Corsica, the island located between France and Italy in the Mediterranean, is known for its beautiful sandy beaches, postcard villages perched on cliffs and striking central mountains. But in August it receives as many tourists as usual.
Pitches for tents or motorhomes can be rented at the island’s campsites, and families picnicking at the well-known Restonica Valley hiking spot are surprised at how few people there are compared to the usual ones at this time of year.
In fact, this has repercussions on companies, which often take advantage of August as the busiest time of the year. The owner of the campsite, Tuani, told franceinfo that there are now 30% fewer people than in July. The hotel’s Arena Le Refuge restaurateur, Jean-Christophe Barrau, told the news channel it was the worst season they had experienced in 25 years of activity.
Corsica welcomes about 3 million tourists every year, many of whom come from France or Italy to stop at places that are among the most beautiful in France, such as Ajaccio, Bonifacio or Porto-Vecchio. Sant’Antonino, for example, was built in the ninth century to protect the region from Arab invaders from Spain. With its stunning 360-degree panoramic views, it has never been captured and is one of the most beautiful villages in France, France24 newspaper reported.
This French island has close ties to Italy and was once under Italian control. Quite controversially for its population, which had declared itself an Italian-speaking republic, it was sold to King Louis XV of France through the Italian Republic of Genoa in 1768 to pay off debts. The French government annexed Corsica in 1769, the same year one of France’s most prominent leaders, Napoleon Bonaparte, was born on the island.
The reason for the lack of visitors in August is largely attributed to the effects of inflation and the rising cost of living, which prevent other people from traveling to an island where the ferry is said to be incredibly expensive from mainland Europe. In addition, with the increase in car rental and food prices in supermarkets and restaurants, Corsica finds itself a bit ignored in terms of prices compared to its other more affordable Mediterranean neighbors.
From one point of view, Corsica made headlines at the end of the pandemic when tourists began to return to its golden beaches to meet herds of cows accustomed to the absence of human discomfort and difficult to move. Some of the 15,000 Corsican cows were angry along the way. A tourist was attacked with horns on his neck by a cow on Lotu beach, while other tourists were chased down the street through cows in Sainte-Lucie-de-Tallano.
In 2019, Corsica made headlines for the identity of a new species of mammal called the fox cat, mythical among locals for generations, but officially known to be longer than an average cat (measuring about 90 cm), with larger ears, longer dogs and a black tuft at the tip of the tail.