One Day in Corfu Old Town

I had only been to Greece one, ten years ago to Santorini, and for some reason it had eluded me since.

Whilst planning a trip through Albania for Summer 2026, I worked out that the best way for what I was looking for was to fly into Corfu, Greece, directly from Liverpool with Ryanair, then catch the 30-minute hydrofoil over to Sarandë in the south of Albania. 

I was landing in Corfu around 21:30 so I decided to book a hotel near the airport.

Hotel Bretagne was a five-minute walk from Corfu Airport and ideal for the night. There was a mini-fridge in the room with two complimentary bottles of water which I was so glad of given how warm the night was. 

The next morning, I drank a cappuccino on my garden terrace but it was too hot for that even at 10am. I checked out and had to navigate how to get into Corfu Old Town from there as it was too hot to walk the 45 minutes with my luggage and Uber (which isn't so common in Corfu) was quoting 56 euros for a 10 minute drive. 

Garden terrace at Hotel Bretagne

I assumed I would need cash for a bus so walked back over to the airport and withdrew euros from the ATM. 

This was not necessary- you can pay on board with a contactless debit card.

Look out for the Blue Line Bus, Number 15, which pulls up right outside Arrivals. Watch the screen on board the bus and get off at San Rocco (Saroko) Square. You can also stay on the bus for about 2-3 more stops after this if you wish to get off at the harbour instead.

As I was due to catch the ferry to Albania at 19:45, I paid to store my luggage at a shop in San Rocco Square. 12 euros seemed a bit pricey compared to when I've paid 5 euros in Lake Garda, for example, but Corfu does generally feel a pricier destination than Italy and maybe other Greek islands (so I've heard).

However, the lady there was lovely and she wrote a list of places she recommended for food and wine as I told her it was my first time in Corfu.

I took a photo to share on my blog with you as tips from a local are usually highly reliable:

This was the luggage storage place I used: https://luggagestoragecorfu.gr , chosen for the central and easy-to-find location for when I'd be leaving later that day.

About Corfu

Corfu is a Greek island (one of the Ionian islands) to the north west of the country. You can see in the map above its close proximity to Albania across the Ionian Sea (more on there in upcoming blog entries).

Corfu has a blended heritage of various cultures due to being ruled by the Venetians, the French, and the British as different times in its history.  Corfu is known as Kérkyra in Greek, and its old town is recognised by UNESCO as a World Heritage site. The Venetian influence is particularly felt around the old town with the Venetian shutters, pastel coloured buildings, lanterns on the walls, and narrow alleyways to avoid the intense sun.

Corfu is one of places in Greece with the highest rainfall, hence why the island is so green and luscious despite the hot summers. It was only around 34 degrees when I was there but for some reason it felt far hotter and almost uncomfortable, which is odd for me given I lived in the hottest city in Spain for a few years which was inland with no sea breeze.

Corfu Old Town

I only had one day on the island so stayed in the old town, however, I have seen photos of Kassiopi, Sidari, and Paleokastritsa which look like paradise, so I will be investigating those in the future! You can also take day trips to Sarandë/Ksamil in Albania, or a day sailing to the small islands of Paxos and Antipaxos which look like heaven on earth.

I'd always skimmed past Corfu on the Ryanair website when looking at flights from Liverpool but now I know more about the island and the nearby islands, I will be looking out for future flights as cheap as the one I got (£30 in the school summer holidays!).

The interesting thing about Corfu's airport is that you land on a runway in the middle of the water. I landed just as it was going dark and I always pay for an aisle seat (is that weird? Most people want the window seat but I like having more room to move as a bit of a fidgeter) so didn't see that view.

There are viewing spots where you can sit with a coffee or cocktail and view the planes taking off and landing which I didn't get time to do but read that Skyview is far better than Kanoni, the place that seems to be displayed first on Google and on Instagram.

A glimpse of greenery on Corfu

Corfu Old Town is absolutely beautiful but it is also very immediately tourist driven (saying that aware I was a tourist).

There are souvenir shops everywhere and the streets are very busy; not overwhelmingly crowded but it does feel more like a tourist hotspot than a lived in town. Most people I interacted with very briefly in my short time there were really friendly and cheerful and I didn't pick up on any anti-tourist sentiment (although I don't know, I could be wrong). 

There are juice bars everywhere and I ordered a cherry granita at one, but felt a bit mugged off when I watched them get a cup with ice then add some plain granita and add a shot of cherry syrup for 6 euros! I knew I should have just ordered a fresh orange juice.. oh well, next time.

Olive Oil Tasting at The Olive House

I had booked on to an olive oil tasting after seeing The Olive House featured on a YouTube vlog on Corfu.

You can choose between a 30 minute olive oil tasting for 10 euros or a 60 minute tasting with pairings for 25 euros, so I booked on to the latter as it would serve as my 'lunch' anyway.

Something to be aware of if you book on is that the 60 minute tasting ended up lasting almost 2 hours, so something to keep in mind if you are on a tight schedule (it's great value for money though!).

The host began by giving us two small glasses with about a tablespoon of two different olive oils in. The tasting technique is to smell it, then sip it, leaving it in your mouth for 3 seconds before swallowing, then taking a sharp inhalation through closed teeth. We were all surprised by how 'spicy' one of them tasted, which I quite liked, but the lovely woman from New York sat next to me really didn't like it. 

We were then given several small tasting dishes designed around showcasing the olive oil in surprising ways. 

Firstly, we had olive oil with bread and za'aar as pictured above, fava beans with capers, a couple of other savoury dishes then a sort of custard with lemon (it was nicer than it sounds!) and a glass of local Corfu white wine.

There is a lovely little square called Platia Kremasti (pictured above) if you want some shade from the sun and a quiet sit-down away from the ever-moving throng of people in the main streets.

The Beach

Corfu Old Town has a beach too- Faliraki beach (not to be confused with Faliraki the party resort in Rhodes).

It isn't the best beach in Corfu but the views are absolutely stunning. I could have looked out over that blue sea all day. There are no filters or editing on any of the following photos, it just really is that light blue/turquoise:

People were swimming in the sea which I've read is very warm in July/August, and there was music pumping out from the bar/restaurant but it was still quite peaceful. 

Flowers and Kumquats

Another thing I loved about Corfu was the flowers:

Time was marching on and I had to be at the port for 18:45, an hour earlier than my boat to Albania which was scheduled to leave at 19:45. 

Kumquats grow all over Corfu so appear all over the island in the form of many kinds of food, drinks, and cosmetics and candles. 

I actually own a kumquat tree in my little Liverpool garden and it's only grown fruit in 2 out of the 6 years I've had it. We've been having a really hot summer this year so I don't think it's that but I think I need to buy another one and look up cross-pollination.

Anyway, the kumquat is known in some languages as a 'Chinese orange' and you can eat the peel.

Before I made my way to the port, I had some time to stop off for a drink at a bar where I ordered a kumquat spritz which was an eye-watering 13 euros. I say eye-watering because I am so used to trips to Italy over the past few years where a spritz has ranged from 1 euro in Naples to 8 euros in Bergamo. Even here in Liverpool, we tend to pay between £7-£10 for a spritz. It was really watered down as well.. still, it made a pretty photo and it was something different to standard Aperol...

Port of Corfu for the Ferry to Albania

I will write a separate, dedicated blog entry on this with all the specifics but I will say that the experience was not the quick and simple experience I had read about so much online.

I would hedge a bet though that the delays, unhelpful staff, chaos at passport control, and overcrowding would have largely been down to it being late July. The boat trip itself was great, about 50 minutes plain sailing on a smooth sea with a bonus view of the sunset over the water.

The experience of passport control in Corfu has put me off doing this trip again in the future though, unless it was in a cooler month with far fewer people trying to make the journey.. I suppose I was forewarned about the south of Albania being packed with tourists in the summer. I was ok on the whole as an able-bodied solo traveller who did not have to worry about others but I felt so sorry for children and older people in the same shambles.

My Takeaways After One Day in Corfu Old Town

Admittedly, I only had time to see a tiny part of the island, centred in the old town.

My takeaways are:

• I was stunned by how beautiful it is, this island of light blue sky and sea, and flowers and greenery
• It was very hot and humid end of July (as you'd expect)
• I now really want to visit Corfu properly and stay in Kassiopi and do the day trips to Paxos and Antipaxos
• The people were very warm and friendly
• It is quite pricey in comparison to other holiday destinations in Europe
• There must be far nicer kumquat drinks than the watery spritz I had
• Chaos at passport control at the ferry terminal and unclear signage- better to do that boat trip out of season
• It has sparked an interest in Greece after a decade of overlooking it
• It felt very safe, especially for a solo female traveller!
• Something I didn't have time to do but want to make you aware of here: head to the Cavalieri Hotel for their rooftop bar for amazing views at sunset; I would probably stay at this hotel next time I'm in Corfu Old Town as room rates are really reasonable especially to have access to such views (look it up).

So that's it for now- my day in Corfu was purely to facilitate my journey to southern Albania but I now owe Corfu a good week spent in its beautiful land and sea.

Do you have any tips for Corfu, beyond the Old Town? What did you make of it?

Leave your comments in the box below.

Laura.