Relaxing days in Corsica await! Perhaps you'll spend most of your trip at the beach or pool, at pleasant cafés in Porto-Vecchio, or hiking in the mountains? Whatever your goal with the trip, we hope you can make use of the following tips.
If you plan to travel around Corsica a lot, you should definitely rent a car, as public transport is not very well developed. There are several car rental companies near Figari airport, so you can relax on arrival day and not worry about bus schedules.
Take the opportunity to visit Porto-Vecchio, a cozy little town with about 12,000 inhabitants, known for its many beautiful sandy beaches. Above all, the beaches of Palombaggia, Santa Giulia, and Tamaricciu, both located just south of the city, are extra fine. Porto-Vecchio attracts many holidaymakers, with its upper town with its citadel and beautiful views of the bay, and its lower part with the charming harbor.
Want to eat a good lunch? Head to Le Roi Théodore, whose fish dishes attract long-distance visitors!
If you want other swimming options than beaches, we recommend a visit to the Cavu pools, about two miles north of Porto-Vecchio, where there are waterfalls and natural pools that invite refreshing baths! It is also cozy to walk around, and if you feel like an adrenaline rush, a visit to the high-altitude track A Tyroliana can be exciting! There are also restaurants, ziplines, and mountain bikes.
If you instead go south from Porto-Vecchio, you will come to the town of Bonifacio, spectacularly located on a limestone cliff above the sea. Inside the city walls, you can wander around on cobblestone-covered alleys and find cozy restaurants and look out over the view. Here you are practically as far south as you can get in France. Just a few miles south lies Sardinia, which is easily reached by ferry in 50 minutes. If you want an Italy dose during your vacation, maybe a day trip is not wrong? In that case, make sure to pre-book the trip, as it can be fully booked during the summer.
If you go north, you will come to Bastia, a charming little town worth a short visit, with its beautiful small boat harbor lined with colorful house facades. The city is also a good stop on the way out to Cap Corse, a four-mile-long peninsula that extends straight north from the city. The middle of the small peninsula consists of a mountain ridge over 1000 meters high that stretches across the peninsula. As you drive around here, you are met by charming villages, small bathing bays, and fantastic photo opportunities around every bend. The excursion is a perfect full-day trip from Porto-Vecchio, where you get to see most of what Corsica has to offer, in a small area!
If you are interested in history, Ajaccio may also be worth a visit! This city is perhaps best known as Napoleon's birthplace, and the house where he was born is now a museum called Maison Bonaparte. To drive to Ajaccio, you can either follow the coastal road, or if you feel adventurous, you can drive on the winding mountain roads across the island. A good option is to drive the mountain road there and the coastal road home to see as much as possible. Then you will also pass charming mountain villages that are suitable for photo and coffee breaks.
If you want to see even more of the mountain environment, the GR20 hiking trail is a really good choice. The trail starts in Conca north of Porto-Vecchio and stretches 180 kilometers in a northwesterly direction. It takes about 11-12 days to hike from start to finish, so our recommendation is that you only take a shorter tour over the day. Remember to bring a lot of water! The highest point on the hiking trail is over 2,200 meters high.
For those who prefer to experience Corsica from the dining table, there is a lot of exciting things to try! The island is known for its clementines, which are mainly grown along the east coast. Here, the climate ensures that the clementines do not become too sweet but have a good balance of sweetness and acidity. Moreover, it is almost always seedless! Other Corsican specialties worth trying are Migliaccioli, a type of pancake with cheese, Pulenta Castagnina, polenta made from chestnut, and Zuppa Corsa, a vegetable soup reminiscent of minestrone soup.
The island is also known for its wine - especially the red wine, which is usually grown from the Nielluccio grape, which is found in few other places! The grape is very reminiscent of the Italian Sangiovese, a powerful red grape. Other grape varieties produced in larger quantities here are the red grape Sciarello and the green grape Vermentino.
A package tour and a linked arrangement offer travellers different booking processes but provide the same protection under the Package Travel Act, ensuring customer rights and peace of mind during the trip.
