Experience the best of Corte

Corte stands almost in the centre of Corsica, where the valleys of the Tavignano and Restonica rivers meet beneath steep peaks. From 1755 to 1769 it was the capital of the independent Corsican republic under Pasquale Paoli, who founded a university here, and the modern University of Corsica carries his name. A fortress crowns a rock above the old town, and the Museum of Corsica sits within its walls.

The Restonica gorge climbs south-west from town into a valley of granite and pine, ending near the glacial lakes of Melo and Capitello, while the Tavignano valley offers a quieter walk. The long-distance GR20 path runs through the high peaks to the west and south of town. Rivers form clear swimming pools in summer.

Mountain cooking here means brocciu cheese dishes, chestnut flour, lamb, wild boar stew and charcuterie from free-ranging pigs, with fiadone, a lemon-scented brocciu cake, to finish. At about 400 metres the summers are warm but the nights are cool, and snow lingers on the peaks into late spring.