Atop a footpath that winds up between the rocks opposite the church, the stark Tour de Nonza is an 18th-century structure erected on the ruins of a Genoese watchtower. In 1768, a single defender managed to hold off an attacking French army, using an intricate system of rope-operated rifles. It now holds a tacky seasonal souvenir shop, but the views from the surrounding platform are stupendous.
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Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
8.41 MILES
Looming above the harbour, Bastia’s stern-walled citadel was built between the 15th and 17th centuries for the city’s Genoese masters. Known as the Terra…
8.21 MILES
Bastia’s Vieux Port is ringed by precariously tall, pastel-coloured tenements and buzzy brasseries, and overlooked by the twin-towered Église St-Jean…
8.14 MILES
Criss-crossed by narrow lanes, Terra Vecchia is Bastia’s heart and soul. Shady place de l’Hôtel de Ville hosts a lively morning market on Saturday and…
8.34 MILES
Occupying the former palace of Bastia’s Genoese governors, set into the formidable walls of the citadel, this museum retraces the city’s history from its…
23.04 MILES
This coastal promenade follows the seafront east from Île Rousse. The beach right by the town centre is actually very pleasant, with fine broad sand, but…
23.1 MILES
Île Rousse’s delightful old town centres on tree-shaded place Paoli, with its daily food market, designed to resemble a Greek temple, alongside.
8.16 MILES
The dramatic twin-towered church of John the Baptist soars majestically above the Vieux Port waterfront. Viewed from the citadel above, it’s the most…
7.98 MILES
The 19th-century place St-Nicolas, an enormous paved square that sprawls from the ferry port towards the old harbour, is the focus of the everyday life of…
Nearby attractions
0.07 MILES
It’s worth looking inside Nonza’s dramatic orange-and-ochre church, which looms above the tiny village square, to admire its polychrome marble altar,…
7.45 MILES
The remarkable Romanesque church of Santa Maria Assunta, 800m inland and known as ‘Cathedral of the Nebbio’, dates from 1140, when Corsica was under Pisan…
7.98 MILES
The 19th-century place St-Nicolas, an enormous paved square that sprawls from the ferry port towards the old harbour, is the focus of the everyday life of…
4. Statue of Napoléon Bonaparte
8.03 MILES
Depicting Napoléon in the guise of a Roman god, this statue occupies pride of place in Bastia's largest square.
8.07 MILES
The Chapelle St-Roch is known for its 18th-century organ and trompe l’œil roof.
6. Chapelle de l’Immaculée Conception
8.11 MILES
Notable for its elaborately painted barrel-vaulted ceiling, the baroque Chapelle de l’Immaculée Conception served in 1795 as the seat of the short-lived…
8.14 MILES
Criss-crossed by narrow lanes, Terra Vecchia is Bastia’s heart and soul. Shady place de l’Hôtel de Ville hosts a lively morning market on Saturday and…
8.16 MILES
The dramatic twin-towered church of John the Baptist soars majestically above the Vieux Port waterfront. Viewed from the citadel above, it’s the most…