Porticcio holiday resort which is situated in one of the most beautiful bays of the west coast of Corsica has become a popular destination for water sports lovers from all over Europe. You will find a wide and long sandy beaches here lined with numerous restaurants and bars. There is also the only water park on Corsica nearby. Visitors can go diving, sailing, surfing, water skiing or playing tennis. There is also a sailing school. Very popular here are Porticcio ship cruises.

Tips for your trips

The advantage of the site is that you can easily get to Ajaccio and other parts of the southern half of the island. South of the capital of Corsica, Ajaccio, you will find one of the most beautiful bays of the west coast. It is right opposite the Bloody Islands (Les sanguinaires) in the Ajaccio’s bay, protected by guard towers Capitello a Frassu. There are numerous hiking trails and mountain biking trails. Very attractive are the central parts of the island with picturesque villages and beautiful countryside of Corsica’s National Park.

The most romantic way how you can get to Corsica across the sea, is by ferry either to Bastia in the north or to Bonifacio or Ajaccio in the south. If you have a luck, you can see some dolphins around the ship.

View Porticcio – one of the most beautiful bays of the west coast of Corsica France in a larger map

The post Porticcio – one of the most beautiful bays of the west coast of Corsica | France appeared first on Best of European Union.

Elba is located between Liguria Sea and Tyrrhenian Sea and is often called as The Pearl of the Tuscan Archipelago.

Elba offers wonderful natural sceneries and beautiful mountains. Sandy beaches are very popular here and many tourists prefer to visit Portoferraio for its National Park activities. The island of Elba is about 150km long and covers the area of 224 km2. The Monte Cappane – the highest mountain on Elba (1019m) is very popular for hiking and it is also called “roof of the Tuscan Archipelago”.

Since Portoferraio has the historical value, many scholars are doing research in the island. About thirty thousand people are living in this island and about eleven thousand persons are staying in Portoferraio city. On Elba you can find lots of monuments.

You can enjoy here the sunbathing, fishing, the pirate ship battle, hiking, visiting Napoleon’s palace (Napoleon was here in exile as governor), or even sitting in pubs and tasting excellent local cuisine.

Regular boat services are available from Piombino. Our tip is to rent a boat and discover the coast of Elba where you can find lots of unknown and empty wonderful beaches.

Tourists visiting Italy should not miss to visit Elba, as we think it is one of few places, which have to be visited, at least once in a life.

View Island of Elba – pearl of the Tuscan Archipelago in a larger map

The post Island of Elba – pearl of the Tuscan Archipelago appeared first on Best of European Union.

The first records of settlements in the island of Corsica comes from the times of ancient Greece, when the island was inhabited by Greeks, Etruscans and Carthaginians. The entire island of Corsica contains of a huge mountain massif, which dominates the hill of Monte Cinto, which is with his elevation of 2706 m the highest mountain on the island of Corsica. The administrative center is the city of Ajaccio. The biggest and most important port is Bastia.

Corsica is the pearl of the Mediterranean Sea. It offers a beautiful diverse nature. There you will find high mountains with lakes and meadows with streams and creeks, as well as beautiful white beaches and clear sea. Parts of the island are registered on the UNESCO World Heritage Site. The best known is the Gulf Port, where is the Gulf Girolata, Cape Porto, and Scandola Nature Reserve. These sites provide habitat for protected plants and animals such as gulls, cormorants and sea eagles. Gulf Port is therefore registered on UNESCO World Heritage List since 1983.

Among the most important monuments on the island of Corsica is a prehistoric menhirs and dolomens, mountain cascades, and the historic city of Bonifacio.

View Corsica – the pearl of Mediterranean Sea France in a larger map

The post Corsica – the pearl of Mediterranean Sea | France appeared first on Best of European Union.

It is good to conclude a travel insurance. Citizens of EU have the right to use necessary and urgent treatment. For visiting a doctor you have to pay 20 euros.

France is since 2002 the part of eurozone. Money in cash and travelers checks can be exchanged at banks, exchange offices, airports, post offices and nearly all hotels. Also credit cards are widely accepted almost everywhere, operates a dense network of ATMs. The amount that can be imported into France is unlimited.

If you travel with your pet, it is necessary to have a European passport issued and completed by the veterinarian. In addition, the animal must be vaccinated against rabies and identified either with a chip or tattoo. Animals younger than 3 months cannot be imported into France.

France is stretched in Western Europe at the Atlantic coast. The republic also includes the island of Corsica and 4 overseas departments of Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guiana and Reunion, as well as St Pierre and Miquelon, Mayotte, French Polynesia, New Caledonia and Wallis and Futuna Islands. In France, there is a very diverse landscape and there are large differences between regions. The country has few large cities such as Paris, Lyon or Marseille, otherwise it is primarily a country of villages, which are gathered together in the smallest administrative units – communes.

France offers a huge number of monuments, we would need several years to visit all of them. There is a huge number of ways how to spend your spare time. Water sports certainly can not be forgotten. The level of pollution over the years has been steadily improved and is regularly measured and monitored. If you rather prefer more privacy, we recommend the beach to the north, in Brittany and Normandy. You can rent windsurfing or even larger ship with crew, which will certainly get you the experience of a lifetime. If you prefer to remain in the country, you can canoeing on the French rivers. Canoeing in the middle of beautiful forests certainly has its charm. France may be called the land of festivals. You will always have a chance to experience the atmosphere of some of the traditional and less traditional celebrations. Whether it is a carnival in Nice in February, international film festival in Cannes in May, bullfighting on the summer solstice in the Roman amphitheater in Nimes and wine festival in Burgundy in November.

France has a well-developed road network. There are highways on which you have to pay fees – “péage” and which are the fastest road routes. There is no problem to rent a car here, but it’s quite expensive. Better you do if you rent a car before you leave by your travel agent, but only if you are over 21 years, and if you have a valid driving license for at least 3 years. In July and August, when children have summer holidays the roads are often overcrowded and busy.

You have to be lucky when you need to park a car. In some cities, however, you can use blue zones where parking is free in one hour. The use of radar detectors is prohibited in France and punished by high fine.

Train services between Paris and other larger cities are provided by the SNCF – French National Railways. If you purchase a ticket, it is worth to buy a seat reservation, which is sold separately. All major cities can be reached by high-speed train TGV. There are also Motorail links, which also carry passengers with their cars or motorbikes. Train ticket is valid for 24 hours and must be marked in a special razor at the entrance to the platform.

French cuisine is unique in the world. It is extremely varied and suitable for every gourmet. Dining has always been a pleasure for the French. Their lunch often takes 2 hours. It consists of a starter, main course, vegetables, dessert, fruit, cheese or sweet dessert. Vegetables cannot miss in any dish, either in raw or modified form. The most common vegetables are artichokes, spinach or eggplant. French favorite meat is from sheep, poultry and venison. The menu also offers various steaks known as Chateaubriand, tournedos or Rumsteak, or with entrecote, which can be compared with roast beef. French national dish is rabbit, in all ways. As the France is the maritime country, it is obvious that they love seafood dishes. Among the real delights are crawfish, lobster, shrimp and sea urchins. The greatest speciality of French cuisine are snails and frogs’ legs. France is also a leading producer of cheese and you can choose here from up to 400 kinds of cheese. The table must also never miss a typical French Bread and the Baguette bread.

France is also a country of very good wines, which are served with every meal. No other country in the world can compete with France in diversity, tradition and prestige of wine art. The finest wines are considered Burgundy wines.

The post France – country of good wine appeared first on Best of European Union.