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Lima to Corsica: Ajaccio, the Calanques of Piana and Bonifacio

Lima → Ajaccio → Bonifacio

Ajaccio
"Port_Tino_Rossi_-_Ajaccio_(15148706455).jpg" by JeanbaptisteM from France, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons· licence
Port Tino Rossi - Ajaccio (15148706455) (Ajaccio)
Photo: JeanbaptisteM from France, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Granite coast & cliff-top town Best season (general guide): May–Jun, Sep–Oct

Corsica is a mountainous French island in the Mediterranean, with granite cliffs, clear water and villages perched on hillsides. This route spends three nights in Ajaccio and three in Bonifacio. From Lima you'll connect through Europe, often via Paris or Nice.

How to pace it: Spend days one to three in Ajaccio: day one, the old town and Maison Bonaparte; day two, Calanques of Piana and the Gulf of Porto; day three, beaches and the Sanguinaires islands. Then spend days four to six in Bonifacio: day four, travel south to Bonifacio; day five, boat trip under the cliffs; day six, Lavezzi islands.

Ajaccio is the island's capital and the birthplace of Napoleon. The Maison Bonaparte, his family home, is now a museum. The old town has cafés along the harbour and a market in the mornings.

North of Ajaccio, the Calanques of Piana are red granite cliffs carved into strange shapes above the sea. They are part of the Gulf of Porto, listed by UNESCO along with the Scandola nature reserve, where cliffs rise straight from the water and boats leave from Porto to see them.

The road south crosses mountains and passes beaches to Bonifacio, built on white limestone cliffs at the island's southern tip. The old citadel looks across the strait to Sardinia, and stairs cut into the cliff lead down towards the sea.

Boat trips from Bonifacio's harbour follow the cliffs and caves, and further trips go to the Lavezzi islands, a nature reserve of granite boulders and clear water.

May to June and September to October are the best times, with warm sea and fewer crowds.

Corsica's mountain roads are slow and winding, so allow more time than the map suggests between towns, and travel by day. Boat trips from Bonifacio depend on the wind.

Good to know: A hire car is essential. The GR 20, one of Europe's toughest long-distance trails, crosses the island's mountains for keen hikers.

Suggested outline

  1. Lima

    Start

  2. Ajaccio

    By air · 3 nights suggested

    Corsica's capital, Napoleon's birthplace, with day trips to Piana and Scandola.

  3. Bonifacio

    Overland · 3 nights suggested

    A citadel on white cliffs at the island's southern tip, with boat trips to the Lavezzi islands.

    Bonifacio, Corse-du-Sud
    "Aerial_image_of_Bonifacio_(view_from_the_southwest).jpg" by Carsten Steger, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons· licence

Day by day

  1. Day 1 · Ajaccio — Arrive; the old town and Maison Bonaparte· Lima → Ajaccio (by air) — long-haul; may arrive the next calendar day
  2. Day 2 · Ajaccio — Calanques of Piana and the Gulf of Porto
  3. Day 3 · Ajaccio — Beaches and the Sanguinaires islands
  4. Day 4 · Bonifacio — South to Bonifacio· Ajaccio → Bonifacio (overland)
  5. Day 5 · Bonifacio — Boat trip under the cliffs
  6. Day 6 · Bonifacio — Lavezzi islands
  7. Day 7 · Bonifacio — Travel home from Bonifacio· Bonifacio → Figari (overland), then Figari → Lima (by air)

A suggested pace only; expedition days are set by the operator.

Flights, leg by leg

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Ajaccio

More about Ajaccio →

Plan the trip: Ajaccio

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Bonifacio

Nearest airport: Figari

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