BPG_Corfu_9ed-13

Accommodation

Hotels. Many hotels are heavily booked with package tours in summer, especially between early July and early September, so advance reservations are strongly recommended. Recourse to the usual third-party booking websites can be successful; in slow years package operators have online specials.

Hotels are rated from 1-star to 5-star, based more on their common areas and amenities than the actual rooms. Prices can vary widely within each category, while luxury (5-star) establishments are not price controlled. Thus, a 3-star hotel room may be just as comfortable as a 5-star room, but common areas will not include a conference room, hairdresser, gym, spa.or multiple restaurants. All hotels of 2-star rating and above are reasonably furnished, have en-suite rooms and should provide breakfast.

Villas and apartments. Corfu has more villas, multi-bedroom apartments and studios than many other Greek tourist centres. Accommodation ranges from simple flats to lavishly appointed summer homes –sometimes tastefully converted from a traditional house or building– complete with swimming pools. In the UK, several companies specialise in secluded luxury villas on both Corfu and Paxí: Sunvil (www.sunvil.co.uk), Greek Islands Club (www.gicthevillacollection.com), Simpson Travel (www.simpsontravel.com) and Travel à la Carte (www.travelalacarte.co.uk). More affordable are Oliver’s Travels (oliverstravels.com) and TUI Villas with Pools (www.tui.co.uk).

Airport

Located about 4km (2.2 miles) from the capital, Corfu’s lagoon-side airport (CFU) is capable of handling all but the largest jets. This antiquated terminal has long had a poor reputation; however, it is one of 14 Greek regional airports acquired by the German entity Fraport, who in the coming years should build state-of-the art arrival and departure facilities.

Delayed departures (and arrivals) are depressingly common. In case of a really long, confirmed delay in take-off, it’s better to walk 700m/yds to the shore of Garítsa Bay where proper cafés and tavernas await.

The currency-exchange office opens from 9am until 2am if there are international flights scheduled to land late at night. (It’s a good idea to arrive with a few euros in hand, in case the airport office is closed, though there is at least one ATM in the airport.)

Bus No. 15 (Blue Bus) links the airport with Sarokko Square in Kérkyra Town. It runs daily between 7.30am–11pm, continuing to the new port until 10pm. For details and current timetables go to www.astikoktelkerkyras.gr. Taxis charge an inflated €12–15 for the short run into town. Pre-booked car rental is so advantageously priced that there’s little point in submitting to their tender mercies.

You can track flight arrivals and departures at www.europe-airports.com.

Bicycle and scooter hire

You can hire bicycles and scooters in all the tourist centres. However, many package operators warn clients against scooters for legitimate fear of an accident (and to drum up more business for organised excursions). It is vital that you check that scooter/motorbike use does not invalidate your holiday insurance.

To hire a motorbike with an engine of 50–125cc displacement you must be at least 18 years old and hold a driving license authorised for Class A (look on the back of a UK one). American licenses must include Class M1. Rental agencies have become quite strict on this point – zealous police are fining both them and riders up to €1,000 for violations. It is also illegal to ride without a crash helmet – the fines issued at checkpoints are similarly draconian.

It is certainly not advisable to ride a motorbike in a swimsuit, since burns or scrapes resulting from even a slight accident could be appalling. Inspect brakes and tyres before hiring, and drive with care. Even on notionally good roads there are occasional potholes or treacherous gravel patches.

Bicycle hire is less common because of Corfu’s mountainous terrain, but a good place for serious bikers is the Corfu Mountain Bike Shop (tel: 26610 93344; www.mountainbikecorfu.gr), on the main road at Dassiá. It organises expeditions on Giant bicycles.

Budgeting for your trip

Corfu is not the cheapest of the Greek islands, and probably as costly as most other Mediterranean destinations. In high season, the rate for a good 4-star hotel is around €180 minimum per night for a double room. Booking an airfare/accommodation package will yield a substantial saving.

A three-course meal plus drinks in a decent restaurant or taverna costs around €20–30 per person. Car hire for a compact ranges from about €20 per day (low season) up to €50 per day in peak season, if pre-booked online. Public transport and museum fees are inexpensive.

Car hire

It is definitely worth hiring a car in order to explore Corfu. As elsewhere in Greece, this is not particularly cheap in peak season, but it is certainly less expensive than touring by taxi, and less frustrating than coping with irregular public transport. For a decent family-sized car in high season, budget €550 minimum per week, and choose a model with air conditioning.

In high season, advance online reservation is essential. Some of the best consolidator websites include www.auto-europe.co.uk, www.carrentals.co.uk and www.rentalcargroup.com. A local outfit on Corfu giving uniformly good, hassle-free service is AutoUnion, just outside the airport (tel: 26610 33977).

Those intending to hire a car should carry an International Driving Permit if from the US, Canada or Australia (national licences alone are not valid and heavy fines ensue if you’re detected driving without an IDP). Alternatively all European Economic Area national driving licences are accepted, provided that they have been held for one full year and the driver is over 21 years of age (sometimes 23 years for certain agencies). After Brexit this may change for UK licence holders. You will also need a credit card for a damages deposit.

Many brochure rates seem attractive because they do not include personal insurance, collision damage waiver (CDW) or VAT at 24 percent. Most agencies have a waiver excess of between €400 and €700 – the amount (pre-blocked on your credit card) you’re responsible for if your vehicle gets smashed or stolen, even with CDW coverage. It is strongly suggested you purchase extra cover (often called Super CDW or Liability Waiver Surcharge) to reduce this risk to zero; UK or North American residents can buy good-value annual policies from entities like Insurance4CarHire (www.insurance4carhire.com) or Voyager (www.voyageroasis.co.uk). Policies sold on the spot are invariably ripoffs.

Climate

July and August are the sunniest, hottest and busiest tourist months. You may prefer to stay between mid-May and late June or from early September to mid-October. At any time outside mid-June to August it might rain, but global climate change has disrupted long-established weather patterns..

In winter it rains very hard. November through February are the wettest months and January the coldest, but even during mid-winter, frost is rare except at altitude. Spring, when Corfu bursts with wild flowers, is the best time for walking.

Clothing

Clothing is almost always casual on Corfu, though multistar hotels enforce a dress code at dinnertime. It is also appropriate to dress up a little for a night in Kérkyra Town. Choose lightweight cotton clothes in spring and summer, and a warm jacket, sweater and rainwear in autumn or winter. A pocket umbrella is a good idea in any season except mid-summer.

Crime and safety (see also Emergencies and Police)

The Corfiots, like most Greeks, are scrupulously honest. However, of late, organised burglary rings are targeting foreign-owned or tenanted villas in the north of the island, so take appropriate precautions. Those staying in a hotel should use the room safe rather than circulate with excess valuables. Car break-ins (especially at isolated beach parking areas) are becoming more common. Take a photocopy of your passport, rather than the original, out with you (you’re required to have official ID on your person at all times in Greece).

Possession of recreational drugs is a serious matter in Greece, though medical cannabis is now permitted. Keep prescription drugs in their original containers, and keep documentation handy for insulin syringes.

Huge, jointed red-and-yellow wasps are a mid-summer hazard, especially around swimming pools. Their sting is excruciating; Fenistil gel (from any pharmacy) dulls the pain.

Driving

Road conditions. Main roads are generally very good, but secondary roads are some of the narrowest and most treacherous on any of the Greek islands. Curves are often indicated too late, sometimes un-signposted and rarely banked correctly. If there is a mirror on a bend, brake and downshift – it is probably going to be extremely tight or narrow, or perhaps both. Rockslides are common during the rainy season, and broken shoulders or potholes are not unknown on even the best-paved stretches; anything marked ‘unsurfaced’ on a map can be very rough indeed. Drive with extreme caution, as you are responsible for damage sustained to the underside of your hire car, even with comprehensive coverage.

Other drivers are a major hazard. Greeks love to straddle the median line, barge out recklessly from side-roads, or overtake on either side. One-way street systems are often regarded, especially by two-wheelers, as optional.

Rules and regulations. Drive on the right side and overtake (theoretically) on the left. Roundabouts and traffic lights are eccentrically arranged by north-European standards. If an oncoming driver flashes the lights, it means ‘Stay where you are, I’m coming through’, not ‘Go ahead’. It can also mean ‘traffic control ahead’. Seat belts are obligatory, as is the carrying of your driving licence for anyone driving. Speed limits are 50kph (30mph) inside built-up areas, 90/110kph (56/68mph) on ordinary roads. In practice, however, Corfu’s winding roads usually set the speed limit – it’s difficult to safely exceed 50kph (30mph).

Fuel. Unless you are on the top of Mt Pandokrátor, you will never be far from a filling station. However, in rural areas they are open only until about 8pm and close on Sunday. On busy main roads and in resorts they open daily from early until late. A few big filling stations have after-hours automatic-sales pumps, using euro notes.

If you need help. Your car hire office should provide contact numbers for breakdown service. If you are involved in an accident with another vehicle and/or with significant personal injury or property damage, it is illegal to leave the scene – wait for the ordinary police or traffic police (trohéa) to show up and take statements.

Corfu roads readily generate punctures – unfortunately, tyre-repair shops are concentrated in the middle of the island, around Gouviá. A good one there is Pangratis, on the northeast side of the highway (tel: 26610 91495).

Road signs. On main roads these are in Greek and Latin (Western) letters; on secondary roads they may just be in Greek. Critical junctions are atrociously indicated, with vital signs sometimes either uprooted or hidden by foliage.

Electricity

Corfu has 220-volt/50-cycle AC current out of European Type F (earthed, heavy duty appliance) or Type C (unearthed). Sockets take two round-pin plugs, so bring an adapter or transformer with you as necessary.

Embassies and consulates

There are consular offices for the UK and the Republic of Ireland in Kérkyra Town. Embassies of main countries are located in Athens.

Australian Embassy and Consulate Level 6, Thon Building, junction Kifisías & Alexándras, 115 21 Athens, tel: 210 87 04 000, http://greece.embassy.gov.au/athn/home.html.

British Vice Consulate: Mantzárou 18, Kérkyra Town, tel: 26610 23457 (in practice calls are forwarded to an Athens voice-mail), www.gov.uk/world/organisations/british-vice-consulate-corfu. Open Mon–Fri 9am–1pm for emergencies.

British Embassy: Ploutárhou 1, 106 75 Athens, tel: 210 72 72 600, www.gov.uk/world/organisations/british-embassy-athens.

Canadian Embassy: 48 Ethnikis Antistaseos Street, Chalandri, 152 31 Athens, tel: 210 72 73 400.

Irish Honorary Consulate: 20A Kapodistríou Street, Kérkyra Town, tel: 26610 33411.

Irish Embassy Vassiléos Konstandínou 7, 106 74 Athens, tel: 210 72 32 771/2, www.dfa.ie/irish-embassy/greece.

South African Embassy and Consulate: Kifisías 60, 151 25 Marousi, Athens, tel: 210 61 06 645.

US Embassy and Consulate: Vassilísis Sofías 91, 101 60 Athens, tel: 210 72 12 951, https://gr.usembassy.gov.

Emergencies

Police, tel: 100.

Ambulance, tel: 166.

Fire, tel: 199.

Environmental issues

Many visitors are shocked by overflowing wheelie bins across the island. Rubbish is rarely collected because the old landfill near Temblóni is full, and not up to EU standards. The siting of a new, legal landfill is the hot local issue, with no resolution in sight. Lefkímmi was approached, but declined the ‘honour’ with a massive civil disobedience campaign. Garbage mountains will likely remain a feature of the landscape for some time to come.

Getting there

It is possible to cross Europe overland and take a ferry to Corfu from Venice, Ancona, Brindisi or Bari in Italy. However, for most visitors, air travel (around 3 hours’ flight time from Britain) is the only practical route. Charter or no-frills flights from the UK link a dozen British airports to Corfu; BA, Jet2, easyJet, TUI, and Ryanair provide seasonal scheduled services from several UK airports. If you are travelling from North America, fly to London or another major European hub and pick up a cheap flight from there.

Health and medical care

Doctors and dentists are concentrated in Kérkyra Town; your hotel or apartment owner will be able to find you one who speaks English. Most resorts have a public medical clinic.

The capital’s hospital and general clinic operate a 24-hour emergency service that dispatches ambulances to any point on the island with admirable speed. The Corfu General Hospital (tel: 26613 60400) is 4km (2 miles) out of Kérkyra Town, in Kondókali. Privately run Corfu General Clinic (www.corfugeneralclinic.gr) is located on the main Paleokastrítsa road, just outside Kérkyra Town centre (tel: 26610 36044 or 26610 22946). Emergency treatment in public facilities is free, although this only covers immediate needs. EU residents can get free treatment with a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC; www.ehic.org.uk). It is advisable to have travel insurance to cover you for protracted treatment or repatriation.

A green cross on a white background identifies a chemist (pharmacy) – farmakío (ΦAPMAKEIO). They are normally open only 9am–2pm Monday to Friday, but a notice on the door specifies the nearest one for after-hours/weekend service.

Language

Only in remote countryside spots will non-Greek-speaking tourists run into serious communication problems. You will find that basic English is spoken almost everywhere, as are Italian, German and French, to some degree.

Stress is a very important feature of the Greek language, denoted by an accent above the vowel of the syllable to be emphasised. We have indicated proper stress in all of our transliterations of multi-syllable words.

LGBTQ travellers

Corfu has no specific gay scene, but attitudes in resorts are generally relaxed. Be discreet in conservative rural communities. Homosexual practice is legal in Greece for people aged 17 and older.

Maps

The folding Kérkyra Town plan handed out by the tourist-info kiosk on Platía Sarókko is the best available. For a commercial touring map of the entire island, plump for Anavasi Edition’s 1:40,000 folding map of the entire island – preferably bought before arrival, though often Plous Books at Nikifórou Theotóki 91 in Kérkyra Town stocks it.

Media

Newspapers: In season, major English newspapers can be bought in resorts one day after publication. Some English tabloids have European editions printed in Greece and available the same day. Greek news in English can be found at www.ekathimerini.com and https://greece.greekreporter.com/category/greek-news.

Television: Most large hotels have satellite TV services, which include news channels such as CNN and BBC World. Greek TV stations often broadcast American and English films and other imported programmes in the original language, with Greek subtitles.

Money

Currency: Greece’s currency is the euro (€). Notes are denominated in 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 euros; coins in 1 and 2 euros and 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 cents, known as leptá in Greece. Notes of 100 euros and above are regarded with suspicion, as possibly counterfeit, and can often only be exchanged in banks. 500-euro notes were withdrawn from circulation in 2018 because of their popularity with mega-criminals.

Currency exchange: Most banks exchange foreign currency but charge a commission (usually 1–3 percent) for the service. Exchange rates appear on a digital display, and are identical for each bank.

The best option for exchanging foreign notes is the Bank of Greece (not to be confused with the National Bank of Greece) at Dimárhou Kollá 1, just off Platía Dimarhíou. Rates are good and commissions low to nonexistent.

ATMs: There are cash machines in every Corfiot town or resort of over a few hundred inhabitants. These are the most convenient way to get euros.

Credit and debit cards: As part of the Greek government’s campaign to stamp out the thriving black economy, card transactions are actively encouraged at hotels, tavernas, supermarkets and filling stations. Surprisingly unlikely-looking enterprises have the necessary device.

Travellers cheques: These are not recommended for use in Greece – expect severe delays or outright refusals in banks.

Opening times

Opening times vary between official organisations and privately owned shops and cafés, and also from high to low season. Almost everybody closes mid-afternoon, and official entities will not reopen later; if you need to get anything official done, do so in the morning.

We give opening days and hours for museums and archaeological sites in the text, but remember that the last admission ticket is generally sold 20 minutes before closing time. Shops are open Monday, Wednesday and Saturday 9am–2.30pm, closing at 2pm on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, but open additionally 5.30–8.30pm on those days. In peak season, they may stay open throughout the day until midnight, especially if selling tourist-related products. Supermarkets open 8.30am–9pm Mon–Fri, 8.30am–8pm Sat; a very few may work 10am–4pm Sunday. Restaurants and tavernas do lunch from just after noon until 3.45pm, and begin dinner service at around 6.30pm, but most Greek families don’t eat until after 9pm. Banks are open Mon–Fri 8am–2pm.

Police (see Emergencies)

Regular police officers wear two-toned blue uniforms. Tourist police also wear blue uniforms displaying a small national flag indicating which language they speak other than Greek.

If you need to report an incident to the police, go to the police station closest to the scene of the crime. Each group of villages has a designated police station.

Traffic police check car documents and driving licences, operate speed and drink-driving traps and issue hefty fines for illegal parking. Car hire companies will use your credit card details to pay ignored parking tickets; you have 10 working days to pay moving violations in person. Failing that, a court date will be set, and a summons sent to your home address. Failure to appear will result in an extra conviction for contempt of court, and make re-entry to Greece extremely awkward.

Post offices

Post offices have blue-and-yellow livery, and are marked ‘Elliniká Takhydromía’ in Greek plus ‘Hellenic Post’ in English, with a stylised Hermes head as the logo. Stamps can be bought here, or at postal agencies (usually small shops).

Post offices are generally open Mon–Fri 7.30am–2pm. The main Kérkyra Town post office at the corner of Alexándhras 26 and Zafiropoúlou is open Mon–Fri 7.30am–8.30pm (until 2.30pm for money orders and parcels). Registered letters and parcels to non-EU destinations are examined before being sent, so don’t seal them beforehand.

Mailboxes are yellow with the same Hermes-head logo, but in rural areas they are not emptied regularly. Most hotels will post letters and postcards for you. Allow 4–7 days for postcards to Europe, 9–14 days for the rest of the world.

Public holidays

Banks, offices and shops are closed on the following national holidays, as well as during some local festivals:

1 January Protohroniá New Year’s Day

6 January Theofánia Epiphany

25 March Evangelismós Day Greek Independence/Annunciation

1 May May Day

15 August Kímisi tis Theotókou Dormition of the Mother of God

28 October Ohi (‘No’) Day, celebrates 1940 defiance of Italians

25 December Hristoúgena Christmas

26 December Sýnaxis tis Panagías Gathering of the Virgin’s Entourage

Moveable religious festivals:

The first day of Lent (Katharí Deftéra/Clean Monday), Good Friday, Easter Monday and tou Agíou Pnévmatos/Whit Monday.

Religion

Corfu, like the rest of Greece, is largely Greek Orthodox in faith. There is, however, a sizeable but well-integrated Catholic minority with a handful of functioning churches in Kérkyra Town. The Holy Trinity Anglican Church at Lorénzou Mavíli 21 (www.holytrinitycorfu.net), in the Pórta Remoúnda district of Kérkyra Town, holds weekly services – visitors are welcome.

You must dress modestly to visit churches or monasteries, which normally means long trousers for men, a long skirt for women and covered shoulders for both sexes. Men might be allowed to wear long shorts which cover knees, and wraps are sometimes provided for under-dressed women.

Telephones

Since deregulation of the local telecoms market, a number of providers offer competition to the state-run OTE. OTE still, however, maintains most of the increasingly scarce public booths. Kiosks and newsagents sell OTE calling cards in various unit denominations, as well as other products (including discount long-distance cards and local mobile top-up cards).

Most hotels of two stars and above have direct-dial lines out, but add a huge surcharge to the cost of calls. Avoid this by using a prepaid, 12-digit code card with an access number.

Dialling from abroad, the country code for Greece is 30. Within Greece, all phone numbers have ten digits; fixed lines begin with 2, mobiles with 69. There are no longer any area codes as such in Greece – what were the old codes are now merely the prefixes: 26610 for Kérkyra Town and the centre of the island, 26630 for northern Corfu, 26620 for the far south and Paxí.

Foreign visitors with tri-band mobiles can roam on one of the Greek networks, but charges for non-EU subscribers are extortionate. If you are staying more than a week or two, and also planning to return to Greece, it makes sense for them to buy a local SIM with some talk-time included. It (and your device) must be registered at time of purchase, but the number remains valid for some months from each top-up. On the northeast coast, do not let your phone be ‘snatched’ by an Albanian network opposite; if you do you will have an unpleasant non-EU-roaming-bill back home.

Time zones

Greek time is GMT + 2. Greece observes Daylight Savings along with the rest of Europe (but not the USA), moving clocks one hour forward between the last Sunday in March and the last one in October. However, the European Parliament has voted to end Daylight Savings in 2021. It is unclear whether this will happen, or whether the UK will go along with this post Brexit.

Toilets

Public conveniences are best avoided. But if you are desperate in Kérkyra Town, there are toilets at the following locations: Platía I. Theotóki, near the Spianáda bandstand, on Platía Sarókko and at Platía Spiliás near the old port. Take along your own toilet paper. You should leave a small tip (up to €0.50) if there’s someone in attendance.

You are always expected to put toilet tissue in the waste bin rather than down the toilet. Due to their narrow-bore drainage pipes, older toilets easily become clogged.

Tourist information

The Greek National Tourist Organisation, or Ellinikós Organismós Tourismoú (EOT; www.visitgreece.gr) has the following offices abroad, fine for general info and glossy pamphlets, but short on material specific to Corfu:

UK and Ireland: 5th Floor East, Great Portland House, 4 great Portland Street, London W1W 8QJ; tel: (020) 7495 9300.

US: 800 Third Avenue, 23rd Floor, New York, NY 10022; tel: (212) 421 5777.

The tourist information office in Kérkyra Town is a small, green, wooden kiosk halfway up the Ioánni Theotókou side of Platía Sarókko (unreliable opening hours in season) – though information is limited to a useful town plan and basic leaflets.

Transport

Buses (leoforía). The island’s public bus service is not always efficient, but it is good value. Timetables are displayed at bus stops (ΣΤΑΣΗ– stási) in the capital. There are no all-night bus services. There are two types of buses on the island. The blue urban buses serve towns and villages in the vicinity of Kérkyra Town, including Benítses, Kondókali, Gouviá, Dassiá, the Achilleion and Pélekas. Buses for Kanóni depart from near the Spianáda. All other blue buses leave from Platía Saríkko (San Rocco Square) (tel: 26610 31595). Detailed information on routes and timetables can be obtained at www.astikoktelkerkyras.gr. Long-distance buses are green-and-cream-coloured, but with variations for adverts; they leave from the coach station on Avramíou Street by the New Fort (tel: 26610 39985). Check https://greenbuses.gr for routes and timetables.

For all buses, buy your tickets on board or from kiosks in the square. You should only flag buses down at designated stops, or other safe places, with a verge.

Taxis. Taxis based in Kérkyra Town are dark blue; those based in the country are grey. Taxi ranks in town are at the new port, old port, Esplanade and San Rocco Square. There are meter tariffs: check upon getting into the cab; if the meter is mysteriously ‘broken’, you will have to agree on a fare with the driver.

Ferries. Regular ferries run to the Diapóndia islets from Ágios Stéfanos Gýrou, and to Paxí via Igoumenítsa. But the Ionian islands are not a group for island-hopping: it takes three hours to sail to Paxí and the former service to Kefaloniá has been suspended. To get to either Itháki, Kefalloniá or Zákynthos requires changing on the Greek mainland at Astakós or Pátra. Ferries also go to various ports in Italy. All depart from Kérkyra Town, though there is an additional service to Igoumenítsa from Lefkímmi (near Kávos) – useful for drivers since it’s much cheaper and quicker.

For current ferry schedules and fares check with authorised travel agents or the port authority (http://corfuport.gr; no English option) tel: 26610 45551.

Visas and entry requirements

European Union (EU) citizens may stay in Greece up to 3 months (longer stays require a residence permit) as long as they have a valid identity card or passport. Citizens of the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand can stay for up to 90 days within any 180-day period upon production of a valid passport; no advance visas are needed. South African citizens require a Schengen Visa, applied for in advance at a Greek embassy or consulate. Visa requirements for UK nationals in the event of Brexit are uncertain as of writing.

There are no limits on the amount of hard currency visitors can import or export, though amounts in excess of €10,000, or equivalent, should be declared.

All goods brought into Greece for commercial purposes from within the EU must have duty paid on them. There are no limitations on the amount of duty-paid goods that can be brought into the country.

Water

Tap water is not drinkable on much of the island: water here comes from well bores that may have been tainted by the sea (glyfó is Greek for brackish, a word you’ll hear a lot). Known potable wells are in the square at Benítses, along the waterfront at Garítsa, and on Platía Políti at the top of Guilford in Kérkyra Town. The few springs high in the hills are usually okay to collect from. Bottled water is affordable and is your best bet to avoid any tummy upsets.

Websites and internet access

Internet access is available in almost every beach resort, where almost all tavernas, bars and cafés have Wi-Fi zones. These are invariably password-protected. Low-star hotels or pensions tend to have free networks; luxury resorts may control access with a fee or time-limited subscription.

Many Corfu travel agencies and other commercial enterprises have their own websites, which vary greatly in quality. One of the best, and most heavily used, is www.agni.gr (with lively forums). Other useful sites include:

www.terrakerkyra.gr Good overview site, with history, festivals, destinations.

www.allcorfu.com Most up-to-date information on the island’s attractions and its people.

www.corfuwall.gr Weekly events calendar, plus exhaustive information on cultural and other attractions.

http://corfublues.blogspot.com Excellent blog by local aficionado and scholar Jim Potts.

Youth hostels

The enormous Pink Palace at Ágios Górdis is the island’s backpacker hostel, hosting multi-national crowds in both doubles and multi-bed rooms. Full information from www.thepinkpalace.com.