Corsica: Introduction: Why Go Now

During the summer, Corsica has become the most likely destination for an international crowd of literary, film, rock, fashion and sports glitterati—Sylvester Stallone, Jean Reno, Emmanuelle Béart, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Adriana Karembeu, Rod Stewart, David Coulthard, Björn Borg, Milan Kundera, among others—and high-profile yacht cruisers like Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen, who always stocks up on the island’s award-winning wines. These days, there’s more to Corsica’s southern coast than powdery white sand and turquoise shallows: Porto-Vecchio boasts three superb Michelin-starred restaurants and an ever-expanding circuit of chic hotels. Even the beau monde, on its way to the Emerald Coast of Sardinia—just across the strait— makes sure to stop in Bonifacio, for a day at the superb golf club Sperone.

But the real appeal of the Isle of Beauty lies in its year-round dazzling light, mesmerizing landscapes and privileged serenity and privacy. Essentially, Corsica is the flip side of St.-Tropez, which may be why Princess Caroline of Monaco and Ernst-August of Hanover, the Agnelli family, Corsica-born top model Laetitia Casta, French actor Daniel Auteuil, director Claude Berri, luxury-goods executive Jérôme Guérand-Hermès and the cinematic couple Monica Bellucci and Vincent Cassel all own homes on the island. Visiting heads of state and European royalty can stroll about incognito and in peace—no one here is really watching.