28/01/2026
Last autumn Elizabeth returned to hike the Corfu Trail for the second time - this time together with her husband. It was a beautiful journey of revisit and reunion. 🇬🇷💙
Read about Elizabeth’s adventure on the Corfu Trail 🥾
„I completed the Corfu Trail solo in September 2023. During that trip, I fell in love with the beauty of Corfu and made countless friends along the way. One day, when I was walking from Agios Georgios to Refkini, I realized that I had forgotten to return my room key to the hotel. I stopped at the Borgorno Cafe in Agios Athanasios and contacted Marcella (from Aperghi Travel) so that someone could come and pick up the key from me and return it to the hotel. While I was waiting, I met Theodoros, a local Café owner, and we bonded over our mutual love of hiking. His dream was to hike Machu Picchu. I had hiked the Inca Trail two years earlier, so I shared with him some of my recommendations for Peruvian foods to try and places to see. We became friends on instagram.
This year, I returned to Corfu with my husband to hike the Corfu Trail again, albeit a shortened version with more built in rest days. We were thrilled when Theodoros reached out and asked us to stop by his cafe to which we immediately agreed. Theodoros and I had a lot of catching up to do. In the two years since I last visited Corfu, he had visited Machu Picchu and hiked to Everest base camp. Our meeting was a very happy reunion of old friends.
This reunion was just one of many on my return to Corfu. Everywhere where we went, people remembered me from my prior trip and welcomed us with open arms. In Kalami, Thomas, the owner of the taverna „Thomas’ Place“, even gave me a book on the butterflies of Corfu that his daughter has assisted in creating. He remembered me from my prior visit when I spent three glorious rest days at the conclusion of the Corfu Trail parked in a beach chair on the beach in front of his restaurant.
These experiences are what makes Corfu so special. Xenia is the ancient law mandating Greek hospitality where guests are met with an open heart, a good meal and a soft bed. The Greek word “filoxenia” means “from strangers to friends.” Walking the Corfu Trail is a breathtakingly beautiful experience. That first glimpse of Agios Georgios Bay when we climbed over the ridge will forever be imprinted in my mind’s eye. However the true beauty of Corfu lies in the heart of its people where xenia transforms to filoxenia. When you complete the Corfu Trail, you will be forever transformed from a traveler into a member of the Corfu family.“
