Top 10 things to do in Corfu.

You cannot visit Corfu without spending some time exploring the pedestrian-only UNESCO World Heritage-listed Old Town. Step ashore to discover the 14th Century Old Fortress, working up an appetite before lunch by climbing the Tower of the Land, where you can look down over the red-roofed neoclassical buildings against a backdrop of the sparkling Ionian Sea and see your yacht berthed in the old harbour below.  

Drop anchor and scuba dive into the aquamarine waters of Limni, Paradise, Stelari, Giali and Iliodoros. There are also excellent dive sites near Paleokastritsa, where you can spot all manner of marine life including jacks, tuna and anthia going about their business amid the reefs, caves and canyons of the sea floor.

Lying to the northwest of Corfu, Cape Drastis is a stunning anchorage point which, because of its remote and hard to access location remains as nature intended.  Here the strangely shaped cliffs (which look like a giant turtle head with smaller turtles swimming around it) are dotted with sea caves, and small, sandy beaches lapped by clear, shallow waters. Being the most north-westerly point on the island, the winds here can be strong, but it is a great spot for to access by tender when the conditions are right.

Like many of the Ionian islands, Corfu is well known for its award-winning olive estates. Take a stroll through ancient olive groves and discover the basics of olive oil tasting at one of the island’s olive presses. Some of the trees producing the oil are over 500 years old and shrouded in myth and legend. Learn how to distinguish the different grades of olive oil, and how to pair olive oil and olives with other local produce.

The scenic ‘double beach’ of Porto Timoni on Corfu’s west coast is the perfect place to spend a day enjoying your yacht’s watertoy box and the surrounding coastline. Here there are two bays, separated by a ridge of Mediterranean scrubland. The beaches face out onto the Ionian Sea, one looking towards Mathraki island, and the other to the village of Agios Georgios. Fortunately for the waterborne, access is exclusively by foot or water, so these pebble beaches remain quiet and are something of a hidden gem.

The Esplanade, also known as the Spianada, is a pedestrian-friendly greenbelt area which runs along the Old Town’s waterfront. In fact, the Spianada itself is the second largest town square in Europe.  Designed in the style of the Royal Gardens of the 18th Century, the square is connected to the Old Fort by a bridge, while at the other end lies the Palace of St. Michael and St. George. A meeting place for locals and visitors every evening, catch a summer concert in the square’s bandstand or an occasional cricket match while enjoying a refreshment at one of the numerous cafes that line the Esplanade.

Head inland to the Theotokos Monastery, which provides fantastic vantage points over the island and surrounding Ionian archipelago from one of Corfu’s highest peaks. Absorb the serenity of your surroundings with a short walk around the 13th Century monastery and a visit to the tiny church dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

Corfu is one of the Ionian’s most storied islands, with the eponymous town of Corfu also serving as the Ionian archipelago’s capital. The island features prominently in the world of ancient Greek mythology, and there is archaeological evidence to suggest that the island had developing human societies as far back as the Palaeolithic Era. For a glimpse into the island’s more recent past, glide into the port on the eastern side of the Old Town and the first thing you will see is the Tower of the Sea (or The Old Fortress) that sits on its own promontory, guarding the town from invaders. Built by the Venetians in the 15th Century on the site of a former Byzantine castle, it remains today one of the most impressive fortifications works in all of Europe.

Cruise to the south of the Corfu and tender ashore to the Pontikonissi Islet, also known as Mouse Island. Legend has it that Pontikonissi was the name of Odysseus’s ship, which brought the king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer’s poem the Odyssey to the island of the Phoenicians. Damaged and washed up during a storm on to the shores of the island, Poseidon turned the ship into the green rock that became known as Pontikonissi Island. The alternate theory is that the island looks like a mouse from the air, but we prefer the romance of the first explanation. If you fancy a trip ashore, then discover the tiny Byzantine chapel of Pantokrator which sits on the top of the rocky islet. Dating back to the 11th Century, the monastery here opens just once a year on 6 August.

Corfu may be a Greek island, but it has its own local cuisine, with traditions influenced by the French and Italian cultures that have all left their mark on the island’s culinary evolution. Fresh, locally sourced Mediterranean ingredients remain the key ingredients; think hearty dishes of lamb, fresh seafood, and mezze plates for sharing, combined with traditional Greek dishes such as kebab and tzatziki.