Pinarellu,
sand and pine wood.
Twenty minutes north: a long bay of pale sand, ten hectares of pines, and a square tower you reach on foot through the water.
A beach people rarely leave before evening: natural shade, a bottom that falls away slowly, and a monument at the end of it.
The pine wood
Some ten hectares of pines back the sand. That detail is decisive in July: the shade is already there, with nothing to carry.
The water
A long sweep of pale sand over shallow water, suited to children and to long days without close supervision.
The tower
A square-plan Genoese tower — a rarity, most are round — stands on the island of Pinarello, at the northern point of the bay. You reach it on foot across a channel.
The hamlet
Pinarellu is a seaside village in the commune of Zonza, three or four kilometres east of Sainte-Lucie-de-Porto-Vecchio by the D 168 A.
Location
- Commune of Zonza
- ≈ 20 min from the villa
- 3–4 km from Sainte-Lucie
- Access by the D 168 A
The beach
- Pale sand
- Shallow water
- Pine wood of about 10 ha
- Natural shade
The tower
- Square Genoese tower
- On the island of Pinarello
- Reached on foot
- Northern point of the bay
Note
- Ruscana islet off limits
- Natura 2000 site
- Restaurants in the hamlet
- Moderate crowds
Zonza, not Porto-Vecchio
Many sites attach Pinarellu to Sainte-Lucie or to Porto-Vecchio. The hamlet in fact belongs to the commune of Zonza, which runs twenty kilometres from the Bavella pass down to the sea.
A square tower, which is rare
The Pinarellu tower is distinguished by its square plan, unusual among the Genoese towers of the Corsican coast. It stands above the northern point and is reached on foot across a shallow channel.
Do not aim for Ruscana
The islet of Ruscana, about nine hundred metres offshore, is a Natura 2000 site under a biotope protection order: access is forbidden. It is not the island with the tower.
Saint-Cyprien
The commune's beach, ten minutes away, with a long wild stretch.
Cala Rossa
The calmest water in the area, but limited public access.
Palombaggia
South of Porto-Vecchio, red rock and umbrella pines.
Pinarellu, in practice
Which commune does Pinarellu belong to?
To the commune of Zonza, which runs some twenty kilometres from the Bavella pass down to the Tyrrhenian Sea. Sainte-Lucie-de-Porto-Vecchio is not a commune but a settlement within Zonza, and Pinarellu is a hamlet of it, three or four kilometres to the east.
How far is Pinarellu from Villa Terra?
Allow about twenty minutes by car heading north from Lecci, via the RT 10 trunk road and then the D 168 A.
Is there a Genoese tower at Pinarellu?
Yes, on the island of Pinarello, at the northern point of the bay. It is unusual in being square in plan, rare among Corsican Genoese towers, which are generally round. You reach it on foot across a shallow channel.
Is Pinarellu beach suitable for children?
Yes: pale sand, shallow water and a pine wood of some ten hectares backing the beach and providing natural shade — a real advantage in July and August.
Can you visit the islet of Ruscana?
No. The islet of Ruscana, about nine hundred metres offshore, is a Natura 2000 site under a biotope protection order: access is forbidden. It should not be confused with the island of Pinarello, which carries the tower and is reached on foot.
Is Pinarellu very busy?
Less so than Palombaggia or Santa Giulia. The length of the bay and the pine wood absorb the crowd, and the hamlet remains small. In high season, arriving early in the morning is still advisable.
Twenty minutes north,
shade all day.
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