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This summer, every village in Corfu will host at least one paniyiri, a local festival with live music, dancing, delicious food and - it's Greece after all - Ouzo. The newspaper "The Corfiot" lists the major paniyiri, but there are many others that only the locals know about. Don't be shy and ask them about it: they will be happy to invite you so they can show off their intricate dance moves and share their special dishes with you. Though you should book your flights to Corfu well in advance, you can't plan what you're going to do on the island until you're there.

Food in Corfu is primarily fresh and local. There is a wide range of tasty, healthy salads and vegetables and bean dishes available for a light lunch.

Dinners in a Greek taverna often begin with mezes, which are little starter dishes which can be a meal in themselves if they are prepared with the best ingredients. Perfect for meat eaters, mezes can also be tailored for vegetarians and vegans. Try keftedes (spicy meat balls), bourekakia (meat pies), potopoulo (chicken portions), saligkaria (snails), manitaria (mushrooms), spanokeftedes (spinach balls), dolmadakia (vine leaves stuffed with rice), saganaki (fried cheese), horta or tsigarelli (wild greens tossed in oil and lemon juice) and classic Greek alias (olives). Mezes are accompanied by a selection of dips such as tzatziki (a mix of yogurt, garlic and cucumber), or melitzanasalata (aubergine and garlic). Starters are often accompanied by some strong ouzo (it's got a 50 percent alcohol content so drink slowly) or traditional, local Greek wine.

Being an island in the Med, Corfu has some wonderful fish dishes on its menus. A fish restaurant here is called a psarotaverna but fish is also served at beach bars. Marides is a fantastic starter (whitebait, fried whole in olive oil, sprinkled with lemon and accompanied by light greens). Another classic dish is kalamari (fried squid). Bourdetto is a collection of small fish, oven-cooked in oil, garlic, tomato, spring onion and red pepper. Of course, succulent lambs roasting on a spit is the quintessential Greek feast.

If you have room for dessert, then giaourti kai meli (yogurt with honey) is a healthy choice. Alternatively, if you want something quite sweet, try a cafe-patisserie, where you can sample kataifi (wheat cakes soaked in honey), baklava (nut and syrup pastry) or loukoumades (fritters soaked in honey).