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Bastia, Corsica Guide | |
| Corsica's major ferryboat port is a bustling place built on hills, good for transit and a short visit. | ||
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Corsica's major port boasts car-and-passenger ferryboats to the French ports of Marseille, Toulon and Nice, and to the Italian ports of Livorno, Savona (near Genoa), and to the Italian island of Sardinia. Squeezed in between the mountains and the sea, Bastia's narrow littoral is usually jammed with traffic. It's possible to have up to six huge car ferries in port, loading and unloading at the same time. If you're driving, you'll need your wits, attention, maps, GPS, and a navigator to make your way through the complicated street pattern, especially to and from the ferry docks. Highway signs may guide you to the docks, but in times of heavy traffic, illuminated signboards may advise you to follow "Itinerary B"—that's how complicated it is. Café-sitters on the long, shady Place Saint-Nicholas ignore the traffic whizzing by along the waterfront, and shoppers go about their pursuits on the narrow streets inland to the west. TransportThe huge seagoing ferryboats use three terminals: Terminal Sud, Terminal Nord, and Terminal Est. Corsica Ferries is the major ferryboat company. Air Corsica, Air France, and numerous tourist airlines operate flights to the Aéroport de Bastia-Poretta (BIA) from Brive, Marseille, Nice, Paris and various European and UK cities. The airport is 21 km (13 miles) south of the city center (map). The Gare de Bastia (train station), the Gare Routière (bus terminal) and the Office de Tourisme are 400 meters (1/4 mile, 7-minute walk) inland uphill to the east of Place Saint-Nicholas. Several car hire/rental offices are in this area as well. Trains of the Chemins de fer de la Corse depart Bastia for Ajaccio, Calvi, Corte, Île-Rousse and smaller stations along the way.
Where to StayDozens of suitable hotels are scattered throughout the city. Find yours in the Search Hotels box to the right—>.
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La Citadelle in Bastia, Corsica, France.
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