The Corso, Manly, Pedestrian mall in Manly, Australia

The Corso is a wide pedestrian walkway that stretches about 300 meters from the harbor to the beach, lined with shops, cafes, and restaurants with outdoor seating. Along the route, fountains provide places for children to play, and several arcades branch off offering more shopping options.

The Corso was built in 1855 as a boardwalk across the sand spit between the harbour pier and Ocean Beach, proposed by Henry Gilbert Smith and named after Via del Corso in Rome. Smith placed a hotel at each end: The Pier (1856) and The Steyne (1858–59, designed by Edmund Blacket). St Matthew's Anglican Church followed midway in 1865, partly paid for by Smith. By 1861 there were three hotels and a temperance hotel; twenty years later six hotels stood, three of which survive.

The name comes from Via del Corso in Rome, chosen by Henry Gilbert Smith for his planned resort of New Brighton. St Matthew's Anglican Church, partly paid for by Smith, stood halfway along the street from 1865; it was demolished in 1929 for widening and the new church opened on 20 September 1930. Three of the six hotels recorded twenty years after 1861 still trade today.

The route is straightforward to navigate, moving directly from the waterfront to the beach, with major arcades clearly marked as reference points. There is shade available under trees and covered sections, though it can get crowded during midday hours on sunny days.

The Pacific Point Arcade, off Sydney Road near The Corso, began in 1916 as the Britannia cinema and was renamed New Olympic after Boy Charlton, Dick Eve and Nick Winter, gold medallists at the 1924 Paris Olympics. It became a furniture store in 1936, and Waltons Ltd opened a furniture and appliance shop there on 3 December 1954.