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Corfu with Kids

Corfu is the greenest of the large Greek islands — olive groves, cypress and pine rather than bare rock — and the only one with a Venetian-built city at its centre. Families divide between the sheltered east coast, where the water is calm and the resorts sit within half an hour of Corfu Town and the airport, and the north coast, where the sands are wide and the water stays shallow a long way out. Two trade-offs are worth knowing before booking. The west-coast beaches that appear in the photographs face the open Ionian and often have a shore break and real surf, which is the wrong water for small children. And almost every road away from the east coast is narrow, steep and full of blind bends, so drives take longer than the map suggests and car sickness is a genuine factor.

Best for ages
0+
Suggested stay
7–10 days
Best months
May–Jun, Sep–Oct
Daily budget
€180

Mid-range, family of four

Why Corfu works with children

  • Green all summer

    Olive groves and pine keep the island shaded and green long after the Aegean islands have burnt brown.

  • A Venetian city, not a resort centre

    Corfu Town is a lived-in UNESCO-listed town of arcades, squares and two fortresses, walkable in an afternoon.

  • Calm swimming on the east and north

    The channel-facing east coast and the wide northern sands are the sheltered sides of the island.

  • A short transfer from the airport

    The airport sits beside Corfu Town, putting the main family strip 15 to 25 minutes from arrivals.

Where to stay

Best areas in Corfu for families

4 areas cover most trips here; the difference is mainly resorts close to town versus scenery over convenience.

  • Dassia, Gouvia & Ipsos

    Best for resorts close to town

    The main family strip on the sheltered east coast, with a mix of large hotels and apartments and frequent buses into Corfu Town.

  • Acharavi, Roda & Sidari

    Best for young children and wide sands

    The north coast has the longest shallow sandy beaches on the island, at the cost of a 45-minute drive from the airport over hilly roads.

  • Corfu Town

    Best for sightseeing and short stays

    Venetian streets, two fortresses and the Liston arcade — but no proper beach, and old-town apartments often mean several flights of stairs.

  • Paleokastritsa & the west

    Best for scenery over convenience

    Green headlands and small coves, mostly shingle with quickly deepening water, reached by steep hairpin roads.

Family hotel picks in Corfu

  • Corfu — east-coast family hotels
    Dassia / Gouvia / IpsosMid-range

    Corfu — east-coast family hotels

    The sheltered channel side of the island keeps the water calm, and this strip is the only part of Corfu where a family can manage a whole week without hiring a car.

    • Calm, channel-sheltered swimming rather than open-sea surf
    • Buses into Corfu Town every half hour or so in season
    • Half-board and all-inclusive both widely available
    • 15 to 25 minutes from the airport

    Fitting a family in

    Family rooms sleeping four are standard, and two-bedroom apartments with a shared pool are common a street back from the sea.

    Watch out. The beaches along this strip are narrow and a mix of sand and shingle rather than wide sand, and the coast road runs directly behind several of the hotels.

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  • Corfu — apartments behind the northern sands
    Acharavi / Roda / SidariBudget

    Corfu — apartments behind the northern sands

    The north coast has the widest and shallowest sand on the island, and self-catering here costs well under the east-coast resorts for the same occupancy.

    • Long shallow sandy beaches suited to toddlers
    • Kitchen for breakfasts and early dinners
    • Flat ground, so pushchairs work along the front

    Fitting a family in

    One and two-bedroom apartments dominate, usually around a small shared pool rather than a resort complex.

    Watch out. It is a 45-minute drive from the airport over hilly roads, facilities are thinner than on the east coast, and much of the strip shuts down outside July and August.

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Things to do in Corfu with kids

  • Corfu Old Town & the Old Fortress
    Culture

    Corfu Old Town & the Old Fortress

    Corfu

    A UNESCO-listed Venetian town of arcaded streets, shuttered lanes and two fortresses, with the Liston esplanade and a cricket ground at its centre — walked through rather than queued for.

    Ages
    5–16
    Time
    3h
    Adult, from
    €6

    Good to know. Marble and cobbled lanes throughout, which is hard work with a pushchair, and the climb through the Old Fortress to the lighthouse is steep and fully exposed.

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  • Paleokastritsa bays & boat trips
    Water

    Paleokastritsa bays & boat trips

    Corfu

    A cluster of small coves beneath green headlands on the west coast, with small boats running from the main bay to sea caves and beaches that have no road access.

    Ages
    4–16
    Time
    4h
    Adult, from
    €15

    Good to know. The coves are shingle and the water deepens quickly, so it suits confident swimmers more than paddlers. The approach road is a long series of hairpins and afternoon swell can cancel the boats.

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  • Achilleion Palace
    Culture

    Achilleion Palace

    Corfu

    A 19th-century palace above the east coast at Gastouri, built for Empress Elisabeth of Austria, with statue-lined terraced gardens looking down the channel.

    Ages
    7–16
    Time
    1h 30m
    Adult, from
    €10

    Good to know. A short stop rather than a half-day. The gardens are terraced with steps between levels and very little shade in the middle of the day.

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Getting around Corfu

Green intercity buses and the blue town buses link Corfu Town with the east-coast resorts often enough to manage a resort week without a car. Anything further — Paleokastritsa, the north-west, the mountain villages — needs one. Before booking, it is worth knowing that roads outside the east-coast strip are narrow, steep and full of blind bends, and journeys take roughly half as long again as the distance implies. Automatic transmission is a small share of the Greek rental fleet, so it has to be reserved months ahead.

Corfu tips for families

  • With kids

    The west-coast beaches have a shore break

    Glyfada, Agios Gordios and the other open-Ionian beaches face the prevailing swell and can dump waves on the sand even on a day that looks calm from the hotel. The east and north coasts are the ones to pick with small children.

  • Getting around

    Allow half as long again for every drive

    Roads away from the east coast are narrow, hilly and constantly bending, and passing places are tight for a people carrier. Children who get travel sick feel it here more than on the flatter islands.

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  • When to go

    Corfu is wetter than the Aegean islands

    The greenery comes from genuine rainfall. May and October can both deliver a wet day, and the resort season opens later and closes earlier than on Rhodes or Crete.

Corfu with kids: common questions

Which part of Corfu is best for families?
The sheltered east coast between Dassia and Ipsos for calm water close to the airport and Corfu Town, or the north coast around Acharavi and Roda for the widest and shallowest sand. The west coast is the most photogenic and the least suitable for small children.
Is Corfu good with toddlers?
On the right coast, yes. The north-coast beaches shelve gradually and the east-coast bays are sheltered by the mainland channel. The awkward parts are Corfu Town's cobbles and the winding roads between regions.
Do you need a car in Corfu?
Not for an east-coast resort week, where buses run to Corfu Town regularly. A car is needed for Paleokastritsa, the north-west and the mountain villages, and the state of those roads is the main reason some families decide against one.
How many days do you need in Corfu?
Seven to ten. A week covers one coast properly with a day in Corfu Town and a boat trip. Ten allows splitting between the east and the north without rushing.

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