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Things to do in the Gulf of Porto Corsica – Breathtaking Unesco sites!

Last updated on May 13, 2019 By Claire, the Travel Planning Geek

Let's head to one of the most beautiful regions in Corsica, the "Island of Beauty"! Below is my guide with all the best things to do in the Gulf of Porto Corsica, a Unesco Heritage site with natural reserves and breathtaking scenery. Cliffs, mountains, gorges, volcanic caldera, beaches... there is lots to see!

Pin2 Gulf of Porto Corsica travel France
Quick Navigation
Gulf of Porto Corsica - a Unesco site
The village of Porto Ota
Staying in the Gulf of Porto
Porto Corsica Boat tour - Scandola Reserve
Top things to do in Porto - Calanques de Piana Corsica
What to do in the gulf of Porto - Drive from Evisa to Ota
Inland from the Porto Gulf - Spelunca Gorges
Beaches close to Porto Corsica
Other Calanques in Corsica - Figa Baleri (Partinello)
Further to Calvi

Navigate back to the complete ​Corsica Travel Guide

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Gulf of Porto Corsica - a Unesco site

The Gulf of Porto is one of my favorite regions in Corsica. It is so scenic, unique, wild and beautiful all around, that is has been classified as a Unesco Heritage site.

At the center of it all is the marina of Porto Ota, located at the most inland point of the gulf with a sandy beach. This is where River Porto meets the Mediterranean Sea:

Gulf of Porto ota Corsica

This gulf has all that I love: mountains and sea as well as reddish geological formations. This is my version of Paradise!!!! How about you?

The 2 main points of interest of the Gulf are:

1. The Calanques de Piana

High cliffs in a hard pink stone that has been shaped by the wind over millions of year. The steep 200 to 300meter cliffs are very impressive and best admired at sunset when the colors are even more intense.

Gulf of Porto Corsica - Calanques de Piana

2. The Scandola Nature Reserve

This is a 250million years old Caldera where the exposed rocks have been shaped by sea and wind erosion. It has revealed detailed elements of its structure making it one of the most fascinating places and unique landscapes to see in the Mediterranean Sea.

Gulf of Porto Corsica - Scandola reserve 2

But there was also another activity near the Gulf that was one of my favorite things to do in Corsica: driving down from the village of Evisa to Porto.  The mountains in the area are some of the most beautiful in Corsica. Every turn in the road brings more WOW to your lips 🙂

Gulf of Porto Corsica - Spelunca Gorge

Details and more photos of all these points of interests further in the article.


The village of Porto Ota

At the heart of the Gulf is the village of Porto Ota with is basically a marina, a beach, hotels and restaurants (and gift shops of course...)

However it has a particularity: its Genoese Tower, which is part of the vast network built in the 16th and 17th centuries, has a square shape.. You can walk to the tower for a small fee and climb to the top to for great views of the Gulf on one side and the mountains on the other. But it is worth doing only when the clouds are high enough to see the top of the mountains.
Open from 9am to 6pm.

Porto Ota Corsica
Beach Porto Corsica

Porto Ota, as its names means, its actually the marine of the village of Ota that is a little higher in the mountains. A short drive will lead you to this little group of houses hanging on the side of the mountains:

Ota village corsica

Staying in the Gulf of Porto

All the amazing things to do in the Gulf of Porto are listed (with pictures) after this practical guide to getting and staying there:

Gulf of Porto Corsica map

Where is the Gulf of Porto?

  • On the Central West coast of Corsica
  • The whole area is only accessible by smaller road so driving times are quite long
  • Road D81 goes through it
  • Ajaccio to Porto - 2h drive
  • Calvi to Porto - 2h drive
  • Bastia to Porto - 3h15 drive

How to get to Porto Ota

The best way is to stop in the region on a road trip around Corsica. Exploring with your own car is really the best option.

However if you are only for a short time in Corsica and staying in Ajaccio, you can book a full day boat tour departing directly from the Ajaccio marina - Check out program

Back to driving.
You can find all the locations, planning tips and GPS coordinates in my 3 ebooks:

Corsica ebook cover small

7 Maps, 130 locations, 220+ photos
to facilitate planning
+ GPS coord.+ Tips to make the most of your time

Learn More

North Corsica ebook cover small

5 Maps, 85+ locations, 150+ photos
to facilitate planning
+ GPS coord.+ Tips to make the most of your time

Learn More

South Corsica ebook cover small

7 Maps, 85+ locations, 150+ photos
to facilitate planning
+ GPS coord.+ Tips to make the most of your time

Learn More

Staying in Porto Ota

You can stay directly in Porto Ota. It is now a touristic hub rather than a village. It is the perfect location for the boat trips and to explore around: North to Scandola, South to Piana and inland towards Evisa!
And in town you will find lots of delicious restaurants to enjoy.
However it offers less impressive views than the accommodations in Piana.

Accommodation Suggestions:

  • Capu Seninu apartments and their balconies with views (and private parking) - Check out photos and availability
  • La Calypso, right by the water with view of the marina - Check out photos and availability
  • or check out all accommodations in Porto Ota
Village Porto Corsica

Staying in Piana

Piana is located on higher ground in the Calanques so several of its accommodations offer fantastic views of the gulf.
However every time you go explore, you have to go through those narrow winding roads (but also beautiful...)

Accommodation Suggestions:

  • Hotel Capo Rosso with a swimming pool and views you will never forget - Check out photos and availability
  • The historical Hotel Les Roches Rouges (from 1912) - a large building facing the ocean. Fantastic views all around and delicious food  - Check out photos and availability
  • or check out all accommodations in Piana
Staying in Piana Corsica

Want more ideas about where to stay in Corsica? Check out my accommodation article.


Porto Corsica Boat tour - Scandola Reserve

What to do in the Gulf of Porto? Explore the Caldera of Scandola for sure.
This is one of the most famous coastal regions.

About the Scandola Reserve

Corsica Porto boat tour

Scandola is a nature reserve that is only accessible by boat or on foot (long day hikes), a paradise for geologists and a dream-location for nature lovers.
The caldera formed 250 millions years ago. And since then, the wind and sea have eroded the magmatic rock (that is softer than in the Piana calanques nearby). It has revealed many fascinating structural elements such as basalt columns. I will show you some of them just below.

You can only visit the Reserve on foot (long hike) or by boat (best). There are no roads entering the reserve.
There are frequent departures from Porto. I recommend the larger boats so that you can move around at the front, the back or to the top deck to admire the scenery and take pictures. You can book the exact tour I took here (3h)

And if you really love rocks and scenic coastline you can do like us and combine with a tour of the Calanques de Piana (photos further in the article). Using the same link, once you selected the date you get a choice of only Scandola or Scandola + Piana.

The Scandola Reserve in pictures

Touring the Scandola Reserve is discovering shapes, textures and colors you might have never seen anywhere else. The rocks are mostly red, grey and black.
On the outside of the Caldera, the rocks are typically vertical:

Gulf of Porto Corsica - Scandola reserve
Porto Corsica Boat tour - Scandola Reserve 1

On the picture below, you can see the organs of Punta Palazzu. They are especially interesting because normally such "organs" of columns are vertical in basalt flow. But these are horizontal.

Porto Corsica Boat tour - Scandola Reserve 2

Then you can admire another type of rock that looks smoother. This is where, when arriving at the surface, the lava created a sort of foam because of the gaz-rich magma and high temperature.

Porto Corsica Boat tour - Scandola Reserve 3

The Gulf of Girolata

After touring the Scandola reserve, the boat takes you inside the gulf of Girolata. At this point you leave the Caldera with quite different rocks.
The boat docks at the historical village of Girolata that is completely isolated. You get 30min to explore its streets or taste one of the delicacies.

Porto Corsica Boat tour - Girolata village

In Summer it really becomes a touristic spot with shops and cafés on the beach.

Gulf of Girolata Corsica

And then you head back to the Porto golf, sailing around the Monte Seninu peninsula, another volcanic feature

Monte Seninu peninsula

If you want to get more geological information and can read technical French, Check out this document.

Video plus many more photos on my article about Scandola Corsica


Top things to do in Porto - Calanques de Piana Corsica

The next MUST-DO in the Gulf of Porto is to explore the Calanques de Piana.
They are 200 to 300m high cliffs made of Pink-red rocks.
This rock is very hard so it has not been eroded the same way by wind and sea. The formations remains almost straight plunging in the water.
They look like a mini mountain range.

For more pictures and a video, you can check my complete guide to the Calanques of Piana.

Porto Corsica Boat tour - Piana Calanques

The best way is to admire these formations (I think) is by boat. There are frequent departure from Porto and the tour lasts for 1h30 sailing all the way to Capo Rosso and its tower.
On the way you get up close with the different sections of the cliffs and see the holes and caves created by erosion. You feel quite small at the foot of this giant walls of rocks.
You can book your seat here.

Porto Corsica Boat tour - Piana Calanques 2

Otherwise you can drive through the cut rocks on one of the most scenic roads in Corsica. Or you can go for a hike to see some of those rocks up-close.
2 hikes are introduces in my Piana article.

Road Piana to Porto - Calanques 2

What to do in the gulf of Porto - Drive from Evisa to Ota

Want more scenic roads to drive on, near the Gulf of Porto?
No worries. Corsica is full of them.
One of my favorite is the road from Evisa to Porto. No sea views there, but stunning mountains peak and a deep gorge.

Evisa Village

Village of Evisa corsica

East of Porto in the mountains you can find the village of Evisa. It is not the most charming village I visited in Corsica, but if you keep going pas the center of the village, you will see a panoramic table on the side of the road where you can have a great view of the cillage and the mountains.
On a clear day you clearly distinguish the Calanques de Piana in the background.

The village is surrounded by lush forest. It is mostly composed of Chesnut trees which is and important agricultural hub in Corsica.

Views along the road

On the way down there is an "offical" stop with a panorama table. It offers  details of the surrounding summits and red mountain slopes.

Road Evisa to Porto Corsica 1

But you can also find other areas to stop along the way without bothering traffic. Sometimes you can even find animals soaking in the sun and the views. I love the combination 🙂

Road Evisa to Porto Corsica - pigs 2

And the surrounding views with the bare granit walls of the Gorges of Spelunca are perfect (to me at least lol). I think this is one of the best drives in Corsica.

Road Evisa to Porto Corsica - view

Inland from the Porto Gulf - Spelunca Gorges

If you love hiking, inland you can also find the Spelunca Gorges at the bottom of those same mountains.
Some of the granit walls around the gorge are 1000m tall!!!!
In those gorges several rivers meet including River Porto which continues to the sea.

You can either drive to the confluence of the rivers and do some small hikes or do a complete hike from Ota to Evisa.

Spelunca Gorges Corsica

From the Evisa to Porto Ota drive, the road to the bottom of the gorges is in direction of Ota. 
The road is a little more difficult, narrower and with bad surfacing. But it is not very long.

Spelunca Gorges Corsica2

The walks are not only famous for the tall walls all around, but for the historical Genoese arch bridges. One is visible from the road while the other is hidden in the forest.
They have a very typical shape with a triangle at the top.

Spelunca Gorges Corsica - Genoese bridge

Beaches close to Porto Corsica

Closest Beaches

The closest beaches to the village of Porto Ota are the one in Porto Ota itself and the tiny sandy area at the bottom of the calanques that is called Ficcajola (narrow winding drive + walk required)

Arone Beach

If you want a larger sandy beach, I recommend Arone, South of Porto (40min drive)
The drive starts in Piana and is very scenic while not too difficult. It offers great views of Capo Rosso on one side and the bay from above.

Arone beach Corsica

Once at the beach you can drive left to the beach carpark or right to a great restaurant with a fantastic terrace looking over the beach.
It is a nice sandy beach nestled in the mountains and with red rocks at each end.

Arone beach Corsica 2

Gradelle Beach

In the opposite direction, towards the North you can take a side road to get down to Gradelle beach (45min).

This time no sand but small pebbles of different colors. This beach is a great location to admire the whole South side of the Gulf of Porto.

Gradelle beach Corsica

Bussaglia Beach

Also North of Porto Ota (15min) is the beach of Bussaja with pebbles as well. But from the bottom I don't find it as scenic as Gradelle.

Figa Baleri Calanques Corsica 3

Other Calanques in Corsica - Figa Baleri (Partinello)

Love the type of scenery of Calanques. If you drive North from Porto towards Calvi, you will enjoy another little narrow section cut in the cliffs. These are the Calanques of Figa Baleri.
No place to stop but more great views!

Figa Baleri Calanques Corsica
Figa Baleri Calanques Corsica 2

Further to Calvi

Calvi is a 2hour drive from Porto Ota.
If you are not on a road trip,   it can makes for a great day trip out of Porto.
The drive is slow and sinuous but oh so magnificent with whiter smoother rocks, beaches and peninsula.

Road Porto to Calvi Corsica

Once in Calvi you can explore the old Citadel, its forticiations and views. 
Don't forget to go for a walk on the beach. From there you get a nice views of the Citadel entirely and the marina.

Calvi corsica

All the locations mentioned in this article are included on my maps and introduced with planning tips and GPS coordinates in my eBooks: 

Corsica ebook cover small

7 Maps, 130 locations, 220+ photos
to facilitate planning
+ GPS coord.+ Tips to make the most of your time

Learn More

North Corsica ebook cover small

5 Maps, 85+ locations, 150+ photos
to facilitate planning
+ GPS coord.+ Tips to make the most of your time

Learn More

South Corsica ebook cover small

7 Maps, 85+ locations, 150+ photos
to facilitate planning
+ GPS coord.+ Tips to make the most of your time

Learn More


Want to see more of CORSICA?

PREVIOUS: 

WHERE TO STAY IN CORSICA

NEXT: 

CALANQUES DE PIANA CORSICA

Tourism Corsica Travel Guide

Fascinating region, don't you think?

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