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| Destination | Kerkyra island (or corfu island) | |
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Ionian Islands Kerkyra Agioi Deka Kassiopi Nissaki Pelekas |
Corfu
or Corcyra (Greek: Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra,
Ancient Greek Κέρκυρα or Κόρκυρα, Latin:
Corcyra, Italian Corfù) is a Greek island in the
Ionian Sea. It lies off the coast of Albania,
from which it is separated by straits varying in
breadth from 3 to 23 km (2 to 15 mi), including
one near Butrint and a longer one west of
Thesprotia. The island is part of the Corfu
Prefecture. The principal town of the island is
also named Corfu, or Kerkyra in Greek. Corfu is
home to the Ionian University. The island is
steeped in history and it is perennially
connected to the history of Greece starting from
Greek mythology.Its Greek name, Kerkyra, is connected to two powerful water symbols: Poseidon, god of the sea and Asopos, an important Greek mainland river. According to myth, Poseidon fell in love with the beautiful nymph Korkyra, daughter of Asopus and river nymph Metope, and abducted her, as was the custom among gods of that era's myths - Zeus himself was a serial offender. Poseidon brought her to the hitherto unnamed island and, being in marital bliss, offered her name to the place: Korkyra, which gradually evolved to Kerkyra. Together, they had a child they called Phaiax, after whom the inhabitants of the island were named: Phaiakes, that was then transliterated via Latin to Phaeacians. This myth, with its themes of romance between a powerful god and a beautiful nymph, with a trace of adventure, centred around the element of water, is suggestive of the special ambiance of the place. The island's history is full of battles and conquests, indicative of Corfu's turbulent position in a historical vortex that lasted until modern times, when after the unification with modern Greece in 1864 the history of the island became one with the mainland's, with no more foreign intervention. The legacy of these struggles remains in the form of castles that exist in strategic locations all over the island. Two of these castles enclose the city. It is the only city in Greece to be surrounded by castles this way and as a result has officially been declared as a Kastropolis (Castle city) by the Greek Government. In 2007, the old town of the city was named to the UNESCO World Heritage List after a recommendation by ICOMOS. |
| Source: Wikipedia.org / Photo: Panagiotis Papadopoulos | ||
| Last added hotels | Google Kerkyra (Corfu) Island Map | |
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Glyfada Beach hotel Villa Rosa |
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| Suggested hotels | ||||
Glyfada beach hotel![]() |
Villa Rosa![]() |
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