The most northerly and, with Greece’s highest rainfall, the greenest of the Ionian Islands. Corfu lies close to the mainland and the Albanian coast. Described by Homer as ‘beautiful and rich’, it is mountainous, lushly fertile and fringed by fine beaches with lovely aquamarine waters.
From the 8th century BC, Corfu was subject to a succession of powers, though it never became part of the Ottoman Empire.
Venice held it for 200 years, then Napoleon seized it, and for some years it was a British Protectorate. Long a favourite with travelers, its quiet, idiosyncratic life is lovingly recorded in the books of Lawrence and Gerald Durrell. Now despite some indiscriminate tourist development, it remains bewitching.
Corfu Town is a lovely place, a blend of splendid Italianate buildings; narrow alleyways and grand, French-influenced arcades. There are museums and fine churches, including the Church of Ayios Spyridhon, where the mummified body of the island’s patron saint lies in a glass-fronted coffin. (It is paraded through the town several times a year.) A popular excursion is to the photogenic islets of Vlaherna and Pondikonissi.
North from Corfu Town, brash or prestigious resorts are interspersed with fishing harbours and backed by magnificent scenery. Southwards lie the site of the ancient capital, Corcyra, and some large resorts.
Then a winding coastal road reaches some quieter beaches. The west coast boasts long stretches of glorious sand, a backdrop of green mountains – and some of the largest hotel conglomerations. Even here, more peaceful coves can be reached by boat, or a scramble on foot.
Inland, traditional villages offer shade and good food. Corfiot cuisine, unusually, has no Turkish influence, and often seems more Italian than Greek. A stroll and a climb in scented mountain air amid ancient olive trees rewards with views over ethereal greenness towards the heavenly blue sea.
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