maitland Monument

Archaeological Museum

The museum in Corfu Town is tiny and takes less than an hour to explore, but it offers an impressive insight into the town's history. Here you will find monuments from prehistoric times to the Roman period. There are interesting everyday objects from different historical periods, old coins, busts of famous Greeks and Romans, such as the comedian Menander, and much more.

Corfu Archaeological Museum

The most spectacular monument, however, is the "Gorgon Pediment". This impressive stone pediment depicts Medusa in a remarkable pose and is an example of the artistic skill of the ancient Greek sculptors. Were it not for the snakes for hair, you would hardly recognize in it the subject of many works.

Archaeological Museum - Gorgon Pediment

Ancient temples of Kardaki

It wouldn't be us if we missed an archaeological site somewhere. The one near Corfu town is picturesque, abandoned and we probably didn't take the official route there and got a bit lost. For the first time on Corfu, we were let down by Google Maps. We knew where to go and between the houses and through the forest we arrived at our destination.

archaeological excavations are still ongoing

The Doric temple of Kardaki, located on the Greek island of Corfu, is an intriguing archaeological site dating from around 500 BC. To this day, it is still unknown to whom the temple was dedicated, but its location and embrace of nature are still awe-inspiring today. It is sad to see such monuments decaying and nobody caring about them. There are simply too many in Greece to look after them all, and visitors usually only visit the most famous ones.

Doric temple of Kardaki

The individual ancient buildings are set in a peaceful forest environment, where you can enjoy the pleasant shade, plenty of greenery and silence.

peaceful forest environment

The site is still the subject of archaeological excavations, as evidenced by the many buried pits and fragments that can be found here. To keep the children from getting bored, we once again played a game with them to see who could find the most beautiful fragment. Katya immediately went on a search and was the winner.

Katya and her luck

Holy Monastery of Panagia Vlacherna

The last monument you should not miss in the capital is the Panagia Vlacherna Monastery. This charming church is one of Corfu's most famous sights, known for its magnificent setting and unique architectural beauty. What makes it unique is the location. It is located on the sea and a bridge leads to it thus creating a perfect picture that will be stored in your memory for a long time.

Monastery Panagia Vlacherna

The second reason why you should visit Panagia Vlacherna is the airport. All the planes that land in Corfu fly over this place, and there are quite a lot of them. In the 30 minutes we spent here, 7 planes landed over us.

Planes on Corfu