Paleokastritsa Beach and Corfu Old Town Bus Shore Excursion

The Corfu cruise port and the island interior

Your tour leader meets you at the Corfu cruise terminal, on the north side of Corfu Town, and the air-conditioned coach heads west into the heart of the island. Corfu is the greenest of the Greek islands, and much of its interior is covered by silver-grey olive groves planted during four centuries of Venetian rule, when the island was encouraged to produce oil for trade. Between the groves you pass cypress trees, small hill villages and views down to the sea.

The drive takes about 40 minutes, and the audio guide, available in nine languages, tells the story of an island ruled by Venetians, French and British before joining Greece in 1864. This varied history is why Corfu feels different from the Aegean islands, with its Italianate towns, its own music and its pastel churches. A short photo stop breaks the journey before the road winds down to the west coast.

Paleokastritsa: bays, beach and clear water

Paleokastritsa, on the north-west coast about 25 kilometres from Corfu Town, is often called the most beautiful spot on the island. Steep green hills drop into a series of small coves with very clear turquoise water, pebbly and sandy beaches and limestone cliffs riddled with sea caves. Local legend places the palace of an ancient seafaring king here, and the setting truly looks like something from a myth.

On this Paleokastritsa tour you have time on the beach to swim, paddle or simply sit by the water and take photos. The sea is often cooler than elsewhere because of underwater springs, which keeps it crystal clear. Sunbeds, umbrellas and towels are not included, so bring your own towel or rent a lounger on the spot. Small boats in the bay offer short trips to the sea caves if you want to add one.

The monastery headland and the west coast views

Above the bays, on a rocky headland, stands the Monastery of the Virgin Mary of Paleokastritsa, founded in the thirteenth century and rebuilt in its present form in the eighteenth century. Its white walls, bell tower and flowered courtyard look out over the sea, and it is one of the most photographed views in Corfu. On the hills behind, the ruined Byzantine castle of Angelokastro guards the coast from a cliff top.

The panoramic road around Paleokastritsa offers some of the finest viewpoints on the island, with the coves spread out below. If you want to visit the monastery during your free time, remember that it sits uphill from the beach and that shoulders and knees should be covered inside; the tour leader will tell you exactly how much time you have so you can plan your stop.

Corfu New Town and Garitsa Bay

On the way back to the east coast the coach drives through Corfu New Town, the modern part of the island capital that grew outside the old walls in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. You pass busy San Rocco Square, elegant residential streets and the curving seafront of Garitsa Bay, with its views across the water to the Old Fortress on its rocky promontory.

This panoramic drive gives you a sense of everyday life in Corfu Town, where around a third of the island's people live, and of the strong British and French influence on its architecture. The audio guide points out the main landmarks, so by the time you reach the Old Town you already know how the city is laid out and where you want to spend your free time.

Corfu Old Town, the Spianada and the Liston

Corfu Old Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2007, is a maze of narrow lanes, called kantounia, lined with tall Venetian houses, small squares and churches. At its edge spreads the Spianada, the largest square in Greece, where cricket is still played in summer, a legacy of British rule. Facing it, the Liston is an arcaded promenade built by the French in the early nineteenth century, today filled with cafés.

During your free time you can walk to the Church of Saint Spyridon, whose red-domed bell tower rises above the rooftops and which holds the relics of the island's patron saint, or admire the Old Fortress from the bridge over its moat. Corfu Old Town tours usually run much longer, but this visit gives you the essentials before the coach takes you back to the cruise port.