Bonifacio is an amazing town in Southern Corsica. To be honest, we saw it on an episode of Below Deck on Bravo years ago and it looked so incredible it was the start of our inspiration for traveling to Corsica. We spent 3 days here and we absolutely loved it! Here is a list of some wonderful things to do in Bonifacio! You will love exploring this special island.
If you’re looking for more information about what you should know before visiting Bonifacio, check out my post here —–> What to Know Before Visiting Bonifacio, Corsica.
One of the best things to do in Bonifacio: explore the Old Town
Wandering the streets of the Old Town is one of the best things to do in Bonifacio. It is such a delightful village and is made even more special by the fact that you have to essentially climb up to it and explore within its walls. The streets are narrow, the buildings are tall, and the vibes are wonderful.
There are so many adorable shops, places to grab a drink or snack, excellent places to eat, and places to just relax and people watch and enjoy the lovely scene! You can walk around the walls to get views out over the ocean, port, and cliff side. It has a wonderful romantic feel and I loved walking around here at all different hours of the day.
Explore the Port of Bonifacio
It’s honestly kind of hard to miss the port as you come into the area, unless you just breezed through and drove straight up into the old town. But the port should not be overlooked. It has its own charm, is very lively, and has quite a bit going on as well. It easily makes the list of things to do in Bonifacio.
There are some amazing boats coming into this port ranging from mega yachts to smaller and more personal boats. They are all neat to see and watching people get on and off all day is a fun scene. There are also some amazing places to eat and drink in the port and it is definitely the more lively area to be in the evenings.
Make sure you walk all the way down and see all the huge boats, it is fun to see all the different styles and the way they are designed and decorated. This is quite a bougie area and it is really fun to explore and imagine what it would be like to have that kind of money. Unless you have that kind of money, that’s awesome for you! If you get to see Bonifacio by pulling up in your boat, I envy you!
Stay at Hotel Solemare
This hotel was the perfect spot to base for visiting Bonifacio. The room was lovely and comfortable with a big window view overlooking the port. At all times of day I found myself sitting in the window watching the boats come in and out. It was so entertaining and beautiful. This is why I’ve included the hotel as part of the things to do in Bonifacio. The hotel itself is an activity!
The hotel had a very peaceful pool area, which is hard to come by in Bonifacio, and was great for the mid day heat. We often spent the hours between 3-5 pm here just relaxing and cooling off. It had parking, which was another huge plus. It was also on the edge of town before you drive in, so you didn’t have to navigate into the narrow and winding roads. The common areas were so nicely decorated and made for a great spot to hang out or grab a drink. The staff were incredibly kind and helpful with anything we needed. I would highly recommend basing here on your visit.
Explore the Cliffs & Watch the Sunset
You can walk out onto the cliffs adjacent to the Old Town and get a really stunning view over the scene. The buildings are sitting right on the cliff side which makes for a very dreamy view. It almost looks like a fantasy or fairy tale. This area was surprisingly uncrowded at sunset even though the views are a dream! I also took the opportunity to run in this area in the mornings and it was really beautiful to explore along the trails on the cliff side!
You could add visiting the cliffs at sunrise to your list of things to do in Bonifacio as well!
Explore the walls
You can walk all around and explore the walls of Bonifacio. There are views to be had all around. You can explore the Stairs of Aragon if you’d like by purchasing a ticket and walking down with a helmet. You could also see it from a boat, which is what we did. You can see old bunkers, windows through the walls, and imagine what it must have been like ages ago. It is very neat to see it all and I highly recommend taking the time to explore it all.
Get Out on a Boat
This is by far one of the best things to do in Bonifacio. There are lots of options for getting out on a boat in and around Bonifacio. We did a catamaran tour to the Lavezzi islands.
I think it would also be wonderful to do a sunset tour around the cliffs. We didn’t do this on our trip but there are some options here. If we were to go back I would surely add this to the list.
If you’re interested in the type of boat day we liked check out my post here —-> A Boat Day in the Lavezzi Islands
If you’re interested in other boating options ——> use this link
Go Wine Tasting & Enjoy Wine Bars
You might not have known that wine was an option for great things to do in Bonifacio! Just a 10 minute drive outside Bonifacio is Domaine Zuria. We loved heading over here for a visit and wine tasting. We went here to start our day but it would be an excellent spot for a little happy hour as well. We loved tasting their wines and we bought a few bottles to carry with us on the next few days of our trip. We particularly liked the rosé. Even though it was right off a main road it felt so peaceful and relaxed. The staff were very kind and helpful and I definitely recommend doing a tasting and visit here.
In Bonifacio we also enjoyed A Bitiga Wine bar. It was down in the port on the way up to town and was a perfect spot to stop for an apertif before making the climb up into the old town. They had great wines and snacks and such a nice terrace to sit out on and people watch while enjoying the early evening. If you don’t want to take a ride out to the winery, this is a great way to enjoy and taste some Corsican wines.
Visit Nearby Beaches & Villages
This technically may not be considered things to do in Bonifacio but it is nearby enough and really enjoyable. If you rent a car, there are a number of easily accessible villages and beaches close to Bonifacio. It was nice to visit some other spots during the day and return to Bonifacio in the evenings. We particularly enjoyed Sartene and Porto Vecchio.
Dinner Recommendations
La Bodega Bonifacio: This spot is found in the Old town and has such a quiet charm. This was an excellent spot for some traditional Corsican food. It was VERY relaxed and had a very local feel. The prices were excellent, the food was great, the staff was so kind, we felt very lucky to get a spot here.
They also make a lot of special dishes and serve you a tasting menu of sorts if you’d like. I highly recommend going with what they suggest, it was all fantastic. We’d have eaten here again if we had more time in town.
Da Passano: This spot was on the port and was so much fun. It was a Corsican version of a tapas spot and we loved absolutely everything we ate here. I just wanted to keep ordering. It was right on the water in the port, this was really enjoyable as there was so much people and boat watching to be had. It was a tad more upscale and a little pricer but we found it worth it for the location and food. We made reservations in advance for this spot and I’d highly recommend doing the same. It was also a beautiful spot to time for sunset!
Aria Nova: This was a more gourmet style french spot in the Old Town. You could easily overlook it if you weren’t paying attention, but don’t skip it. We found the food here to be excellent was well. It was a bit of splurge compared to some other places on Corsica and in Bonifacio but we found it very nice.
There are so many amazing things to do in Bonifacio. We were so lucky to get to see, do, eat, and experience so much! Which of these 9 things to do in Bonifacio sounds most appealing to you?
If you are visiting Corsica and are interested in other areas of the island, you can check out my Corsica posts here ——-> Corsica Posts
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