What to do in Ajaccio ?

You will enjoy the location of our hotel to walk and wander in the streets of Ajaccio.
Close to the sea-side (only 5 minutes walk to St Francois beach), the hotel is also at the centre of the cultural, commercial and festive life of the city.
Discover the Imperial city with its many monuments dedicated to Napoleon, its museums, the old town with its picturesque narrow passages and its market full of local flavours.
Ajaccio is also a city that has retained its preserved environment and a few minutes from the hotel you will find beautiful beaches and superb hiking tracks with the typical local florae, “le maquis”. 

 

Of course you will not escape from it! The most famous Ajaccio born, Napoleon Bonaparte is everywhere to be found in the city.
His birth house is open to visits and has become an interesting museum to imagine life on the island in the 18th century.
At the Town Hall, we invite you to visit the “Salons Napoleoniens” with beautiful paintings of Napoleon’s brothers, sisters and parents of the future emperor.
Do not forget the visit of the cathedral overlooking the sea, where Napoleon was baptised and where, it is said, that his mother Laetitia had her first contractions on August 15th 1769…  
The Fesch Museum (see underneath) and the Imperial Chapel complete the Napoleonian souvenir.
But all is not just about Napoleon and by visiting other little churches such as St Erasme or St Roch, you will learn other sides of the local life of the islanders.
Do not hesitate to loose yourself in the small narrow streets between the citadel and rue Fesch to discover the real Ajaccio. 

 

Ajaccio offers the rare privilege to go for a swim in the city centre. The sandy beach of St Francois is the “historical” beach of Ajaccians, at the foot of the citadel.  It enables everyone to walk to the beach from the Hotel.  
Ajaccio also offers a large number of beaches, all as beautiful as the other, all in different styles… From the airport the deep in the Gulf of Ajaccio, you will find large sandy beaches (plage du Ricanto)
Exiting Ajaccio on the North bank of the gulf towards the Sanguinaires islands you will have a large choice of places to go for a swim with the beaches of Trottel, Barbicaja, Scudo, Terre Sacrée… and even some “wilder” beaches further south towards capo di Feno. (to know more about the beaches in Ajaccio)

Every morning on the Foch Square commonly known as « Les Palmiers » (palm trees) you will enjoy the essence of every Mediterranean city : its market !   
Ajaccio market retains a large traditional trade with its fruits and vegetables stands, famous Corsican cheeses, wines, artisan- made smoke pork products like ham and dry sausages, while completing with other local and French products.
You will of course be able to taste all the products before buying them, vaccum-packed to bring back home!  
Ajaccio is also a great shopping city where you can enjoy strolling the shops and the little streets. Very nice fashion shops complement souvenirs and local delicatessen shops only a minute away from the hotel. Of course many will display Napoleon theme souvenirs and we would like to suggest a very trendy and original shop on Napoleon as a “self made man”: Empire, rue du Roi de Rome  

 

Ajaccio is a lively city with a mild climate, This takes residents out of their house to enjoy the terraces of the bars and restaurants many of which are around the hotel.
You cannot enjoy your stay fully without discovering the buzz of the bars and restaurants of Ajaccio and the summer animations such as night shopping in July and August while benefiting from the calm of the Hotel. 

Ajaccio, like the rest of Corsica tries as much as possible to preserved its stunning surrounding nature. The strength of the city is its Gulf, enabling the protection of natural zones . Protected from strong urbanisation, these areas are open to visits making great promenades and family strolls. Among them are Le Grand Site de la Parata and the Sanginaires Islands and, overlooking the city, le Chemin des Crêtes offers a wonderful panoramic trek. The botanical Garden of Les Milleli is also very cooling in the summer heat, and is located on the ancient summer property of the Bonaparte.
So many great promenades to discover all year long in Ajaccio. 
 

The City of Ajaccio is very proud to possess with the Museum of the Fesch Palace the most important French collection of Italian paintings after the Louvre with great names such as Bellini, Botticelli, Boccati, Titian….
The building itself is an ancient college and today hosts major pieces but also regular temporary exhibitions enabling visitors to learn more about the island art.
On the right wing of the Museum Fesch, is the Imperial Chapel which holds the graves of Napoleon’s parents, brothers and sisters. Recently reopened after refurbishment, it can be visited independently from the museum or together.
The place is a reference to Cardinal Fesch, uncle of Napoleon through his mother. This singular character once owned one of the largest collections of art in Europe and in the history of arts. The museum presents only a small part of what this great art lover had cumulated over the years.  

Ajaccio, city of business tourism and congress !
The congress centre is a state of the art working tool, located in the heart of the city and overlooking the sea. For meetings and working sessions in Ajaccio, its capacity is ideal. The Hotel Napoleon with its 62 comfortable rooms, open all year long enables meetings out of the ordinary and in the best of conditions: walking distances in a beautiful location.
Several professional can help you complement your business stay to link work with exceptional conditions and fun! 

To know more :
Le site de la maison Bonaparte
L'office du tourisme d'Ajaccio 
Le site du musée Fesch
Le guide des bons plans à Ajaccio