Audio Guide: Paleopoli Ancient Ruins Walking Tour (Self Guided), Corfu

The story of ancient Corfu begins long before the island became a popular Mediterranean destination. The earliest known reference to Corfu appears in the Mycenaean Linear B script, dating to around 1300 BC, where a name associated with Kerkyra is recorded. This suggests that the island was already connected to the wider Aegean world during the Bronze Age.

The ancient city of Korkyra developed at what is now called Paleopoli, on the peninsula south of modern Corfu Town. Corinthian settlers established the city in the late 8th century BC, traditionally around 734 BC. Its location was exceptionally advantageous, controlling important sea routes between mainland Greece, Italy, and the Adriatic. With several natural harbours and access to maritime trade, Korkyra quickly developed into a wealthy and influential city-state.

Korkyra’s growing power also brought conflict with its mother city, Corinth. In the 7th century BC, the two cities fought one of the earliest recorded naval battles in Greek history. Their rivalry continued for centuries and eventually became entangled with the growing competition between Athens and Corinth. In 433 BC, Korkyra’s alliance with Athens and its conflict with Corinth became one of the immediate causes of the Peloponnesian War.

Despite these conflicts, Korkyra remained an important maritime power. Its strategic position made it valuable to successive regional powers during the Hellenistic period. In 229 BC, after the island was seized by Illyrian forces, Rome intervened. Corfu subsequently became an important Roman naval station and remained strategically significant as Rome expanded its control across the eastern Mediterranean.

Roman rule brought further economic and urban development, while the gradual spread of Christianity transformed the city’s religious and social life. During Late Antiquity, Corfu became part of the Roman and subsequently Byzantine world. Raids and political instability eventually weakened the ancient settlement. In the medieval period, much of Paleopoli was abandoned, and the population gradually moved north toward the more defensible location that became modern Corfu Town.

Walking through ancient Corfu, you will encounter the Tomb of Menecrates, the ruins of the Temple of Artemis, and the Archaeological Museum of Corfu. At Mon Repos, explore the Museum of Paleopoli–Mon Repos, the Temple of Hera, Kardaki Temple, and remains of early Christian buildings. Together, these sites reveal Corfu’s Greek, Roman, and early Christian past amid gardens and coastal landscapes.

As you begin your walk, pause for a moment and imagine Korkyra as it was more than two thousand years ago-a powerful city controlling the sea routes between Greece and the West. Then follow the ancient landscape toward Paleopoli and discover how much of that story still survives today.