Corfu Journals

Summer holiday on Corfu

Best of IgoUgo

An October 2000 trip to Corfu by idared

Dacing the night away Photo - Greek Folklore Night At A Taverna, Corfu, Greece

Quote: I have been to Corfu on two summer holiday trips and both times it enchanted me! They say if you've ever been to Corfu, you'll be back for sure!

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Summer holiday on Corfu

Overview

Quote:

If i had to choose one word to describe the island: green. It has such a great location that teh whole island is covered with rich forests, olive plantations and wonderful flowers. The island has many hills and mountains which make it a very scenic place to make excursions, you can see the green hills and the majestic blue sea, it's a wonderful sight!First time i was there i learned that Gerald Durrell lived there a large portion of his life, so the second time i went i took two of his books with me. It was so much fun to read his hilarious descriptions of the people and places of the island while experiencing it myself. His books are the perfect beach reads on this island!Quick Tips:...Read More

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Pandora Apartments

Hotel

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Messonghi is a small beach resort next to the more busy Moraitika and has mostly apartment buildings rented to tourist. While we were there we heard several horror stories about some of the other apartment houses, but ours was perfect. This was also the only one that had its own swimming pool.There are about 15 studio apartments in the building, each has one bedroom with a double bed, a small kitchen and a bathroom with a shower. It was clean and tidy, and very quiet, because the building is surrounded by a garden and overlooks a small river. It is about 200 meters from the beach. Supermarkets, travel agencies, bars and reestaurants are all within a 5 or 10 minute walk! The swimming pool was a...Read More

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on February 6, 2002

Pandora Apartments
Messonghi
Corfu, Greece

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Bus Tour Around The Island

Attraction

Quote:

Everywhere you look on Corfu you will find travel agencies promoting their bus tours around the island. If i haven't tried it twice, i would say it sounds very boring and touristy, but on Corfu, it is not.

The bus usually picks you up at your hotel around 9am. When everyone is collected from their hotels, the bus heads to the capital first, where it doesn't stop, so you just get a feel for it through the bus' windows. (You will most likely want to go back there for a day later, so don't take the tour on your last day on the island!) After that you're taken to the top of a nearby mountain where the famous palace of the 19th century emperor of Austria, Sissi stands. It's a beautiful sight, not to be missed even if you don't take the bus tour, read my separate entry for more info! After the palace visit, the bus heads to the northern part of the island where you visit Paleokastritsa, a lovely beach resort that has a beautiful monastery on top of a hill that overlooks the sea. The view is breathtaking and the monastery is beautiful as well. Usually there is some time left for exploring the little town, which is most often spent either on a quick boat tour of the bay and surrounding area, or a snack or coffee at one of the bars on the beach. After Paleokastritsa the bus heads to the hills. There are several little villages with local crafters and farmers selling their goods. They are there for the tourists but they are nevertheless much cheaper than the souvenir shops in the beach resort towns, and their wares are more interesting and authentic as well. Buy your gifts here if you can! The bus crosses all the hills and it's a beautiful terrain so keep your camera at hand! Some of the roads and villages on the hill will make you grab on to your seat as well... i wouldn't try driving up there! The last stop of the tour is at one of the northern beach resorts, most likely Sidari, which has a beautiful coastline with famous cliffs. It's a nice way to end the day with a swim and walking around the cliffs.

There are some tours which include the southern end of the island too, but this one i just described gave us enough action for a one-day tour and we saw wonderful views from the bus and from the lookouts, so i think it's well worth the money. Read Less

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on February 6, 2002

Bus Tour Around The Island
Offered by all travel agencies and local guides!
Corfu, Greece

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Beaches and Bays of Corfu

Attraction | "About Corfu's beaches"

Quote:

Corfu's beaches are not sandy beaches, which is OK if you know about it in advance, but can be a slight disappointment if you expect a broad sandy coastline. The beaches are pebbly, with very small pebbles, and sometimes rocks and cliffs. The water is also populated by sea creatures that are beautiful to look at, but a pain to meet face to face: sea cucumbers, jellyfish and the like. The water is clean, but always take your beach loafers or better yet, buy a pair of beach shoes at the supermarkets (they are available everywhere) and don't go in the water without them. Where we spent our holidays to the south of Corfu city, the beaches were small and narrow, but northern resorts, like Sidari and Paleok...Read More

Member Rating 3 out of 5 on February 6, 2002

Beaches and Bays of Corfu
Corfu
Corfu, Greece

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Sissi's Palace

Attraction | "Achilleon - Sissi's palace"

Quote:

Sissi was an Austro-Hungarian empress and she visited Corfu quite often to cure her illnesses with the clean and refreshing air of the island. She had this palace built in 1892, at a beautiful spot on top of a mountain overlooking the sea on one side, and the mountains on the other side. There is a small museum in the building which has relics and ordinary objects from the epresses collection and portraits her and her time on Corfu. It's a lovely daytrip because the views are excellent and the building is a very impressive classical style monument with a breathtaking garden. You can take a bus tour which includes a trip to the castle or walk up to it from a nearby village. The road takes you along nic...Read More

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on February 6, 2002

Sissi's Palace
the village of "Gastouri"
Corfu, Greece

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Greek Folklore Night At A Taverna

Attraction

Quote:

I wasn't very keen to go because i thought it will be a fake tourist attraction and not a real folk event. I was so wrong! This turned out to be the most fun night we had on Corfu!Almost all local tavernas/restaurants offer dance evening once or twice a week where a local dance group performs traditional greek dances. We had a few cocktails and watched the dancers who were quite interesting to watch. Little did we know that in about 15 minutes we would be there dancing around with them. After about 3-4 dances, the girls from the group came to the audience sitting around them at their tables and started asking the girls and women to come dance with them. Of course everyone was shy and hesit...Read More

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on February 6, 2002

Greek Folklore Night At A Taverna
in almost all tavernas around the island
Corfu, Greece