Three things to do in Corfu Town with kids

One of the joys of a family holiday on a Greek island is long lazy days doing not very much in the sun, perhaps with a gentle wander from beach to shady streets. But while Corfu is just as chilled out as smaller isles, there’s more to do in island capital Corfu Town with kids than on others.

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Also known as Kerkyra, the Old Town is a Unesco world heritage site. Dating as far back as the 8th century BC, it was ruled by the Republic of Venice for centuries, with those Italian influences still easy to spot – looking out from the town on the east coast, you can see Albania, but not far away over the horizon to the west lies Italy. Wander the picturesque streets with the tall elegant houses and you can find reminders of France too.

While half the pleasure is ambling and people-watching, it’s easy to fill a day – or more – exploring Corfu Town with kids too. Taking advantage of the free shuttle bus from our resort, Ikos Dassia, we did just that – returning another evening to Rex Restaurant, part of the all-inclusive resort’s Dine Out programme, to soak up the atmosphere after the shops shut and the sun sets too. So if you have only a few hours to kill, here are my top three things to do in Corfu Town.

Corfu Town with kids: visit the Old Venetian fortress

With the town sandwiched between the ‘new’ Venetian fortress on one side (dating from the 16th century) and the old fort on the waterfront, constructed in the early 15th century, there’s no question the Venetians left their mark.

Built on earlier fortifications, much of the buildings inside were destroyed when lightning hit the gunpowder stored there – but you can still discover enough to imagine a little of what life must have been like.

Information is fairly limited, but once you cross the bridge into the fort, we found some of the old buildings, cannon and a church dedicated to St George, disguised as a Greek temple.

You can climb high above the open area where towers still rise high against the blue sky, but even in October sunshine we decided to take the easy option and stop part-way to soak in the views: ferries arriving across the water, the buildings of Corfu Town behind us and the astonishingly clear turquoise blue water of the Ionian Sea.

There’s very little shade so if you’re visiting in peak season, the sun will be fiercely hot – arrive early if you’re planning to explore with younger kids especially, and take shoes which can cope with a climb on uneven ground if you’re heading up towards the tower.

But it’s one of my favourite things to do in Corfu for families.

Outside the fortress lie shadier gardens with statues and a sign remembering the Durrell family, who lived on the island, as well as the Esplanade, now a tree-filled park although it’s still home to the town’s cricket field.

Visiting Corfu Old Fortress: Need to know

Entry is free for under 18s (teens might need to provide ID proof) and the Corfu Town old fortress entry fee is 6 Euros for adults. There are also combined tickets which give you admission to other museums on the island.

The old fortress opening hours are from at least 9am to 4pm (often as late as 8pm) every day.

Corfu Town with kids: living history museum Casa Parlante

Wandering around the town’s historic fortress has to be on any list of things to do in Corfu Town with kids – but sometimes, bringing that history to life goes down much better.

So when I discovered that guests at Ikos Dassia could get free tickets to one of three attractions on the island, I decided we should check out ‘living history’ museum Casa Parlante.

The little museum is set in a house in Corfu Town, once home to Corfiot aristocracy, and remains frozen in time to show the lives of the 19th century nobility – using waxworks and a few enthusiastic guides who’ll tell you the true stories, including tales of the servants, as you wander around.

(I wasn’t quite sure if you were able to walk around on your own, but it’s easily worth getting the guided tour anyway).

Whether it’s the special portable toilets in the bathroom, which needed to be emptied into the harbour – ‘What about the fish?’ said my six-year-old, scandalised – or the family politics, with the patriarch very firmly in charge (even if his son’s family lived there), it’s a great way to step back briefly in time.

The table is laid with crystal and china, with more glassware stored in a specially designed carrying cabinet.

The cook, a favoured servant who got to live in the house (rather than making the four hour round-trip walk every day from the country estate) stands poised over her bowl, the count reads his newspaper, and his daughter-in-law constantly raises her teacup to her mouth, while her children are frozen with musical instruments in hand.

I’m never altogether convinced by waxworks (slightly creepy) let alone moving ones but it’s the finishing touch to imagining the house, occupied and going about its elegant everyday.

And for kids, less likely to spot the rather unnatural complexions and jerky movements, it’s a fun addition. Perhaps not a ‘living museum’ as we might know them from the UK, but the closest you’ll get to high society of the 19th century, when the United States of the Ionian islands flourished.

Casa Parlante: Need to know

Tickets to Casa Parlante cost 10 Euros for adults, 5 Euros for children over six, while entry is free for younger kids. The museum is open daily between 10am and 6pm.

The entrance is easy to miss if you’re not looking out for it – as you wander towards the Liston and the Old Venetian Fortress along Nikiforou Theotoki, it’s on the right hand side.

Corfu Town with kids: discover its history on a self-guided walk

It might not be a family ‘attraction’ in itself, but wandering the streets of Corfu Town with kids is attraction enough in itself. Little alleys twist alongside streets overshadowed by classical Italian style buildings, churches dot the squares while everywhere is a rainbow of pastels

Walk from the waterfront under the New Venetian fortress through the gates of the old town, and the grid of streets ushers you gently towards the old fortress and the Liston, inspired by the Rue de Rivoli in Paris with its colonnades and cafes.

But around every corner, there’s something to discover of Corfu Town’s history, from centuries of different influences to one of its darkest chapters.

Little shops selling anything from olives to souvenirs, a sudden dome of a church rising off into the distance, or a cafe with spotlessly immaculate white tablecloths on its tables outdoors, awaiting the first customers of the day.

Head towards the edges of the Old Town, on Xenofontos street, and in a shady corner stands a stark memorial, four people – woman, man, child and baby – frozen in attitudes of sorrow.

Underneath, a plaque commemorates the island’s Jewish commuity; around 2,000 Jews who were first held in the old fortress then sent by the occupying Nazis to the concentration camps of Auschwitz and Birkenau.

Only 120 returned.

Two minutes away on Velissariou Street, the last of the island’s synagogues still stands – and welcomes visitors (with no resident Rabbi, there are only rarely services for festivals).

The area was once the town’s Jewish quarter, although these days, there’s little to distinguish it from the rest of the old town.

From here, our steps led us to Casa Parlante, with music playing in the streets accompanied by the soundtrack of fountains, statues standing proudly in squares – some entirely anonymous to visitors who could only gaze up and wonder who was being immortalised.

Little churches dot the streets too, some almost indistinguishable from their yellow-painted neighbours until a door opens part-way, revealing the glint of golden icons in the shadowy darkness.

There are high street chains too: this is a living town, not merely a relic of the past, but as you return closer to the waterfront, it’s easy to forget that as you pass more historic buildings; imposing Greek Orthodox churches, the palace of St Michael and St George – once home to the British high commissioner – along with museums galore to discover for those fascinated by Byzantine art and archaeological finds.

Exploring Corfu Town: Need to know

Entry to the synagogue is free, although donations are welcomed. Official opening hours at 11am to 3pm Monday to Saturday but take those with a pinch of salt…

You can also take bus tours of Corfu Old Town, including a hop-on hop-off bus tour. The bus can’t get through the pedestrian centre (obviously!) so it’s worth saving some time for a wander on foot too and the Old Town is easy to navigate with a buggy.

Check out my complete guide to Greece with kids here – or if you’re combining a trip to Corfu with several other Greek islands, check out ferry prices here

PIN FOR LATER: CORFU TOWN WITH KIDS

Disclosure: Our stay at Ikos Dassia was partly courtesy of the resort for review – I paid for several nights plus flights myself, and the shuttle bus is free to all guests as is the option to get tickets for Casa Parlante. I paid for entry to the fortress (and a snow globe souvenir for my daughter!) and was under no obligation to write about our day out… All opinions, including those on moving waxworks, are my own.

Images copyright MummyTravels

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