Marrying in Corfu
Corfu has the closest tie to the British market of any Greek island. It was a British protectorate from 1815 to 1864, and traces remain: the cricket pitch on the Esplanade, the ginger beer tradition and Georgian and Regency buildings beside the Venetian old town. The old town is UNESCO listed and counts among the most complete examples of Venetian colonial architecture outside Venice.
The island is among the greenest in Greece. More rain than the Cyclades gives dense olive groves, cypress trees and wildflower meadows. The northeast coast around Nissaki and Kalami, where Lawrence Durrell lived, drops from olive hills to clear Ionian water. The northwest around Paleokastritsa has the sea cliffs, and the south is flatter.
The case for Corfu is access and variety. Direct flights serve it from almost every UK airport, and an established UK-facing hospitality culture makes it practical for guests.
The seasons
- Best
- Shoulder
- Peak
- Quieter
5 Star view Our reading of the wedding year, from the months below.
- Best months
- May to June and September to October
- Shoulder season
- April and October
- Peak season
- July and August
Corfu has more rain than the Cyclades, and the season runs firmly from May to October. May and June give the best landscape, with green groves and wildflowers. September and October suit planners who want the summer crowds gone and the sea still warm, and the olive harvest in November gives the late season an agricultural character. High summer is less punishing than in the Cyclades.
Daylight and sunset
The bar runs from sunrise to sunset on the 15th of each month. A ceremony is usually timed an hour or two before the sunset shown.
Calculated From the coordinates of Corfu, local time, for 2027.
Ramadan and Eid
For couples and guests who observe them, the dates to plan a wedding around.
| Year | Ramadan | Eid al-Fitr | Eid al-Adha |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2027 | 8 Feb to 8 Mar | 9 Mar | 16 May |
| 2028 | 28 Jan to 25 Feb | 26 Feb | 5 May |
Calculated From the Umm al-Qura calendar. The observed dates follow the sighting of the moon and can fall a day either side.
The areas of Corfu
Corfu Old Town
The UNESCO-listed Venetian old town, with two Venetian fortresses and the Liston arcade, modelled on the Rue de Rivoli in Paris. A few private palazzi and mansions can be hired exclusively.
Northeast coast (Nissaki and Kalami)
Olive and cypress hills descend to coves. Kalami, where Durrell wrote Prospero's Cell, is a small bay. Villas and estates combine sea views, privacy and olive groves.
Paleokastritsa and the northwest
A Byzantine monastery on a headland above six connected coves. Venues are remote and need careful guest logistics.
South Corfu and Benitses
The flatter south, with the Mesogeia plain and the resort coast around Benitses. It holds most larger estates and hotels, suits weddings that put ease first, and lies closer to the airport.
What venues are like
Olive grove estate
The most specific Corfu format: an estate in ancient olive groves, with a stone or rendered villa and old trees as the ceremony setting. Several can be hired exclusively and offer rooms in the main house and cottages.
Venetian or British colonial villa
Villas combining a 19th-century neoclassical exterior with restored interiors and garden terraces over the sea. Most stand on the northeast coast and are reached through specialist agencies or local families.
Old Town palazzi
A small number of private properties inside the UNESCO old town can be hired for exclusive events, placing the wedding in the Venetian townscape.
Airports and transfers
- Athens Eleftherios Venizelos (ATH) The year-round hub, with domestic flights on to Corfu, suiting intercontinental guests.
- Thessaloniki Macedonia (SKG)
- Heraklion Nikos Kazantzakis (HER)
- Chania Ioannis Daskalogiannis (CHQ)
- Santorini Thira (JTR)
- Mykonos (JMK)
- Rhodes Diagoras (RHO)
- Corfu Ioannis Kapodistrias (CFU) Direct routes from the major UK airports in season. The short runway limits aircraft types, though scheduled services use suitable ones.
- Zakynthos Dionysios Solomos (ZTH)
Corfu Airport has direct routes from most UK airports from May to October. Aircraft pass low over the beach road on approach because of the short runway. Northeast coast venues are a longer drive than those in the south.
Marrying legally in Greece
Foreign couples marry in a civil ceremony at a Greek municipality. Residents abroad send the municipality a marriage licence or certificate of no impediment from their own country, with birth certificates and passport copies, apostilled and translated into Greek, and the municipality then fixes the date and time of the ceremony.
- 1Two months before, as a planning guide
Send the documents to the municipality
Choose the municipality where the ceremony will be held and send it, in person or by email, the licence or certificate of no impediment issued in your own country (naming both spouses and its period of validity), a recent birth certificate, a family status certificate where your country issues one, and a passport copy. Foreign documents must be originals, carry the Hague Apostille (or consular certification for other countries) and be translated into Greek by an accepted translator.
- 2Once the file is checked
Fix the date and licence
The municipality checks and signs the file and agrees the date and time of the ceremony with you. Under the national procedure the licence is granted by the mayor once a one-week objection period has passed without objection, and it is valid for 6 months.
- 3The day
The civil ceremony
Held by the municipality. The marriage is then registered with the Greek civil registry.
- Residency
- not required for the civil ceremony at a municipality that accepts non-residents
- Home-country paper
- licence or certificate of no impediment naming both spouses
- Documents
- apostilled, originals, translated into Greek
- Objection period
- 1 week
- Licence validity
- 6 months
Already married at home?5 Star view
Many couples complete the legal or religious marriage in their own country and hold the celebration here. A ceremony with no legal effect needs none of the steps above: the venue and the planner arrange it.
Who needs a visa
Travelling from the United States
American citizens visit Greece without a visa for up to 90 days in any 180-day period under Schengen rules. The European Union's ETIAS travel authorisation will be required of visa-exempt visitors, Americans included, once it is operating; it is not yet operating and no start date has been announced.
Travelling from the United Kingdom
British passport holders visit Greece without a visa for up to 90 days in any 180-day period, counted across the whole Schengen area. The passport must have been issued less than 10 years before arrival and be valid for at least 3 months after the day you plan to leave. The European Union's Entry/Exit System registers fingerprints and a photograph at the border on a first visit.
Other nationalities
EU and EEA nationals need no visa. Other nationalities check with the Greek embassy or consulate in their country.
Reference National Registry of Administrative Public Services (en.mitos.gov.gr): issue of a marriage licence for foreign residents in Greece, read 2026-10-21. Municipality of Chania civil marriages office: documents for foreigners residing abroad (September 2023), read 2026-10-21. gov.uk: Greece entry requirements, read 2026-10-21. Regulation (EU) 2018/1806 (home-affairs.ec.europa.eu), read 2026-10-21. Checked 21 October 2026. Rules change: confirm with the authority that will marry you before you book.
Accommodation
Accommodation runs from grand historic hotels to smaller villas, and the Old Town and the north are the most popular bases.
At the table
Corfiot cooking differs from the mainland, shaped by centuries of Venetian rule and by Italian, French and British influences.
Sofrito
Thin slices of veal cooked slowly in white wine, garlic and parsley, regarded as the signature dish of the island.
Bourdeto
A fish stew of scorpionfish or other local white fish in tomato and hot paprika, spicier than most Greek fish dishes, a legacy of the Venetian spice trade.
Pastitsada
Cockerel or veal braised in tomato and spices and served over thick pasta, a Sunday dish with Italian roots.
Kumquat liqueur
Kumquats grown on the island become a golden liqueur, sweet and slightly bitter, served as a digestif or in cocktails.
What planners tell couples
Getting there
Direct flights from several UK airports run through the summer, typically April to October. The airport lies just south of Corfu Town.
Venetian architecture and Old Town
The Old Town is a World Heritage site. The Liston arcade, the fortresses and the Campiello lanes make it a photogenic wedding setting.
Wedding documentation
Corfu Town Hall handles civil ceremony registrations. The paperwork needs preparing well ahead, so the municipality or a local planner should be consulted early.
Climate and season
The season runs from May to October, with July and August hottest and driest. Late May and September bring pleasant temperatures and smaller crowds.
