# Calabria to Sardinia to Corsica to France



## 98212 (Mar 19, 2006)

Hi there,
For this years winter away we want to take the trusty bus down to southern Italy and on to Sicily. Rather than drive back through Italy we thought it would be nice to get the ferry over to Sardinia from Sicily and then onto Corsica and then onto France. Clearly we would be spending plenty of time in each place to explore.

I had a look at a few ferry pages to see if this was feasible as we have Harvey the Basset Hound with us as well. Does anyone know if this is a goer, or better still any of you folks done this route?

Any advice or such would be appreciated,

Many thanks


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## hmh (Jun 25, 2008)

It's a trip we've been contemplating too and it's certainly feasible - if expensive due to the ferries. The only doubt I have is the frequency of ferries over the winter months .
I'll be interested to hear how you get on.
Good luck!
David


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## 98212 (Mar 19, 2006)

Thanks for the reply David. I think the cost will be pricey but once you take out the cost of fuel whilst sat on the boat rather than driving it's not that bad. Also this is something we really fancy so I guess you just pay up and enjoy.

I'll keep you posted...


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## Don_Madge (May 1, 2005)

wiggum said:


> Hi there,
> For this years winter away we want to take the trusty bus down to southern Italy and on to Sicily. Rather than drive back through Italy we thought it would be nice to get the ferry over to Sardinia from Sicily and then onto Corsica and then onto France. Clearly we would be spending plenty of time in each place to explore.
> 
> I had a look at a few ferry pages to see if this was feasible as we have Harvey the Basset Hound with us as well. Does anyone know if this is a goer, or better still any of you folks done this route?
> ...


Hi Wiggum,

This is a trip we did in 2004 prices are out of date but it should give you some pointers.

We used a Italian travel agent to book the ferries it worked very well.

TRAVEL TIPS SARDINIA APRIL 2004

We have just completed a 21 day 1150 mile tour of Sardinia and found it to
be a motorcaravanners paradise (in July/August possibly hell). It's a
beautiful island with wild flowers particularly good at this time of the
year. The island has something to offer most tastes. Besides the beaches and
mountains we visited an abandoned silver mine, a bronze age settlement and a
marble quarry. It was also very nice to find so many churches open. Many
stretches of road and cape areas are very scenic. In particular we found the
drive from Bosa to Alghero and Cape D'orso well worth the effort.

There are some specific areas signed for parking of motorhomes (unlike back
home). We found some areas where motorhomes were allowed to stay for up to
24 hours. In other areas we found signs banning motorhomes entirely It
appears the law is often only enforced in the high season.

Sardinia is not a cheap option. Expect to pay up to 500 Euro for a return
ferry crossing. Cost of living is higher than back home. Camp sites are very
expensive but these can be reduced by using camper services and free camping
in the low season. There are many places to free/wild camp too many to list.

ROADS
In the main the roads are very good. Even the fairly minor roads are well
surfaced and wide enough for passing. In some villages, small towns and some
areas of large towns the condition of the roads leave a lot to be desired.
Usually the ring or through roads are OK. Other streets can be very narrow
with very tight turns.

DIESEL.
Filling stations are plentiful but beware in the more remote regions their
opening hours could be 0700 - 1300 & 1700 - 2000 Hrs. In the large towns and
on the main roads filling stations are usually open 0700 Hrs to 2200 Hrs. In
April 2004 diesel cost between 92 & 98 Euro cents a litre.

LPG.
LPG is available in a very few places. We came across four sites selling it.
LPG is usually advertised as "Auto Gas" or GPL. By law the stations must be
in non-residential areas and are usually in rural areas or on the town
outskirts. There is a guide listing all outlets that sell LPG in Italy.

CAMP SITES.
On the whole the camp sites seem geared to tenters and static caravans. The
sites we checked out had very little room for large motorhomes. Most of them
had a tank emptying and water filling points. Most of the tank draining
areas were badly positioned for large motorhomes. Expect to pay between 15 -
25 Euro per night in the low season and between 30 - 40 Euro in the high
season.

Camper Service Areas.
Many of these provide in addition to the basic service (tank emptying &
water tank filling) Parking, Electricity & Showers/Toilets solely for
motorhomes/campers. These are fairly simple areas but this is reflected in
the price. The most we paid was 10 Euro this included electricity &
showers/toilets. It is possibly more expensive in the high season. The areas
are well signed all over the island. On the west coast we came across a
couple signed as "Camper Sosta".

SUPERMARKETS.
Supermarkets are plentiful. Even the small village ones were well stocked.
They are well advertised and often well signed. Principal chains "Pick up",
ISA, Pellicano & SISA we found particularly good. All the bigger ones took
the "Plastic". Minus point you have to pay for the plastic bags (5-6 Euro
cents each). Opening hours on average 0800 - 1300 and 1700 - 2000. Mon to
Sat. Possibly open 0800 - 1200 Sundays. Auchan Supermarkets can be found at
Olbia (on the SS 125 south of Olbia), Cagliari and Sassari. We shopped in
the Sassari (well signed of the SS 131 north of the city) one and it's a
huge place. Parking is very tight. A seven metre motorhome could have
problems parking. I think it would be a good idea with a large van to park
in the goods area.

WATER.
One of the few drawbacks of the island is the shortage of water. A couple of
years ago certain parts of the island were reduced to four hours running
water a day in the summer. We found a few springs in the mountain areas.
There are most likely others but probably not many. There are very few
public water supplies. So it's either filling stations or camper service
areas.

BANKS.
Banks with ATM's are plentiful and well signed. Even the smaller villages
seem to have them.

INTERNET CONNECTIONS
We found there were a couple of Internet Points in most towns/cities we
visited, most were closed from 1300 hrs to 1700 hrs. The only ones we found
open during these hours were the ones situated in bars/cafe. Expect to pay
up to 6 Euro per hour. Most places had a minimum time use of ten minutes,
all connections were very fast.

FERRIES.
As we were on our way home from wintering in Turkey we took the ferry from
Igoumenitsi (Greece) to Ancona (Italy) then the Tirrenia Line ferry from
Civitavecchia (north of Rome) to Olbia (Sardinia), We paid 250 Euro (that
included a high season supplement as it was the day before Easter) for an
overnight crossing with a two berth cabin. The ship was old and the cabin
and other onboard facilities left a lot to be desired.

We crossed from Sardinia (St Teresa Gullura) to Corsica (Bonifacio) with the
Saremar Line for 67 Euro. Crossing time one hour. Moby Line do the same
crossing but are more expensive.

I spoke with a Dutchman (car & caravan) and a German (seven metre Hymer) who
had both bought a package from Corsica Ferries for the return crossings from
Livorno to Bastia and Bonifacio to St Teresa Gullura. Both paid under 500
Euro for two return crossings. Both drove the East Coast Corsican route from
Bastia to Bonifacio with no problems at all.

CORSICA MAY 2004

We spent a couple of weeks in May 2004 on Corsica. We are loners/isolationists and spent most of the time free parked in mountain areas. We did spend a couple of nights on sites and free parked on beaches/harbours. In July/August the island gets over run with tourists but in May we had the place to ourselves most of the time. We met a few Dutch and French motorhomers but no Brits.

Don't plan a high daily mileage because the roads on the west coast/central inland routes are just not up to it. The east coast road N193/N198 from Bastia to Bonifacio (110 miles) can be used for transiting the island quickly.

Tourist coaches use the D 81 west coast route so it should not be a problem with a medium size coach built. There are some single track roads with passing places so if your reversing in confined places is not up to scratch don't even think about visiting the island.

The island lived up to it's expectations regarding narrow roads and stunning scenery. We landed at Bonifacio off the ferry from Sardinia and took the west coast route northwards. The road out of Bonifacio harbour is very steep and narrow, extreme caution is needed. The port area is very small and parking is at a premium.

N196 Propriano.

N 196 Ajaccio. Napoleon Bonaparte's birthplace

From Ajaccio we took the D81 north to Calvi a very narrow road in places with road works at the time.

D 81 Cargese

D 81 Piana

Between Piana and Porto there is Les Calanches the rock formation are stunning, not to be missed, if you are on the island.

D 81 Porto

D 81 Galeria

D81b Calvi

From Calvi we then toured the Central Mountains in the area of La Porta, Calacuccia and Corta taking in the Gorges de la Restonica and Gorges Scala di Santa Regina. The scenery in places is awesome, if you are a mountain person this is a must.

From the mountains we headed for St Florent and from there it was 20 km drive to Bastia to catch the ferry to Livorno. Leave yourself plenty of time to get to the ferry terminal at Bastia. The port is situated in the town centre and we found the approach roads to the town very congested. Parking outside of the port area is very difficult.

We used two campsites

Camping Mimosas Ajaccio

Camping d'Olzo St Florent

Some free parking spots.

Figari Port. Sign posted off the N196 about 20km from Bonifacio

Ajaccio Port Area. Plenty of free parking.

Porto Harbour.

Galeria Car Park.

Calvi. In front of Super "U" supermarket on sea front car park.

St Florent. Many parking places around beach area to the south of the town.

I haven't listed the mountain free spots as we just park up as and when.

Supermarkets were readily available even in the small villages.

Fuel. Diesel and LPG available.

ATM's no problems.

Water is "NOT" readily available.

Maps/Guides. We used the Michelin Atlas Routier et Touristique for France. IMO this is the best map for touring France if you, like us don't use Sat Nav.

We used the Lonely Planet Guide to Corsica which also includes full details of the GR 20 which is a 15 day very strenuous walk in Corsica. It also gives a lot of information about the island and places to visit.


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## Superk (Aug 22, 2005)

Did France - Italy - Sicily last winter on a six month tour returning toe and heel and up the east coast of Italy.

We stayed at around 70 different places mainly aires/sostas and wild camping and covered 7,300 miles.

Other folks were arranging ferry trips from Palermo to Sardinia without any apparent problem. Sicily has excellent ferry services.

We tried to keep to smaller roads and out of tourist hot spots but did visit the Cinque Terre, Lucca, Pisa, Naples, and Rome.

Sicily, kept our attention for over two months, has a great deal to offer whatever your interest and is a hugely varied island - coast and mountain. The people were very welcoming and although we braved a visited to the mountain village of Corleone had no persnal contact with mafiosi or crime. The weather in winter is not as good as Spain and can be wet. Major towns and cities are full of history and interest - Siracusa, Noto, Trapani and Palermo particularly if your prepared to walk and adventurous enough to explore the back streets. Carnevale in Acireale in February is an experience not to be missed and Etna an experience beyond belief.

The campsites are mixed. Punta Braccetto on the south coast is a campers idyll in terms of facilities and cleanliness and home to many German, Swiss and a few British longstayers. However, for us, who like exploring it was a rest place and rather boring beyond a week with nowhere to walk to and shopping needed transport (and someone to watch it when you got there because of the large number of migrant workers in that area). 

The best site was probably at Finale near Cefalu on the north coast. Then again the small sites can be a revelation - Noto parking is a small site in a lemon orchard where the family (ask for Michele) will drive you into the Golden City of Noto or put you on a train to Siracusa. 

At Acireale you can stay in another Orchard on the cliff edge below the town and be invited to pick your own oranges, grapfruit or bananas or pop down to the harbour and get fresh fish from the little village. 

At Petrosina (Camping Biscione) we were given the keys to the site over Christmas as no one else was camping and ate with the villagers i the only restaurant.

NearMothia Island we watched the glorious sunset over the ancient salt pans and windmills but one of our favourite places was San Vito lo Capo and round the headland to the wilds of the Zingaro National Park.

Many towns have sostas where you can park in the centre - if your brave enough to drive into Palermo - Green Parking has water, electric, waste and even a loo and shower and is only a little way from the Cathedral - fantastic city - what contrasts - elegance and seediness in abundance. 

Siracusa has a large and welcoming sosta a short distance from the archeological museum and sites.

Hope I've whetted your appetite to travel a bit rather than being static on a site. 

Read all about it in my next book - coming soon! - well in a little while.

 
Keith


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## 98212 (Mar 19, 2006)

Thank you both for taking the time to reply with such a fantastic amount of information. We are not ones for spending months at a time on a site so very much look forward to exploring as much as we can when we go. 

I will spend some more time looking through all of your information and maps etc and see what we can plan. I don't want to fix too much before we head off as we like to travel as the mood / weather takes us.

Many thanks again


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## 98212 (Mar 19, 2006)

Hi folks
we are on our way on said journey and are currently working our way down the east coast of Italy.

Does anyone know if its possible to do the journey we have described with our pooch? We are not sure if we would be able to walk him or even have him with us while on the ferry? We should maybe have looked into this mre before leaving but ey ho there you go.

Many thanks for any help. There may be a delay in replying to any help as we are on the move and internet access is tricky (not as tricky as this keyboard though).

Thanks again


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