Last Updated on August 21, 2025
This summer, we decided to make our holidays in Greece. If you have been following our travels, you know that Greece is our absolute favorite summer vacation destination. Beautiful sea, amazing food and friendly people all make Greece the best summer spot. On top of that, Greek people are incredibly accommodating with children. Coming from Berlin, there are a number of Greek islands with direct flight connections. This time, we decided to go for Corfu island. An easy 2 hour direct flight, and we paid around 150 EUR a person round trip for the end of August – not bad! Read below how to plan a beach vacation on Corfu island in Greece.
Read more: Why Greece is the Perfect Family Summer Vacation Destination
How to Plan a Beach Vacation on Corfu – Where to Stay
When deciding where to stay on the island of Corfu, we had a few factors in mind. One: we didn’t want to have to drive too far from the airport. Two: we wanted to be near a sandy beach. Corfu has both sand beaches and rock beaches. It is best to take a look at accommodation near your beach style of choice. The beaches in the north of the island are the most well known. However, driving to the north of the island from the airport is around 1 hour. We ended up deciding to stay in Agios Gordios. It is an easy 30 minute drive from the airport.
Rent a car rather than taking taxis to save money
We rented a car from the airport because the taxi service would have cost us almost the same as the car rental. We rented with Volta4u, which is located right outside of the airport terminal. But beware that you do have to walk around 10 minutes outside of the airport to get there. We paid 50 EUR per day for a small SUV with full insurance.
Accommodation is very economical on Corfu
For accommodation, I found an apartment on Booking.com, Odysseus Hotel, for 100 EUR a night that fit the 5 of us (JC’s mom was also with us). It had two separate bedrooms, a small kitchenette and a balcony with table and chairs. While it does not have it’s own pool, we could use the pool at Angelica’s across the street with no minimum purchase.
How to plan a beach vacation on Corfu – Which beaches should you go to?
Agios Gordios beach is great for families
As mentioned earlier, we chose Agios Gordios because it has a sandy beach which is perfect for children. There is public beach, so you can simply bring your towel, chair and umbrella and set yourself up. However, if you want a sun bed, umbrella and service, you can rent easily at any one of the restaurants/beach bars located on the beach. Also, with the purchase of the sun beds, you receive drinks in return. The water at Agios Gordios is shallow and calm. The only thing to note is that while it is a sandy beach, there are rocks in the water, so best to wear water shoes. If you didn’t bring any, you can of course buy some at the shops leading up to the beach.
Glyfada beach is a perfect sandy beach with calm waters
Our favorite beach, Glyfada beach, is located about 30 minutes driving from Agios Gordios. We actually preferred it to Agios Gordios because the entire beach is sand, including the shallow parts of the sea. This means no water shoes necessary. There are also some restaurants and beach bars where you can rent sun beds and umbrellas. Parking is near the beach, so you do not need to walk far. I would definitely recommend Glyfada for those looking for a family friendly sand beach.
Check out the beaches in the north of the island in Palaiokastritsa
We took the car one day out to Palaiokastritsa to check out some of the beautiful beaches in the north west of the island. We spent the afternoon at Agios Spiridon Beach, which is a very small sandy beach located in a bay. The only drawback is that the beach is very small and gets crowded fast. You also need to bring your own umbrella, chairs, etc as the beach is tiny and there are no beach clubs. From there we also spontaneously took a boat tour to see the Blue Eye Cave. The boat will also leave you at another beach only accessible by boat and come back to pick you up. But since we had Luna, who was only 4 months old at the time, we decided to only do the 1 hour boat tour and come back. It was the perfect length of time on the boat.
How to Plan a beach vacation in Corfu – Where to eat
Eat at Sebastian’s in Agios Gordios for the best food in town and on the island
We ate at Sebastian’s Family Taverna almost every day for the 8 days we were on Corfu island. We discovered the restaurant the very first night we were in Agios Gordios. The star dish is definitely the steamed mussels. They use coconut milk in the broth, and, I swear, you can just drink the broth like a soup. It is so delicious. Every evening we would reserve 4 orders of mussels (Isabella ate them too!) for the next evening. Since it was the end of August/beginning of September, it was the end of the season for mussels. Therefore, we had to be sure to reserve ours in advance. In addition to the fantastic food, the staff is incredibly friendly and the restaurant is beautifully decorated. We really felt like we were eating at home every night, which I think is also the appeal to vacationing in Greece. You quickly feel like family.
Check out old Corfu town if you want a break from the beach
If you want a break from beach life, you can take the car and drive to the town of Corfu, which is around 30 minutes driving from Agios Gordios. We went one afternoon to wander the streets, check out the shops and have a frozen yogurt.
And that’s how we spent 8 days on the island of Corfu. Have you been to Corfu before with kids? Are there any spots you would recommend? Do you have any other favorite destinations in Greece? Our favorite island in Greece is for sure the island of Crete! Be sure to read our post about the 3 weeks we spent on Crete back in 2021.
