A map of Corfu

Corfu offers everything you’d expect from Greece and more: from sparkling blue seas to its golden beaches, isolated coves, sleepy villages, lively resorts, outgoing people, and sweeping garden-like landscape.

Described as the Emerald Isle, the Garden of Eden, the Happy Isle and even – by Homer – as a rich and beautiful land, this island has large modern resorts, tucked away fishing villages, myriad beaches ranging from loose pebbles to gorgeous sandy sweeps and hidden inlets along its coastline. Amidst the towns’ winding alleys, scent of citrus groves and silvery olive trees, you’ll find welcoming tavernas and bars plus forested mountains sloping down to intimate sand and pebble bays. Topping it all are the stunning cliffs and coves of Paleokastritsa and the cool, scented slopes of towering Mount Pandokrator

Meadows, decorated with wild flowers, tumble inland towards Mount Pantokrator, the island’s highest peak. In among nature’s bounty you’ll find villages and towns bearing the hallmark of the island’s Hellenic, Roman, Byzantine and Venetian past. A truly enchanting destination.

A small, extremely pretty horseshoe-shaped cove with waves gently lapping at its pure white pebbles, Nissaki is an appealing little fishing hamlet with views across the water to Corfu Town. Nissaki is a tiny, traditional village on the wooded mountainside below Mount Pandokrator, and is as concerned with its olive trees and the fishing catch as it is with visitors. About 23km north of Corfu Town and the airport and facing Albania, the compact resort has several small beaches and coves and attracts couples and families seeking a quiet, relaxing and typically Corfu holiday

Agios Stefanos is on the north eastern side of the island and once you’ve seen it, there’s no confusing it with anywhere else. A secluded bay, lined with yachts, dinghies and whitewashed buildings. A small pebble beach and thriving seafront tavernas. A vibrant Greek community that makes everyone feel at home. All this, just across the water from Albania – so close in fact, you can even see the houses on the opposite shore.

Agios Stefanos is exceptionally pretty -this small fishing village has stayed in tact and its authentic Greek charm has escaped high rise horrors. Agios Stephanos holidays are for lounging by the pool or down on the beach. Hire a boat and explore nearby coves like gorgeous Kerasia Beach. Trot off into Eremitis Nature Reserve on horseback and discover secret lagoons. Take a trip across to Albania. Or settle down for a day’s fishing off the jettys. Nights bring locals and visitors into the tavernas, to taste the catch of the day, topped off with a tipple in one of the cocktail bars. For a longer, louder nightlife, Kassiopi is your best bet.

The charming town of Kassiopi is set in a pretty location. It is backed by Mount Pandokrator, which is strewn with flowers in the spring, and boasts a picture-postcard harbour flanked by shingle coves and pebbly beaches. Despite recent tourist development, it retains all the atmosphere of a picturesque fishing village. Located approximately 36km north of Corfu Town and the airport

With sweeping vistas out across the clear Ionian Seas and towards the Albanian mountains on the mainland, the picturesque town of Sinies is blissfully serene and unspoilt. With a coast full of colours richer than the rainbow, a strip of dazzling snow-white sand separates a dreamy blue lagoon from the crystal clear seas. Stroll through sleepy olive groves or simply head for one of the charming tavernas and unwind in the peaceful ambience.

Holidays to Sidari are not about quiet, contemplative journeys through ancient cultures, or discovering history. Holidays to Sidari are about Funin the Sun and there are few places to rival it. The sand is soft, the sea is warm and the sun smiles down on the holiday-makers. If you have kids you can relax – the beach is clean and slopes gently into the calm water, and the shallows stretch way out. And if you don’t have kids that means you’re free to make the most of Sidari – one of the largest and liveliest resorts on the entire island. There are clubs, bars, pubs and English and traditional restaurants galore

On an island renowned for its outstanding scenery, Paleokastritsa stands unrivalled as Corfu’s finest beauty spot. It boasts five stunning bays, as well as a pretty monastery perched high on the clifftop. Snorkelling and diving from the rocks into the clear waters is a real pleasure. There are water-taxis available to the vast beach at Aghios Georgios. Spend your evenings in the tavernas and good selection of bars or treat yourself by dining at the smattering of more expensive restaurants. Quality seafood is widely available.

Barbati is almost two resorts in one. The main road is lined by bars and restaurants mixed in with traditional tavernas and pavement cafes, while the beach enjoys a blissful seclusion, away from the road and busier centre. Couples needing quiet lay in the sun all day. Young families paddle in the shallow, clear seas. This pristine pine-lined bay has won the EU Blue Flag and it’s amazing it’s not busier than it is. With two boat rental stalls and banana boats or waterskiing, the watersports here are unobtrusive. So you can sit back, let the sun warm your skin and gaze out across the water to Corfu Town.

Corfu Town is split into Old and New Towns. The New is where normal life goes on. The Old is an astonishing mish-mash of cultures – it practically screams aristocracy, thanks to the influence of the Venetians, French and Imperial Brits.

The Liston and the Esplanadae make up the Old Town. The Liston – once a promenade used by nobility – is now the best place to sip coffee in the sun. The Esplanade is Europe’s largest square, with the beach is at one end and a Sunday bandstand at the other.

Quirky shops sell gold, wild honey and fig cakes in the alleyways off the Liston, while New Town is home to cosmopolitan boutiques. Drink in the aromas and colours of the market, piled high with olives and oranges. A 16th century fortress watches over the town, complete with archaeology museums. Step into the incensed cool of St. Spiridon’s Church, home to the mummified remains of Corfu’s patron saint.

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