Old Fortress of Corfu

How to visit, and what you’re actually paying for

The Old Fortress — Palaio Frourio — sits on its own twin-peaked headland just off the edge of Corfu Town, and you reach it on foot in about five minutes from the Spianada, the big green Esplanade. You cross a short iron bridge over the Contrafossa, the seawater moat the Venetians cut to turn the headland into an island, and the ticket gate is right there. There’s no timed entry and rarely a real queue: you pay about €6 (roughly £5) at the gate, card or cash, and walk straight in. Students and over-65s pay a couple of euros; under-18s go free.

Be clear about what the ticket buys. This is a weathered military site, not a polished museum — the lower levels are bare stone ramps, restored British barracks and a small Byzantine collection that won’t hold you long. The Church of St George, built by the British in 1840 in the shape of an ancient Doric temple, is the oddest thing down here and worth a two-minute look for how out of place a Greek temple feels inside a Venetian fort.

The climb, the view, and is it worth it?

The real reason to come is the walk up to the lighthouse on the higher of the two peaks, built by the British in 1822. It’s a sustained uphill on stone ramps and steps — not a hike, but enough that you’ll want sturdy shoes on the uneven cobbles, and water and a hat in summer because there’s almost no shade at the top. The payoff is the best 360° view in Corfu Town: the terracotta roofs and the bell tower of St Spyridon below you, the New Fortress across the old town, and Vido island out in the channel. Allow an hour and a half to two hours for the whole visit, and go early in summer to beat both the heat and the cruise crowds.

Pay the few euros and go up. The grounds on their own are skippable, but that summit view is the one that makes the climb worth it, and at around £5 it’s one of the better-value sights on the island. If you only have time for one fortress, this one wins on the view — the New Fortress on the other side of town charges a similar ~€5 and has handsome stone tunnels, but its lower vantage doesn’t match this panorama.