With its climate, its sumptuous landscapes, its magnificent coves, its culinary specialties, Corsica is a dream destination for holidays. By car, on foot or by boat, countless places deserve to be discovered in Corsica. But some visits are unmissable.
Whether in the north, center or south of Corsica, typical and picturesque towns and villages are essential visits not to be missed. In the north of Corsica, Bastia, city of art and history nestles on the mountainside. Formerly the capital of the island, Bastia has kept its authenticity with its maze of picturesque streets and its many monuments and architectural treasures. To discover absolutely, the Palace of the Governors, built in 1380, of which one of the towers "the Bastiglia" gave its name to the city, which dominates the old port of Bastia. Old port which has kept all its authenticity and where it is good to sit down on the terraces of the restaurants and cafes that surround it. North of Bastia, Cap Corse is one of the most beautiful sites on the island with its valleys that lead to the sea on one side, and on the other, its mountains that fall steeply into the Mediterranean.
In southern Corsica, the picturesque Bonifacio culminates on high limestone cliffs of more than 60 meters, impressive by their natural cutouts and their white color which contrasts with the blue of the sea. This landscape is splendid at sunset. Bonifacio is a medieval city, one of the first cities of Corsica, founded in 830. Remarkable constructions erected by different civilizations make Bastia a real open-air museum. With more than 25 beaches, each as different as the next, Bonifacio has the particularity of being able to swim in the Mediterranean Sea, on its west coast, and in the Tyrrhenian Sea, to the east.
Ajaccio is known to be home to Napoleon's birthplace. You have to walk through its colorful streets with buildings of imperial style but also of Genoese origin. It is a city that benefits from a long seafront and a few kilometers from its center, the Sanguinaires Islands, which owe their name to their typical red rock, absolutely deserve to be discovered, especially at sunset.
The mountain is omnipresent in Corsica. During walks, you can discover the town of Corte, a splendid citadel in Haute-Corse, which stands at the top of a rocky peak. You can visit the Corsica Museum there, which deals with traditional Corsica, but also with the changes that have produced what it is today. Countless hiking trails, including the mythical GR20 reputed to be one of the most difficult in Europe, allow the discovery of its surroundings by crisscrossing valleys and torrents. In Southern Corsica, Sartène, known as "the most Corsican of Corsican towns", is full of cobbled streets and secret passages that you must necessarily explore and discover.
Among the sites to discover absolutely during a holiday in Corsica, the Aiguilles de Bavella, in the wooded massif of Alta Rocca, is certainly the one not to be missed. These needles of red rock have been carved by erosion and peak at nearly 1,600 meters above sea level. They offer a grandiose landscape to contemplate during the many hikes offered on this site, in particular that of the "loops of the Col de Bavella". Corsica also has a nature reserve listed as a UNESCO heritage site, the Scandola reserve. Accessible mainly by sea, the Scandola site offers grandiose landscapes and remarkable seabed.
Corsica is also a mecca for magnificent beaches. Those of Porto-Vecchio, in southern Corsica, are certainly the most beautiful. The idyllic beach of Palombaggia and that of Rondinara have nothing to envy to the paradisiacal beaches at the end of the world. Popular with tourists, it is nevertheless absolutely necessary to discover them during a trip to Corsica.
