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| SPOTLIGHT | | Sandy
beach, is great for diving, swimming, sailing, snorkeling, and windsurfing. |
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| France
Most Beautiful Beaches |
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France French Riveria Information
he French
Riviera -- the very name conjures up visions of movie starlets stepping out of
sports Mercedes, of shapely young women tanning topless on the beach, of elegant
couples in dinner suits and evening gowns sitting at the Black Jack tables of
small, stylish casinos, of multi-million-dollar megayachts tied up at glamorous
marinas, and of holidaying crowds wandering along the Promenade des Anglais, the
famous waterfront street of Nice. And all these images would be correct, for the
Riviera can be all things to all people -- a dream destination where anything
can happen (remember the movie Dirty Rotten Scoundrels?) and any wish come true.
But unfortunately many people visit the Riviera without knowing where
to go and what to see, often missing out on some of the best and most fascinating
aspects of this many-faceted jewel. Perhaps, then, you may wish to come with us
and explore the more interesting and sometimes out of the way places that draw
us back to the Riviera year after year.
A word of advice here. Avoid
July and August when planning your trip. Not only is the weather a little
too hot for comfort, but the whole of Europe seems to descend on the Riviera in
those months, pushing down the standard of service, and sending prices rocketing. Right time to visit Riviera Insiders visit the Riviera in May and June
or September and October. At that time the wall to wall crowds are still ... or
already ... absent, the weather is balmy, and you don't need to queue up for restaurants.
You can enjoy what is to many Europe's finest watering hole, without having crowds
from France and what seems to be every tourist from Germany, Belgium, Holland,
Switzerland, Britain, Scandinavia, Asia, America, Australia and more lately Eastern
Europe breathing right down your neck.
One of the most famous resort
areas in the world, the French Riviera continues west from the Italian Riviera
and Menton through Monaco, Nice, Antibes and Cannes along the Mediterranean coast
of the Alpes-Maritimes département. After Cannes, there is some dispute
regarding its extent, with some authorities (including the official tourist bodies
for the Alpes-Maritimes) arguing that it stops at the border with the département
of the Var, after Théoule-sur-Mer. Others suggest it extends further along
the Var coastline, at least as far as Saint-Tropez, but possibly to Hyères
or even the border with the Bouches-du-Rhône département. |
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Top Beaches of France |
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 Bonifacio |
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Bonifacio (Bonifaziu) enjoys a superbly
isolated situation at Corsica's southernmost point, a narrow peninsula of dazzling
white limestone creating a town site unlike any other. |
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| Cap
Corse |
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Reached by a flight of six hundred
steps, Nonza's long grey beach is discoloured as a result of pollution from the
now disused asbestos mine up the coast. This may not inspire confidence, but the
locals insist it's safe. |
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| Cargese |
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The best beach in the area,
plage de Pero, is 2km north of the village - head up to the junction with the
Piana road and take the left fork down to the sea. Overlooked by a Genoese tower,
this white stretch of sand has a couple of bars and easily absorbs the crowds
that descend on it in August. |
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| Golfe de Porto-Vecchio |
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A few kilometres
further along the same road takes you to Santa Giulia, a sweeping sandy bay backed
by a lagoon. Despite the presence of several holiday villages and facilities for
windsurfing and other noisier watersports, crowds are less of a problem here,
and the shallow bay is an extraordinary turquoise colour. |
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| Campomoro |
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The main attraction here
is a two-kilometre-long beach, overlooked by an immense and well-preserved Genoese
watchtower. In late July and August, it's swamped by Italian families from the
adjacent campsites, but for the rest of the year Campomorro remains a tranquil
enough place. |
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| Propriano |
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The nearest of these, plage de Lido, lies 1km west, just
beyond the Port de Commerce; it's patrolled by lifeguards during the summer and
is much safer and more appealing than the grubby plage de Baracci, 1km north of
town, where the undertow is precariously strong. |
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| Desert des Agriates |
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A couple of rough
pistes wind into the desert, but without some kind of 4WD vehicle the only feasible
way to explore the area and its rugged coastline, which includes two of the island's
most beautiful beaches, is by foot. From St-Florent, a recently inaugurated pathway
winds northwest to plage de Perajola, just off the main Calvi highway (N1197),
in three easy stages. |
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| Porto-Vecchio |
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Today a third of Corsica's
wine is exported from Porto-Vecchio, but most revenue comes from tourists, the
vast majority of them well-heeled Italians who flock here for the fine outlying
beaches: spectacular stretches of shoreline lie to the south, with Palombaggia
the most popular and Golfe de Santa Giulia coming a close second, while to the
north |
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| Ajaccio |
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The town has none of Bastia's sense of purpose and can seem to lack a definitive identity of its own, but it is a relaxed and good-looking place, with an exceptionally mild climate, a wealth of cafes, restaurants and shops. |
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| Bastia |
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A better alternative is the long beach of L'Arinella at Montesoro, a further 1km along the same road, the beginning of a sandy shore that extends along the whole east coast. A bus to L'Arinella leaves from outside Caf? |
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