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Cap Corse to the Castagniccia (Corsica)

Freedom Holiday Self Guided Grading Level 3
8 days/7 nights Price - £755pp Tour Code FR011
 

Rich in monuments, Corsica is also rich in culture, crafts and lively traditions in which gastronomy plays a central role: prisuttu, a delicious lean ham from half-wild pigs fed on acorns and chestnuts. Figatelli is a liver sausage, while coppa is based on loin cuts. Chestnut pulenta will go nicely with your wild boar stew, among the cheeses, try the goat cheese and the brocciu, made from ewe's milk. At the seaside, you can enjoy lobster, fish and aziminu, the Corsican bouillabaisse. Eight AOC wines give you a choice of rich, flavourful vintages. Feel free to stop in at the wine cellars. The Corsican wine producers will be delighted to let you taste their products. "A saluta!"

Although graded as a level 3 it is possible to alter the routes so that the daily distances are shorter or longer than the itinerary shown. For anyone who does not want to cycle, we can suggest walking excursions for all levels. Then everyone will meet at the overnight accommodation to share his or her experiences of the day!

 

Includes

  • 7 nights in hotels, guesthouses or country inns (based on 2 people sharing)
  • 7 x breakfast
  • Bike hire
  • Luggage transfer
  • Maps and route information

Excludes

  • Flights
  • Cycling Helmet
  • Visits & entrance fees
  • High Season Supplement £39pp

Optional extras

  • Insurance £22pp
  • Single Supplement £170
  • Extra nights in Bastia in 2* hotel £42pp (£54pp in 3* hotel)

How to get there

  • Bastia has an international airport (Poretta) and a sea port.
  • It is easily accessible by ferry from Marseille, Nice, Toulon as well as from Italy. Corsica Ferries
  • Transfers from Bastia airport to the centre of the city can be by public bus (9€ per person) or we can organise a private transfer (20€ per person - minimum 2 persons).
 

Departure Dates in 2009 - Any day from April to October

High Season Supplement applies during July and August

To book this holiday CLICK HERE
 
Daily Itinerary
 

Day 1: Arrive at Bastia

Your tour begins in Bastia, Corsica's historic capital and its most picturesque city, with its bright blue and white fishing boats and sidewalk cafés. The name Bastia derives from the Corsica Bastiglia, meaning fortress, and today the Citadel and vieux port offer some of the best views of the city. The old port is superb and is a special place to dine in the evening.

Day 2:The Corsica Cape, 30 or 40 miles (48 or 64km)

In the morning, your cycling starts by heading northwest on a road which follows the sea, passing by the wooded inland and joins the other side of the island with its superb cliffs. The course is strewn with Genoese and Paoline towers as well as old convents and mills. The coastline dotted with tiny fishing ports is superb. Your overnight stop is near Nonza and you should not miss the tower of Nonza, which overhangs the coast and its black pebble beaches.

Day 3: From the Cape to the Gulf of Saint-Florent, 16 or 28 miles (26 or 45km)

You leave the Corsica Cape to go southward, in direction of Saint-Florent. According to which route you choose, you will be able to discover the village of Patrimonio, famous in the whole of Corsica for its vineyards. Tastings are possible in the cellars of the village. This route offers superb viewpoints of the Gulf of Saint-Florent. In Saint-Florent, do not fail to visit the citadel and to stroll around the port and its small commercial streets. The town is renowned for its langoustine and red mullet that are freshly caught each day.

Day 4: The Desert of Agriates, 30 or 42 miles (48 or 67km)

To the west of St. Florent lies the Desert des Agriates, so named after the Corsican word Agriates, meaning 'cultivated plots'. An area of wild maquis and rocky outcrops, the inhabitants of the villages of the Cap Corse once came by boat to tend crops cultivated here between the peaks and hills. You will be able to choose a route which will take you into the heights of Balagne to see superb landscapes before going down towards the coast and its Genoese Towers. You will arrive soon at the charming town of Ile Rousse, once the largest of four red granite islets it still retains a true Corsican atmosphere. Do not miss the sunset on the end of the islands, which will make you understand why this city was named Ile Rousse. The heart of the city is very animated in summer time and abounds with colours. Overnight stop in Monticello overlooking the bay

Day 5: Villages of Balagne, 17 or 30 miles (27 or 48km)

This day offers several options. For those who choose the longer route will follow the coast to Calvi and its beautiful citadel before going up to the villages of Balagne. This area is bewitching. These stone villages perched in the middle of nowhere have an astonishing beauty and have kept themselves from modernisation. Your stop for the night will be in one of these typical villages of Balagne.

Day 6: The Corsica Inheritence, 28 or 38 miles (45 or 60km)

You will continue into the villages of Balagne and will discover remarkable evidence of a bygone age in the many old churches and convents. Your course is divided into two roads, one of them makes it possible to ride on some mountain passes located at more than 1200m high. Then, you will follow the border of the Natural reserve of Corsica until you reach Ponte Leccia, your stop for the night. This day will, without doubt, be memorable for the numerous animals that you will meet wandering in freedom - cows, pigs, goats...

Day 7: Descent in Castagniccia, 31 or 36 miles (50 or 58km)

This last day of cycling will take you through the villages of Castagniccia an area of Corsica rich in tradition, history and culture. The name derives from the Corsican 'Castagna' meaning Chestnut, and indeed the region is one of Europe's largest chestnut groves, criss-crossed by a network of ancient country footpaths. Cycling through picturesque villages with opulent Baroque churches, convents, chapels and ancient stone houses chiselled into the mountainside.

Day 8: Departure from Corsica

After your breakfast, a transfer can be arranged to the airport or the harbour.

 

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