By Jeni & Ben | JB Off Again Travel
We weren’t supposed to fall for Corfu. It was always just the stepping stone — two nights before the ferry across to Albania, a pleasant enough buffer between the UK and the Balkans. We had the bar set low and a 27-night trip ahead of us to get excited about.
And then we arrived, dropped our bags at the Cavalieri, walked out onto the Esplanade, and stood in front of a Venetian fortress lit up against a September sky. The bar adjusted itself fairly quickly.
This isn’t a guide to a week in Corfu. We had about 36 hours, one proper day of sightseeing, and a ferry to catch on day three. But if you’re passing through or looking for an argument for a long weekend in Greece that isn’t Santorini, here’s exactly how we did it and what we’d tell you to do differently.
Prices quoted for taxis, ferries and entry fees are what we paid in September 2026.
At a Glance
Base: Corfu Old Town (UNESCO World Heritage Site) Duration: 2 nights, 1 full day sightseeing Best for: Culture, history, food, slow evenings on the Liston Best time: September- crowds thin, sea still warm, evenings long
Getting There
We flew into Corfu Airport (CFU) with British Airways and there are plenty of other operators that fly there The taxi rank is to the left of the buses as you exit arrivals — look for the price board, which is clearly displayed. Our fare to the Cavalieri Hotel in the Old Town was €17 (2026), about 15 minutes door to door. No need to pre-book; the rank is well-organised and the pricing is transparent.
Where We Stayed: Cavalieri Hotel
The Cavalieri is one of the oldest hotels in Corfu Town, occupying a historic building right on the Liston arcade with the Old Fortress visible from the rooftop. Location-wise, it’s as good as it gets — you could roll out of bed and be at the Church of Agios Spyridon in two minutes flat.
The rooms are small and dated, which is exactly what you’d expect from a historic building of this age. The lift officially holds four people but felt cosy with two of us. If you’re not a fan of enclosed spaces, ask for a first or second floor room when you book.
Breakfast was a good spread, a hot plate with egg, bacon, sausage and omelette alongside plenty of bread, rolls, spanakopita, cheese, ham, yoghurt, fruit and a selection of sweet options including macarons and cakes. More than enough to fuel a day of walking around the Old Town.
The highlight is undoubtedly the rooftop terrace — views across the Esplanade to the Old Fortress, a cold beer in hand, and staff who are warm and accommodating. It also does a full dinner service, which we didn’t take advantage of (more on that later). For a handful of nights in Corfu Town, we’d stay again.
Evening 1 – Sunset on the Roof, Then Find a Gyros
We landed early evening, checked in and went straight up to the rooftop for sunset drinks. With the fortress turning gold in front of us, it was about as good a first hour as you could ask for.
Then out. The Liston arcade is two minutes from the Cavalieri and it’s a perfect introduction to the town, a covered promenade built during the French occupation in the early 1800s, modelled on Paris’s Rue de Rivoli, lined with café-bars looking out over Spianada Square. Expensive by Greek island standards, atmospheric beyond measure.
For dinner we skipped the Liston prices and walked five minutes to To Pikantiko for pork gyros. Be warned: it’s tiny. There’s just about enuogh room to stand side by side, with the queue snaking in, down to the till to order and pay, then doubling back on itself to collect your food — and it is very, very hot in there. Worth every sweaty minute.
We then found a table at Bristol Bar on a small square nearby — the perfect people-watching spot. People of all ages doing the evening volta (the Greek ritual of the evening stroll), the fortress glowing in the distance. We were back at the hotel by 10pm.
Day 2 – One Day to Do It All
We were up late, out by 11:30. Two nights goes quickly.
Church of Agios Spyridon
A few minutes from the Cavalieri. The spiritual heart of Corfu, the red-domed bell tower is the tallest in the Ionian Islands and a useful landmark when you inevitably get lost around in the backstreets. Inside, the silver reliquary holds the remains of Saint Spyridon, Corfu’s patron saint, credited locally with saving the island from plague, famine and siege more than once. Free to enter. You cant take pictures inside so we only have the outside to show you.
Palace of St Michael and St George
Right on the Esplanade. One of the finest Regency neoclassical buildings in Greece, built during the British protectorate and now housing the Museum of Asian Art. We had a look from outside and decided the entry fee (around €9–10pp in 2026) was better spent on the fortress — no regrets. Worth knowing it’s there if your interests run that way.
The Old Fortress
This is where we spent the best part of the afternoon, and it earns its entry fee (€10pp, 2026).
We walked the seafront walls from the Palace and then through the park to reach the causeway. The fortress is large,, considerably larger than it looks from the Esplanade, sprawling across several centuries of Venetian defensive architecture. Views in every direction: across the Ionian to Albania, the rooftops of Corfu Town behind you.
You can climb to the lighthouse at the top, though you can’t go inside. Some of the stone steps are well-worn and can be slippery, worth being aware of. The Church of Saint George inside the complex looks far more like a Greek temple than a church, and that’s entirely deliberate: the British built it in 1840 as a garrison church in the style of a Doric temple. It became a Greek Orthodox church after the island was handed back to Greece in 1864. Interesting to stand in front of.
By the time we came out we needed water and a sit-down. There’s a small café on site which we didn’t use; we walked back to the hotel and spent the rest of the afternoon resting. Ben hadn’t slept well the night before. Sometimes the right call is just going back to the room.
Evening 2 – Gyros Again, Bristol Bar Again
No elaborate dinner plans. We went back to To Pikantiko for gyros (the queue still hot, still worth it) and then to Bristol Bar for beers and people-watching. The same square, the same easy rhythm as the night before. The second night felt like the first, which is the highest compliment you can pay a place you’ve only been to once.
Departure Morning — Straight to the Ferry
Breakfast at the hotel, quick repack, taxi to Corfu New Port. Note that this is different from the Old Port near the Old Town — confirm directions the evening before. Our taxi was €20 (2026), about 15 minutes. We arrived around 10:30 for the 12:00 sailing — plenty early, as we’d been warned about queues, which turned out not to be bad at all. Passport control took about 20 minutes after the 11:00 group had cleared. Then a wait in the departure area before boarding.
What We’d Do Differently
- Explore longer— we didn’t leave the hotel until 11:30. Starting at 09:00 would have given us the church and the palace before the heat built up, and potentially squeezed in more of the Old Town backstreets
- Book dinner on the Cavalieri rooftop — we had sunset drinks up there on our first evening but never ate there. The rooftop alos offers a restaurant, not just drinks, and the view deserves a proper meal. We should have planned it rather than defaulting to the gyros place twice (not that there’s anything wrong with the gyros place)
- Allow more time at the fortress — we could easily have spent another hour there. The small café on site means you don’t need to leave when you run out of water
Could Corfu Work as an Extreme Day Trip?
We’ve talked about this since getting home, and we think it could. It’s a short flight from most UK airports (2.5hrs), the fixed-price airport taxi takes 15 minutes, and the Old Town is completely walkable. An early start would let you cover the Church of Agios Spyridon, the Old Fortress, the Palace of St Michael and St George, a proper lunch, and still make an evening flight.
To be clear, we haven’t done it that way — this is hypothetical. Same-day returns depend on flight times from your local airport, which are much better in summer. But if you want a taste of Greece and can’t commit to a week, the logistics support it. If you can stretch to a night or two, though, you get the Liston at dusk — and that’s the bit we’d least want you to miss.
Best Time to Go
September is excellent — the summer crowds have thinned noticeably, the sea is still warm, the evenings are long and prices are slightly lower than in peak July/August. Budget for Greece’s climate resilience fee, which is charged per room per night at every hotel. The amount depends on the hotel’s star rating and is higher from April to October — at a four-star like the Cavalieri it was €10 per night in 2026.
Practical Notes
- Taxi from airport: €17 fixed fare (2026; price board displayed), rank to the left of the buses on exit. No need to pre-book
- Climate resilience fee: charged per room per night and paid at the hotel. The rate depends on star rating and season
- Ferry to Albania: Finikas Lines, Corfu New Port → Sarandë, approx 35–60 mins, around €30pp (2026). Make sure you’re going to the New Port, not the Old Port
- Getting around: Everything in the Old Town is walkable. Take a taxi to the New Port on departure day
FAQ
How many days do you need in Corfu Old Town? Two nights gives you one full day and is enough to cover the main sights at a relaxed pace. Three nights would let you add a beach day or the Achilleion Palace. A week is better suited to exploring the whole island.
Is Corfu expensive? By Greek island standards it’s mid-range. The Liston café-bars are expensive; gyros and local tavernas are very good value. Budget roughly €60–85 per day for two people covering food, drinks and entry fees (2026 prices).
Is Corfu Old Town walkable? Entirely. The Old Fortress, the church, the palace and the Liston are all within 10–15 minutes of each other on foot. You only need a taxi for the airport and the New Port.
What is the climate resilience fee in Corfu? It’s a Greece-wide fee charged per room, per night at hotels and holiday rentals. It’s added to your hotel bill, and the amount depends on the property’s star rating and the season. It’s highest between April and October.
Final Thoughts
We came to Corfu as a stop on the way to somewhere else and left wishing we had a third night. The Old Town is beautiful in a way that sneaks up on you — not the dramatic cliff-top beauty of Santorini, not the party beauty of Mykonos, but something quieter and more layered. Venetian walls, an arcade from the French occupation, a “temple” the British built as a church. And a very good gyros place.
If you’re planning a trip that involves the Corfu–Sarandë ferry, build in two nights. You won’t regret it.
Anyone can Google flights — but it takes strategy, experience, and connections to design a trip that flows. If you’re thinking of combining Corfu with Albania, Montenegro or anywhere else in the region, drop me a message and I’ll put together the right trip for you.
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