We weren’t sure how far we would get today or where we would end up tonight, only that it might be interesting to check out the east coast of the island toward Porto-Vecchio and see how we felt once we arrived into Aléria. My DK Eyewitness Travel Guide for Corsica had a list of “Corsica’s Ten Best Beaches”1, and I noticed that three of the beaches mentioned were on our way between Bonifacio and Porto-Vecchio, so our goal today was to check them out. The drive up the east coast was beautiful and the beaches were great. Although we didn’t spend any time there, Porto-Vecchio seemed to be very picturesque, and we hope to spend time there when we make a return trip to Corsica. We missed Aléria the first time we drove past it, and almost missed it again when we turned around to find it. Maybe we should have given it more of a chance, but it didn’t look interesting enough for us to spend a valuable night there, so we decided to pass it up and head inland toward Corte. We had a great traditional Corsican dinner on the charming stone-paved terrace at Restaurant U Museu (Rampe Ribanelle Vielle Ville, tél: 04.95.61.08.36) in the center of the Old Town of Corte. Over our delicious sanglier stew, we discussed the beaches we had visited today, and voted on our favorites. And the results are…
Rondinara - The Most Tropical1
“A shell-shaped cove with brilliant turquoise water and white sand, the beach at Rondinara also has a camp site and a restaurant.”1 Both Joy and George voted the beach at Rondinara as their favorite. Although they were all beautiful, they felt that it was the most natural of the ones we had visited, with the hidden coves and fine sand. The fact that it took us a while to find it might have contributed to the feeling that it was somewhat remote. With two votes, Rondinara Beach was the overall winner today.
Santa Giulia - The Best for Watersports1
“The beach at Santa Giulia, a tranquil sandy bay bordered by dunes and pine trees, is equipped for all aquatic sports, such as windsurfing, canoeing and sailing.”1 The Santa Giulia beach got my vote for Best Beach because it was so picturesque with the crude wooden pier stretching out into the crystal-clear water, and it seemed like it would be the most fun.
Palombaggia - The Most Photogenic1
“With its white sand, pink cliffs, dunes, pines and a lovely blue sea, the beach at Palombaggia, south of Porto-Vecchio, is perhaps the most spectacular.”1 Dave’s favorite beach was Palombaggia because the beach was so long and wide and surrounded by colorful rocks. It probably didn’t hurt that this is where we had a great beach pique-nique with all the regular Corsican specialties: charcuterie, cheese, red wine, and chocolates.
1 Taken verbatim from DK Eyewitness Travel Guides CORSICA
We are off to Corsica at the end of the summer, can't wait.
Posted by: Villas | Thursday, 12 June 2008 at 03:53 AM