Things to do in Corfu worth pre-booking
Most of Corfu is free and unbookable — the Old Town alleys, the coves, the sunsets. What is worth reserving is the handful of things that are weather-dependent, capacity-limited or genuinely awkward without a guide: the boat days, the sea caves, the Albania crossing, and a hire car in August. We link Viator first and GetYourGuide as a backup; compare price and departure point before you commit.
Corfu Old Town on foot
The Venetian street plan repays a guided walk: two fortresses facing each other across the town, the arcaded Liston built under French rule, the kantounia alleys of Campiello, the church of Agios Spyridon with its red-domed campanile, and the Palace of St Michael and St George, which now houses the Museum of Asian Art.
The Museum of Asian Art runs 08:00–20:00 daily from 1 April to 31 October, but switches to 08:30–15:30 and closes on Tuesdays from 1 November to 31 March — check the day before you plan around it.
Paxos, Antipaxos & the blue caves by boat
The classic Corfu boat day: the sea caves and cliffs along the west coast of Paxos, the almost absurdly clear water off Antipaxos, and a stop in Gaios harbour. It is a long day on a boat and by far the most weather-sensitive thing you will book here.
Put this early in your trip. If the wind cancels it — and it does — you want a spare day left to run it again.
Paleokastritsa: sea caves, Angelokastro & Lakones
The northwest coast is the island’s scenery day. Small boats run from Paleokastritsa’s coves into the sea caves, the monastery sits on the headland above them, and the road up to Lakones delivers the Bella Vista panorama before continuing to the Byzantine ruin of Angelokastro on its crag.
The Achilleion & the southern shore
Empress Elisabeth of Austria’s neoclassical palace above Gastouri, with its terraces of statuary looking back over the lagoon — reachable on blue bus line 10 from town, so it pairs naturally with Kanoni and Mouse Island rather than needing a car.
The palace interior is closed for restoration — the Achilleion’s own site states that only the exterior open areas and the Imperial Gardens can be visited. Entry is €7 (€5 reduced), 08:00–20:00 from 1 April to 31 October and 08:00–16:00 from 1 November to 31 March. Plan it as a garden-and-view stop, and be wary of any tour still selling you the rooms.
Corfiot food, kumquat and the town market
Corfu’s kitchen is Venetian, not Aegean — sofrito, pastitsada and bourdeto rather than souvlaki — and its two oddest exports are British leftovers: kumquat liqueur and tsitsibira, the local ginger beer. A tasting walk or cooking class through the Old Town and the produce market is the fastest route in.
Inland Corfu: Mount Pantokrator & Old Perithia
The island’s highest point, with a monastery at the summit and a view that takes in the whole of Corfu, mainland Greece and Albania on a clear day — approached through Old Perithia, a semi-abandoned Venetian-era mountain village that now runs on a handful of tavernas.
Doable in a hire car, but the final stretch is narrow and exposed; a jeep-safari tour is the low-stress version.
Day trip to Albania: Saranda & Butrint
Corfu is close enough to Albania that a hydrofoil day trip to Saranda and the UNESCO-listed ruins at Butrint is a normal thing to do — and it is genuinely a different country, not another island.
This is a real border crossing: bring your passport, not a national ID card, and check your own visa position for Albania before booking.
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Booking tips (so you don’t overpay)
- Book boat days early in your trip and prefer free cancellation — Paxos, Antipaxos and the sea-cave trips are cancelled by wind often enough that you want a spare day in hand.
- Hire cars sell out on Corfu in August before hotels do. If your plan depends on a car, book it at the same time as the room, not afterwards.
- Buy blue urban-bus tickets from the kiosk beside the stop before boarding — tickets sold onboard cost more, and a day ticket is €5 if you are making more than three hops.
- Green KTEL buses leave from the Eptanisou Avenue station in Corfu Town, not from the blue-bus stops, and run far less often on Sundays and out of season. Check the return time before you commit to a beach day without a car.
- Walk the Old Town before 09:00 or after 18:00 on days when cruise ships are in — the port publishes its cruise schedule, and the difference between a docked morning and an empty one is dramatic.
Want these slotted into a day-by-day plan? See Corfu in 3 days.