Walking North Corfu: The Corfu Trail, Porto Timoni and Kassiopi

On arrival at Corfu Airport, transfer northwest to Agios Georgios Pagon, your first base on the island’s quiet northwest coast. The bay is long, sandy, and framed by green hills on all sides. The evening is yours to settle in and get your first taste of northern Corfu.

The walk starts from the hotel, heading up through woodland and olive groves to the hilltop village of Afionas, sitting on a ridge between two coastlines with views across the Ionian Sea and out to the Diapontia Islands. The village is one of Corfu’s oldest, its narrow lanes quiet and unhurried.

From Afionas the path drops down the peninsula to Porto Timoni, one of the most striking beaches on the island. Two sandy bays lie back to back, separated by a narrow headland jutting into the sea, their water running from pale aquamarine to deep blue against green cliff walls. The small rock chapel of Agios Stylianos watches over the beach from above. The return follows a different path back through the hills to the hotel.

Alternatively, you may choose to spend the day on the beach at Agios Georgios Pagon instead.

Today starts with a transfer to Sokraki, a traditional village in the mountains of northern Corfu with sweeping views in two directions: south to Corfu Town and its twin Venetian fortresses, and north across the island to the distant Diapontia Islands.

From Sokraki the Corfu Trail leads through oak forest and cultivated land towards lively Spartilas, before a steady climb brings you up to the ruined Taxiarchis Chapel, its fresco-covered walls still standing on a high ridge with views south across the whole bay. Above the chapel the landscape opens onto a karst plateau, wild and elemental, before the summit of Mount Pantokrator comes into view, the highest point on the island. The monastery that has stood here since the 14th century feels remote and quietly purposeful. On a clear day Albania is visible across the water and the whole of Corfu stretches out below. The trail descends from the summit into Old Perithia, where you spend the next two nights. When the crowds are gone, the mountain goes silent again.

Today’s loop walk gives you a chance to explore the mountain country around Old Perithia at a gentler pace. The Corfu Trail leads out of the village through cool forest to Krinias, then climbs steadily up the mountain towards Lafki. A gravel track opens the views wide across the surrounding terrain, before easy walking brings you back down through wildflower meadows and oak woodland, passing the 14th century church of Agios Jakobus on your return to Old Perithia.

Alternatively, enjoy a rest day in Old Perithia. Founded in the 14th century as a refuge from coastal pirate raids, its position in the mountains was chosen so its inhabitants could see the sea but not be seen from it. At its height it held over 130 Venetian style houses and eight churches, and a population of around 1,200. When tourism arrived on the coast in the 1960s, the village emptied and was slowly reclaimed by nature. Since 2010 it has been quietly and carefully coming back to life. The tavernas are open, some houses are restored, and the stone paths between them are clear. Wildflowers grow through the ruins and time seems to have slowed to a stop.

Leaving Old Perithia, the trail heads back up towards the flanks of Pantokrator with the panorama opening wide before turning east towards the coast. After around six kilometres you reach Megali Grava, better known as Loutses Cave, tucked deep in a hollow and reached by a steep descent between towering vertical walls. Its huge mouth opens sixty metres wide into a level floored chamber where geological formations line the ceiling above. Look up towards the opening and the play of sunlight against dark stone gives the cave a stillness all of its own. It has been a shelter for pigeons, bats, and even people since the Stone Age.

From here a long descent follows, losing height gradually through varied terrain before the trail brings you down into Kassiopi. Once a small fishing village, Kassiopi has grown into a lively harbour town with tavernas along the waterfront, fishing boats bobbing in the port, and a Byzantine castle on the headland above. You stay here for the next three nights.

Setting out from the hotel, the walk heads inland across the Erimitis Peninsula, one of the last untouched corners of Corfu. Green hills and coastal wetlands lead you south to the shoreside village of Agios Stefanos, before the trail turns and continues north along the Erimitis coastline. The trail traces the coastline past secluded coves and small pebble beaches, with turquoise water shimmering below. Views across the channel to Albania stay with you as the path returns you to Kassiopi. The peninsula is a nesting area and refuge for rare birds, and the coves along the way are popular with swimmers.

Alternatively, use the day to explore Kassiopi’s harbour, wander through the ruins of the Byzantine castle on the headland, and rest your legs before the final day’s walking.

Begin your day with a short bus or taxi transfer (payable locally) to Kalami, a small village tucked into a horseshoe bay on the northeast coast. Lawrence Durrell lived here in the 1930s in the White House, a fisherman’s cottage on the water’s edge where he wrote much of Prospero’s Cell, his account of life on the island. The bay itself is very easy to linger in.

The circular walk climbs quickly out of Kalami on ancient cobbled footpaths and onto the high mountain flanks, moving through the small village of Porta and up through an oak filled valley to Mengoulas, a part-ruined settlement with the kind of quiet drama that empty places accumulate over time. Your descent begins with spectacular views towards Katavolos and down to the sea at Kaminaki, and from there you follow the coastal footpath north past the beaches of Krouzeri and Agni and back to Kalami. Spend some time relaxing beside the water before returning to Kassiopi by bus or taxi (payable locally).

Say goodbye to Kassiopi as a transfer takes you to Corfu Airport for your onward journey.