At the foot of the fortress built by the Genoese in the 14th century – and which gave the city its name – a sinuous walk is set into the rock, giving access to 450 meters of coastline beside the mighty walls that in the past resisted the squadrons of Nelson and Mussolini. Named Aldilonda, which in Corsican means ‘above the sea,’ the promenade starts in the north as a prolongation of the Vieux Port, and following the outline of the old wall, it links up with the lighthouse and the south part of town, which one reaches by way of a gallery excavated under a bulwark of the citadel.

Because of the site’s high degree of exposure to the beatings of the sea, hydraulic tests were conducted to test the durability of the materials as well as the efficiency of the design, which features stretches of pathway made of metal grilles, through which water rises, and protective parapets made of spaced strips of CorTen steel that reduce the impact of waves without blocking views of the Tyrrenean.