Travel Eye on Corfu Town (Corfu)

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Overview:

A colourful mix of cultural influences and marvellous blend of architecture make Corfu Town a fascinating place to explore, with its spacious squares, French arcade, traditional Venetian mansions, Byzantine church, British-built 19th-century palace and numerous monuments. There is also the old fortress jutting into the sea to the E, cut off from the town by a moat. The town has an atmosphere reminiscent of an Italian town, as shopping streets alternate with narrow alleys and washing hangs from balconies. With a population of 45,000, almost trebled with visitors in the high season, the town bulges with the influx of tourists and traffic jams are frequent ? pedestrian areas provide a welcome escape.

Locality:

Corfu Town is situated halfway down the E coast of Corfu, facing Greek mainland (5 mls N of Perama, 2 mls N of the airport). It is positioned on promontory projecting into sea and divided into N and S halves. Gently sloping in parts.

Entertainment/Facilities/Attractions/Things to do:

Corfu Town is very much cosmopolitan, appealing to a wide market range, but fairly unsuitable for a beach holiday. Practically anyone holidaying on Corfu would find a day in town, shopping and sightseeing, highly rewarding.

Beachwise, Mon Repos Lido, just under 1½ mls along coast, is a small public man-made shingle beach for which there is a minimal entry charge.

Shopping here is generally sophisticated with chic boutiques. Stylish international imports alongside shops with local leather and crudely printed T-shirts. Popular buys include natural sponges, jewellery, lace and olive-wood articles. Out of town there are bone-china and leather warehouses on the road to Paleokastritsa.

Popular activities in Corfu Town consist of sightseeing, archaeological museum, two fortresses and numerous historic buildings for the culturally inclined. Horse-drawn carriages around town; sightseeing "train", leaving from Liston in the old town; glass-bottomed boat trips. By night there are bouzouki nightclubs, discos, bars and tavernas.

Eating out options are plentiful, from Greek tavernas through fast food to international cuisine. The pedestrianised street, Liston, houses a line of (pricey) pavement cafes and is a popular place to people-watch.

Getting around Corfu Town is very easy as it is the hub of the island system, with buses to all parts. There are two principal bus stations: one for blue buses (local routes) at Sanrocco Square and the other for green buses (island routes) near the waterfront on the W side of the new fortress. Timetables can be obtuse and repay careful study; there are also unmarked stops.

Local excursions consist of half day: scuba diving; folkloric trip to Danila village; flamboyant Achillion Palace; Greek night at village of Korakiana. Full day: boats to islands of Erikoussa, Mathraki and Othoni; hydrofoils and ferries to Paxos and Kefalonia; short classical/traditional boat trips to mainland; organised island tours including Paleokastritsa and picturesque Mouse Island; golfing at Ermones; water park inland at Aghios Ioannis.