Old Fortress of Corfu

Why go

The Old Fortress occupies the whole rocky peninsula east of the modern town of Corfu, 600 m long and 200 m wide, according to the Ministry of Culture's Castle Route, which traces its fortifications from the Byzantine period to the Venetian works that gave it its present form, including the sea moat that separates it from the town. Hellenic Heritage, which sells its tickets, says visitors cross a bridge over the moat to the main gate, and that the buildings inside include the church of St George, the Latin chapel of Our Lady of the Carmelites, British barracks and Venetian prisons. The same page says other buildings house the Ionian University's Music Studies Department, the Historical Archive of Corfu, the Public Library and the Corfu Byzantine Collection. Its ticket page says entry is timed, tickets are for a single entry on the chosen date and time, and large luggage, food and professional photography or filming are not allowed. The Castle Route says the Old Town of Corfu, its two fortresses and its perimeter fortifications were inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List in 2007; this record is the fortress, one component of that property.