Corsica's hidden coves, reachable only on foot or by boat

Coves on the Corsican coast where the last stretch has to be walked or motored, from the mule track over the Col de la Croix to the offshore islands off Bonifacio. The absence of a road changes the planning rather than the swimming: a boat schedule, a tide, a mule path in full sun with no water on it. Each entry gives the approach distance and ascent, the shade and shelter once you arrive, and what carrying everything in and out involves.

Places in this collection

  • Capu Laurosu — Several kilometres of sand on the Gulf of Valinco, minutes from the centre of Propriano and still lightly used, because the access points a…
  • Gradelle Beach — Pebble shore inside the protected reserve on the Gulf of Porto, backed by maquis and looking out towards the Calanques de Piana. A campsite…
  • Ficaghjola — A cove inside the Calanques de Piana, reached through a gap in the red granite, with a five-minute walk down from the car park at the end o…
  • Îles Sanguinaires — Four small islands about 12 km from Ajaccio, lined up off the Parata headland at the mouth of the gulf and reachable only by boat from the…
  • Plage du Petit Sperone — Set between rock walls at the southern tip of Corsica, on sand, and reached on land by a twenty-minute walk from the parking area. Boats fr…
  • Plage de Carataggio — A crescent of white sand on the Piccovaggia side of the Porto-Vecchio coast, sitting at least a fifteen-minute walk from the nearest road,…
  • Fazzio — One of the most sheltered coves on this stretch of coast, with a sandy bottom and water shallow enough that it stays calm when the open wat…
  • Cala della Chiesa — A sheltered inlet on Lavezzu, the smaller of the two main islands in the archipelago off Bonifacio, with water shallow and clear enough tha…
  • Girolata — No road reaches Girolata: the village at the northern edge of the Scandola reserve is served by boat from Porto and Calvi, or on foot by th…

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