Star Clippers

Ligurian Itinerary

Star Clipper will sail from Cannes, offering an enticing menu of choices ranging from the 7-night exploration of the classic ports on the French and Italian Rivieras to 10-night sailings which visit Portugal, Spain and Morocco or select one 10 & 11-night cruises which sail from Cannes down the Italian Coast, visiting the Amalfi Coast, Sicily, Corfu and inaugural calls in Albania and Montenegro before arriving in Dubrovnik, Croatia.

Saturday - Cannes, France
Glittering Cannes is the archetypal Mediterranean resort city, discovered by wealthy English nobles who came to the sunny south of France to escape their draughty old castles during the dreary British winters. Cannes' high-flying lifestyle has attracted notables and the notorious ever since. Every year, the stars flock to celebrate the Cannes Film Festival at the colossal Palais des Festivals.

Sunday - L'lle de Rousse/St. Florent, Corsica
Crowded with yachts flying burgees hailing from the world's most prestigious yacht clubs, the harbour of St. Florent is a regatta of colors. The attraction, of course, is the crystal clear water that surrounds this section of the Corsican coast, making it a magnet for boaters. Take an excursion to the peninsula of Cap Corse, where medieval watchtowers dot the cliff tops every few miles. Or bike across the dunes of Désert des Agriates to the beautiful and isolated Saleccia beach.

Monday - Bastia, Corsica
It's amazing in this day and age to find a Mediterranean city that looks like it stepped right out of the travel diary of a 19th century Grand Tour. Bastia's gracious Italianate buildings were created to house the administrative offices of the capital of Haute Corse. In the Musée Ethnographique in the massive stone Citadel, discover how Corsica's continuous wars for independence from Genoese invaders split families for generations and gave rise to the dreaded vendettas.

Tuesday - Portovenere, Italy
It was from a grotto in Portovenere that the dare-devil poet, Lord Byron, launched his famous swim across the Gulf of La Spezia to visit his friend and fellow poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, in Lerici. Byron made it, but Shelley purposely sailed out into a storm and lost his life. That's why today the area is known as the Golfo dei Poeti.

Wednesday - Portofino, Italy On the hills above, palatial villas in ice-cream colors look down on the tiny harbor and exclusive boutiques and harbor-side cafés. This is Portofino, a name that has come to symbolise the sophisticated, sybaritic lifestyle of the Italian Riviera.

Thursday - Monte Carlo, Monaco
Monaco is the fabled domain of princes and movie stars. The magnificent Palais du Prince and opulent casinos remind you of an elegant, pre-war era. With more wealth concentrated in one small area than almost any place on earth, this tiny principality retains its gilt edged allure.

Friday - Porquerolles, Hyeres Island
Where the rugged hills of the Massif des Maures subside into the sea, the small island of Porquerolles lies basking in the eternally blue Mediterranean. The island's little town was created as a retirement community for Napoleon's troops - making it the world's first "Sun City." Today Porquerolles is a destination for nature lovers, who hike the hills covered in sage, myrtle, and oddly exotic plants to a magnificent white sand beach where a picturesque lighthouse stands guard over the wild shore.

Saturday - Cannes, France
Disembark for your trip home.

Cost of This Itinerary

The least expensive cabin costs:
$310 per person per night

The most expensive stateroom costs:
$741 per person per night