L’Île Rousse

Pure romance in the popular seaside resort

There are hardly any cultural highlights in Île Rousse. But Corsica's youngest town is a popular seaside resort: The record as the place with the most hours of sunshine and a beautiful beach make it possible.

Paoliville or the red island

The town owes its name to the small red island off the coast with the Pietra lighthouse - its fire first shone over the coast and sea in 1857. Today, the island is connected to the mainland and famous for its sunsets: then the rocks glow bright red - a sight that not only romantics and newlyweds appreciate. Instead of the French L'Île Rousse, the locals still use the Corsican name Isula Rossa.

The town got the name "Red Island" only with the French Revolution. Until then, it was called Paoliville or Paolina since its foundation in 1759, in memory of its founder, the resistance fighter Pasquale Paoli. The latter turned the former fishing village into a commercial port, which was to become the Corsican answer to the Genoese port in Calvi. The typical chessboard layout, according to which the town was developed at that time, can still be seen today in the layout of L'Île Rousse.

The somewhat warmer seaside resort

The central meeting place of the town is Place Paoli. Here, boules players meet, people sit in one of the numerous cafés or seek shade under the plane trees that surround the square. You can make good use of it in the summer: L'Île Rousse has the most hours of sunshine of all Corsican towns, and thanks to its sheltered location between the mountains, it is always a little warmer than in other seaside resorts on the island.

No wonder that L'Île Rousse is a popular seaside resort. In addition, there are beautiful beaches and crystal clear water and rocks, which make the area a popular destination for divers and snorkelers.
If the beach with its light sand, which can be reached on foot, is not enough, the beach streetcar can take you to the other wonderful beaches in the area.

Ferries to L'Île Rousse

The ferry port of L'Île Rousse is an important location of the shipping company Corsica Ferries and offers direct connections to Nice, Livorno, Savona and Toulon. With the shipping company Corsica Linea there is another connection to Marseille.

[land_routes destination="Ile Rousse" mode="destination port"]