Calvi boasts a glamorous harbour home to luxurious yachts and a selection of trendy, yet laid-back cafes and restaurants on Quai Landry. The splendid citadel towers above, and a wonderful rugged mountain and forest of pines provide a picturesque backdrop. Inside the citadel, a military outpost in teh 15th century, you will find the palace of the Genovese governor and the Museum of Corsican Ethnography. Calvi also boasts a fine beach, where the pure white sand flanks the shallow azur waters for some six kilometres. Further fantastic beaches can be found at Plage de l'Alga, near Revellata point, and the sandy shores of Saint Restitude beach, can be reached by train from Calvi. Also well worth discovering in the Balagne region, are the quaint hillside villages such as Lumio and Sant'Antonino. Quieter locations, these make an ideal base from which to discover the area, and enjoy a home-made lemonade or a locally-made chestnut beer known as Pietra, whilst drinking in the view.
To the east of Calvi you will find Saint-Florent, Corsica's Saint-Tropez, and popular with the 'jet set'. It also has its own Genoese citadel, built in the 15th century, from which wonderful views of the Golf de Saint-Florent are to be had. A number of exclusive bars and restaurants can be found around the harbour, in the old town and Place des Portes. Whilst a few kilometres north east of the town around the village of Patrimonio you can discover the vineyards producing one of Corsica's best wines.
Like anywhere on Corsica, there are further fabulous beaches to be visited, which can also lay well-founded claims to being the loveliest on the island. Le Lodo and Saleccia beaches are both accessed by boat from Saint-Florent and therefore usually remain uncrowded, even in high season. Both beaches sit in the Désert des Agriates, the only officially classified desert region in Europe. Saint-Florent is also a gateway to the Cap Corse peninsula, the rugged and scenic rocky outcrop at the northern tip of the island.