Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
being the Neoclassical shrine of St George, built by the British in the middle of Paleó
Froúrio during the 1840s.
Néo Froúrio
Daily: April-Oct 9am-9pm (or sunset if earlier); Nov-March 8am-3pm • €3
Looming above the Old Port, the
Néo
Froúrio
is the more architecturally interesting of
the two forts. The entrance, at the back of the fort, gives onto cellars, dungeons and
battlements, with excellent views over the town and bay; there's a small gallery and
seasonal café at the summit.
Paleó Froúrio
April-Oct Mon-Sat 8am-8pm, Sun 8.30am-3pm; Nov-March daily 8.30am-2.30pm • €4 •
T
26610 48310
he
Paleó Froúrio
is not as well preserved as the Néo Froúrio and contains some
incongruous modern structures, but has an interesting
Byzantine Museum
just inside
the gate, and even more stunning views from the central Land Tower. It also hosts daily
son et lumière shows.
11
The Listón and Spianádha
Just west of the Paleó Froúrio, the focus of town life is the
Listón
, an arcaded café-lined
street built during the French occupation by the architect of the Rue de Rivoli in Paris,
and the green
Spianádha
(Esplanade) it overlooks. The cricket pitch, still in use at the
northern end of the Spianádha, is another British legacy, while at the southern end the
Maitland Rotunda
was built to honour the first British High Commissioner of Corfu
and the Ionian islands. The neighbouring statue of Ioannis Kapodhistrias celebrates the
local hero and statesman (1776-1831) who led the diplomatic efforts for independence
and was made Greece's first president in 1827.
Palace of SS Michael and George
Listón
• Asiatic Museum
Tues-Sun: May-Oct 8.30am-8pm; Nov-April 8.30am-3pm • €3
Modern Art Gallery
Wed-Sun
9am-3pm • €4
At the far northern end of the Listón is the nineteenth-century
Palace of SS Michael and
George
, a solidly British edifice built as the residence of their High Commissioner (one
of whom was the future British prime minister William Gladstone) and later used as a
palace by the Greek monarchy. The former state rooms house the
Asiatic Museum
, a
must for aficionados of Oriental culture. Amassed by Corfiot diplomat Gregorios
Manos (1850-1929) and others, it includes Noh theatre masks, woodcuts, wood and
brass statuettes, samurai weapons and artworks from Thailand, Korea and Tibet. The
adjoining
Modern Art Gallery
holds a small collection of contemporary Greek art.
Solomos Museum
3rd Párodhos Arseníou • Mon-Fri 9.30am-2pm • €1 •
T
26610 30674
This hidden museum is dedicated to modern Greece's most famous nineteenth-
century poet,
Dhionysios Solomos
. Born on Zákynthos, Solomos was author of the
poem
Amnos stín Elefthería
(“
Hymn to Liberty”
), which was to become the Greek
national anthem. He studied at Corfu's Ionian Academy, and lived in a house on this
site for much of his life. On display are a number of his personal effects and
manuscripts of some works.
CORFU TOWN COMBINATION TICKET
There is a handy
combination ticket
that covers four of Corfu Town's main attractions: the
Paleó Froúrio, Byzantine Museum, Archeological Museum and Asiatic Museum. The ticket costs
€8 and is available at any of the four sights.
