Perama Corfu is a green hillside resort just 7 kilometres south of Corfu Town, famous for the best views of Mouse Island and Vlacherna Monastery and linked to Kanoni by a pedestrian bridge. This guide covers the views, the beaches, the airport plane-spotting and how to visit this convenient, scenic resort. Plan the whole trip with Greece Tours.
Perama is a scenic, well-placed base, a viewpoint-rich corner of the wider Corfu tours and travel guide. It sits across the lagoon from Kanoni. The sections below cover the resort.
What is Perama like?
Perama is a long-established seaside resort 7 kilometres south of Corfu Town, set on a green hillside above the sea. It is best known for its superb views over Mouse Island and Vlacherna Monastery.
Perama has been a popular resort for decades, and its setting explains why. Spread over a green hillside above the sea just south of the capital, surrounded by olive groves and looking out across the Halikiopoulos lagoon, it enjoys the finest views on the island. Below the hotels lie small, pretty pebble coves and private jetties, and the area combines a relaxed, leafy atmosphere with great convenience to Corfu Town and the airport. Its position opposite the iconic Kanoni viewpoints gives it a real sense of place, set within the wider things to do in Corfu. The views are its calling card.
What are the Mouse Island views?
Perama enjoys the best possible views of Mouse Island, or Pontikonisi, and the Vlacherna Monastery, looking across the water to the famous islets. Restaurants at the start of the footbridge to Kanoni offer front-row views.
The views are Perama’s great prize. Facing across the lagoon to the Kanoni peninsula, the resort enjoys arguably the finest vantage on the island over the two most famous islets in Corfu: the tiny, cypress-clad Mouse Island, or Pontikonisi, and the dazzling white Vlacherna Monastery on its causeway. Restaurants, cafés and bars clustered at the Perama end of the footbridge to Kanoni make perfect spots to linger over the scene, especially in the soft light of morning and evening. For anyone who wants to wake up to the postcard image of Corfu, Perama delivers, set out alongside the guide to Mouse Island. A footbridge links it to Kanoni.
What about Kanoni and plane spotting?
Perama links to Kanoni by a footbridge over the Halikiopoulos lagoon, giving easy access to the famous Kanoni viewpoints. The spot at the bridge is a prime place to watch planes at Corfu Airport, across the lagoon.
Perama’s link to Kanoni adds to its appeal. A pedestrian causeway and bridge cross the shallow Halikiopoulos lagoon to the Kanoni peninsula, letting visitors walk easily to the celebrated viewpoint, the boats to Mouse Island and the Vlacherna Monastery without going back through town. The same spot, beside the runway that juts into the lagoon, is a favourite for plane spotting, as aircraft pass low overhead on their approach to and from Corfu Airport, a dramatic sight that fascinates children and photographers alike. This combination of iconic views, easy access to Kanoni and the airport spectacle makes Perama a uniquely scenic base, set out alongside the guide to how to get to Corfu. There are sights and beaches nearby.
What is there to do nearby?
Near Perama you can walk to Kanoni and Mouse Island, swim at the pebble coves below the resort, and follow a path inland to Gastouri and the Achilleion. Corfu Town’s Old Town sits a short drive north.
Perama is well placed for sightseeing and gentle days. Its own coastline is made up of small, shingly coves and hotel jetties rather than long sandy beaches, pleasant for a swim with a view but not a classic beach resort. Just inland, a path leads up to the village of Gastouri and the romantic Achilleion Palace, the neoclassical retreat of Empress Elisabeth of Austria, an easy and rewarding excursion. The UNESCO Old Town of Corfu Town, with its fortresses, museums and Liston, is a short drive or bus ride to the north, putting the island’s cultural heart within easy reach, set out alongside the guides to the Achilleion Palace and Corfu Town. Getting around is easy.
How do you get to Perama?
You reach Perama in about 15 minutes by car from Corfu Town and the airport, 7 kilometres south along the coast, with parking by the resort. Blue Buses also connect Perama with Corfu Town through the day.
Perama is very close to the capital and airport. By car it is only about a 15-minute drive south from Corfu Town, around 7 kilometres along the coast road, with parking near the resort, and the airport is just minutes away across the lagoon. Blue Bus services connect Perama with Corfu Town through the day, so it is easy to visit the capital without a car.
One practical point to note is the terrain. The hotels are built into a steep hillside, often requiring flights of steps to reach rooms, pools or the main road, which is worth bearing in mind for those with limited mobility, set out alongside the guides to where to stay in Corfu and Corfu car rental. The questions below cover the points travellers ask most.
Are there beaches at Perama?
Perama has small pebble and shingle coves reached by steps below the hillside hotels, along with private jetties and lidos rather than a broad sandy strand. They suit a quiet swim with a view over the lagoon.
Perama’s shoreline is intimate rather than expansive. The coves sit at the foot of the green slope, screened by olive trees and cypress, and many belong to or serve the resort hotels, which set out sun loungers on jetties and small terraces above clear Ionian water. Swimming here means calm, sheltered dips looking straight across to Pontikonisi and the Kanoni peninsula, an unusually scenic setting for a resort beach. Travellers who want longer sandy stretches head a little further down the coast toward Benitses or the wider southern beaches, but for a relaxed morning swim before sightseeing, the Perama coves are hard to beat, framed by the guide to Corfu beaches. The setting is the reward.
Where should you stay in Perama?
Perama is one of Corfu’s oldest hotel resorts, with a spread of hillside hotels, family-run studios and apartments overlooking the lagoon. The higher rooms trade steps for the finest views over Mouse Island and Vlacherna toward Kanoni.
Perama grew up around tourism, so its accommodation is well established and varied. Larger view-facing hotels line the slope above the coves, while smaller studios, apartments and guesthouses sit among the olive groves and along the road toward Benitses and the lagoon. The trade-off across the resort is the terrain, as rooms built into the hillside reward guests with panoramic balconies but reach them by steps. Perama’s real draw for an overnight stay is waking to the postcard view and being minutes from the airport, Corfu Town and Kanoni, which makes it a practical first or last night as well as a scenic base, set out alongside the guide to where to stay in Corfu. The view justifies the climb.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Perama Corfu known for?
Perama is known for having the best views of Mouse Island and Vlacherna Monastery, looking across the lagoon to the iconic islets. Just 7 kilometres south of Corfu Town, it is a green hillside resort linked to Kanoni by a footbridge, also great for plane spotting.
Does Perama have good beaches?
Perama’s coastline is made up of small, shingly coves and hotel jetties rather than long sandy beaches, pleasant for a swim with a view but not a classic beach resort. Its main draws are the iconic views, the convenience and the easy access to Kanoni and Corfu Town.
How far is Perama from Corfu Town?
Perama is just 7 kilometres south of Corfu Town, about a 15-minute drive along the coast, with the airport only minutes away across the lagoon. Blue Buses also connect Perama with Corfu Town, so the capital is easy to reach with or without a car.
Can you walk from Perama to Kanoni?
Yes. A pedestrian causeway and footbridge cross the shallow Halikiopoulos lagoon from Perama to the Kanoni peninsula, letting you walk directly to the Kanoni viewpoint, the boats for Mouse Island and the Vlacherna Monastery without returning through Corfu Town. It is the resort’s most convenient link.