Corfu is indeed one of the most garden-friendly of the Greek islands – the greenest of those in the Aegean and with a higher annual rainfall than London. And because of its varied past, British, French, Venetian and Greek influences in architecture, agriculture and gardening are all clear to see. This tour focuses on the work of a new wave of contemporary garden designers who are sensitive to the Mediterranean style and use many native plants as well as those adapted to tolerate the hotter dry summers.We will see English-born Jennifer Gay’s work at Rou and Kassiopia, and offer a chance to visit the Rothschild Estate, where a host of designers have taken a part in creating a magical haven. We have chosen the five-star Domes Miramare hotel, a former Onassis villa stretching alongside the private beach where family, jet setters, politicians and billionaires were entertained in lavish style, sunbathing under the Corfiot sun. The tradition continues and all reserved rooms are super-comfortable and offer views of the Ionian Sea.
We depart London Heathrow on a morning flight to Ioannis Kapodistrias Corfu Airport. We then travel by coach along the coast to the Domes Miramare Corfu Luxury Collection Resort, where we have time to settle in before dining together in the hotel restaurant.
Rachel Weaving’s book Gardens of Corfu has done much to promote the magic of Corfiot gardens. We are invited by Rachel to view her own small terraced garden at Villa Zetouna, with its views across the infinity pool to the arid mountains of Albania. Close by we discover Lemon Tree House with abundant cottage-style planting on the lower slopes of Mount Pantokrator, the highest mountain on the island. Rou was a deserted village before it was discovered by Dominic Skinner, the architect, who with the help of Jennifer Gay has transformed it into an exquisite garden with holiday homes entwined. After a delicious lunch, we travel to see more of Jennifer’s work at the Kassiopia Estate overlooking the Corfu Straits. Here, two contrasting gardens have been created: one wild and open to the elements; the other south-facing and sheltered. Both utilise a strong palette of native species and reflect a deep understanding of the Mediterranean flora. We return to the Domes Miramare before dining together in the hotel restaurant.
We start the day with a leisurely walking tour of Corfu Town (Kerkyra), which includes the Old Fortress, the Durrell Gardens, Saint Spyridon Church and a chance to taste some local specialities. We then drive to Ropa Valley to the Theotoky Estate Vineyard, one of the oldest wineries on the island, where we are invited to participate in a tasting of their best wines along with a light lunch. In the afternoon we will enjoy a visit to a private garden designed by Thomas Doxiadis and a typical 18th-century Corfu manor, former home of Ioannis Kapodistrias, who in 1828 became the first elected Governor of Greece. We return to the Domes Miramare before dining together in the hotel restaurant.
By special invitation, we visit The Rothschild Estate, comprised of the two beautiful peninsulas of Strongilo and Kanonas. Nurtured by three generations of the family, it skilfully embraces the wild landscape with intense planting in courtyards, potager and around the beautiful pools. The infinity pool on the site of a former quarry was designed by Spanish architect Javier Barba and is edged with tightly clipped rosemary. We are then invited to a Corfiot summer lunch at St George’s Bay Country Club overlooking the Ionian Sea, before returning to the hotel and later dining together.
After a leisurely breakfast, we return to Corfu Airport for our return flight to London Heathrow.