Lazareto Isle

Two nautical miles off the northeastern coast of Corfu is the small island of Lazaretto earlier known as Agios Dimitrios. The island has an area of ​​17.5 acres (71 thousand sq. meters and is administered by the Greek National Tourism Organization. During the Venetian rule at the beginning of the 16th century a monastery was built on the island.

In the same century a leper colony was founded on the island from which it got its name. All ships arriving from other countries were sent here for 40-day quarantine in order to avoid the introduction of terrible diseases, such as plague, to Corfu.

But despite all the precautions, Corfu nevertheless has not escaped several outbreaks of the disease. The island was used as a quarantine station with some interruptions until the 20th century. During World War II, the Nazi invaders used the island as a concentration camp, where they kept and then executed Greek prisoners of war.

Several buildings from different historical eras have survived on the Lazaretto to this day. Here you can see a dilapidated two-story building that served as the headquarters for the Italian army. The small church of St. Demetrius is also of architectural interest.

Today, the island of Lazaretto is declared a national monument in honor of the partisans who died here during the Second World War.