Town and citadelle
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The port

Social life in Calvi focuses on the restaurants and cafés of the quai Landry, a spacious seafront walkway linking the marina and the port. This is the best place to get the feel of the town, but as far as sights go there's not a lot to the ville basse. At the far end of the quay, under the shadow of the citadelle, stands the sturdy Tour du Sel, a medieval lookout post once used to store imported salt. If you head up through the narrow passageways off quai Landry, you'll come to rue Clemenceau, where restaurants and souvenir shops are packed into every available space. In a small square giving onto the street stands the pink-painted Ste-Marie-Majeure, built in 1774, whose spindly bell tower rises elegantly above the cafés on the quay but whose interior contains nothing of interest. From the church's flank, a flight of steps connects with boulevard Wilson, a wide modern high street which rises to place Christophe-Colomb, point of entry for the ville haute, or citadelle.

Beyond the ancient gateway to the citadelle, with its inscription of the town's motto ("Civitas Calvis Semper Fidelis" – always faithful), you come immediately to the enormous Caserne Sampiero, formerly the governor's palace. Built in the thirteenth century, when the great round tower was used as a dungeon, the castle is currently used for military purposes, and therefore closed to the public. The best way of seeing the rest of the citadelle is to follow the ramparts, which connect the three immense bastions. From each bastion the views across the sea, the Balagne and the Cinto Massif are magnificent.

Within the walls the houses are tightly packed along tortuous stairways and narrow passages that converge on the diminutive place d'Armes. Dominating the square is the Cathédrale St-Jean-Baptiste, set at the highest point of the promontory and sitting uncomfortably amid the ramshackle buildings. This chunky ochre edifice was founded in the thirteenth century, but was partly destroyed during the Turkish siege of 1553 and then suffered extensive damage twelve years later, when the powder magazine in the governor's palace exploded. It was rebuilt in the form of a Greek cross. The church's great treasure is the Christ des Miracles, housed in the chapel on the right of the choir; this crucifix was brandished at marauding Turks during the 1553 siege, an act which reputedly saved the day.

To the north of place d'Armes in rue de Fil stands La Maison Colomb, the shell of a building which Calvi believes – as the plaque on the wall states – was Christopher Columbus's birthplace, though the claim rests on pretty tenuous, circumstantial evidence. The house itself was destroyed by Nelson's troops during the siege of 1794, but as recompense a statue was erected in 1992, the 500th anniversary of Columbus's "discovery" of America; the date of this historic landfall, October 12, is now a public holiday in Calvi.

Calvi's outstanding beach sweeps right round the bay from the end of quai Landry, but most of the first kilometre or so is owned by bars which rent out sun loungers for a hefty price. To avoid these, follow the track behind the sand which will bring you to the start of a more secluded stretch. The sea might not be as sparklingly clear as at many other Corsican beaches, but it's warm, shallow and free of rocks. You can also sunbathe, and swim off the rocks, at the foot of the citadelle, which has the added attraction of fine views across the bay.