GT20 South from Corte to Bonifacio

Corte, the former capital of Pascal Paoli's ‘Corsican nation’ (1755-1769), has a rich historical past. Once you've settled into your hotel, you can set off to explore the old town, with its steep streets dominated by its citadel.

You'll leave the town of Corte behind and head for the south of the island, taking a route through the heart of Corsica, through mountains and villages. You'll alternate between main and secondary roads, passing through villages and scrubland, until you reach the Fium'Orbu river. The route then joins the Inzecca gorges, a narrow, wild gorge that leads to the village of Ghisoni, where the Regolo and Fium'Orbu valleys meet. This village has a rich religious heritage, with several churches dating from the XVᵉ and XVIIᵉ centuries.
 

Leaving Ghisoni, the GT20 climbs through the Marmano forest to the Col de Verde, the highest point of the day. The route then veers off into the upper Taravo valley, a rural area where you'll come across both semi-free-range pigs and vast mountain landscapes. It then passes through the villages of Cozzano and Zicavo, which you leave behind to make your way towards the Col de la Vaccia. You will then follow the Cuscionu plateau, a high plateau offering rolling countryside dotted with pozzini (grassy water areas), where horses roam freely.

Today's itinerary takes you on a tour of the Alta Rocca micro-region. You'll wind your way past major archaeological sites and tall granite houses to the village of Zonza. Between two villages, you'll catch a glimpse of the Aiguilles de Bavella, Corsica's iconic rocky peaks and an ideal playground for mountain sports. The route then takes you further down the valley to the village of Levie, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with the archaeological sites of Capula and Cucuruzzu, before reaching Carbini, your destination for the day.

Leaving Carbini, you'll head for the south of the island via the Bacino pass, which marks the entrance to the Grand Sud Corse micro-region. The landscape then opens out onto the coastline of southern Corsica. Between the gulfs of Porto-Vecchio and Bonifacio, you can see Sardinia and the Lavezzi islands. The panorama closes in as you approach the commune of Sotta, through which you will discover some of its 36 hamlets. The hill of the village of Chera will be the last hurdle of this trip. You will then take the main road to Bonifacio and its marina.