The Seychelles are certainly a dream holiday destination for many, but with high costs and rather lengthy flights, holidaymakers may end up looking for somewhere a little closer to home instead. One option, that’s been dubbed Europe’s own Seychelles, is less than three hours away on a direct flight.

The French island of Corsicalies in the Mediteranean Sea, offering beautiful coasts, magical beaches and clifftop towns overlooking glittering blue waters. Recommending the island, travel experts at Holiday Pirates wrote: “Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean, just a short 2-hour flight from the UK. It’s part of France and is one Mediterranean’s best-kept secrets, with stunning beaches that look like they belong somewhere in the Seychelles or Fiji.”

This beautiful island is full of stunning beaches, including one that’s considered one of the best in Europe.

Plage de Palombaggia is nestled on the southeastern Corsican coast and offers Caribbean-style, crystal-clear azure water and white sand. And this isn’t the only beach reminiscent of the Seychelles, with others including Plage de Santa Giulia, Plage du Petit Sperone, and Plage de Rondinara.

Must-visit cities and towns on Corsica include Bonifacio with its medieval clifftop citadel, the laid-back seaside town of L’Île-Rousse, and the island’s capital city, Ajaccio, which was also the birthplace of the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. Visitors to the city can even visit his ancestral home, Maison Bonaparte.

Corsica formed part of the Republic of Genoa from 1284 to 1755, and the Italian influence can still be seen across the island to this day, and many residents speak French, Italian, and the native Corsican language of Corsu.

In 1755, the island seceded from Genoa and became an independent republic until it was annexed by France in 1769, remaining part of the country ever since.

Visitors to Corsica have left rave reviews on Tripadvisor, with one who particularly enjoyed their time at Plage de Palombaggia, writing: “The beach lives up to its reputation as one of the best in Europe…..crystal clear water, white sands, easy access…..highly recommended!”

Another added: “You MUST come here if you visit Porto-Vecchio. It is beautiful, the water is clear, the sand is pretty white and it’s just such a lovely experience.

“I do have to say it was a lot busier than other beaches we visited in Corsica, but it was still worth it to see the beach. It’s just like any other beach in the Caribbean, and by far one of the most beautiful beaches I’ve been to in Europe (beats Spain, Italy and mainland France by A LOT!)”

A visitor to Maison Bonaparte, wrote: “We were visiting the home of the family of Napoleon Bonaparte, born Napoleone di Buenaparte until he changed his name to a more French version of the name, so I read, mostly for political reasons and his more than proven ambition for power.

“It was nice to walk in there and read the descriptive about the history of the family, in that house that was also agricultural, as you can see from the olive oil lagar good dimension that occupies a significant part of the ground floor and discover its history and its stories.”

While one who took a trip to the Bonifacio, wrote: “What an unbelievable experience! Bonifacio is a citadel built in the 800’s. I have never experienced anything so old and so beautiful before. Standing on the cliff looking out across the Bonifacio strait towards Sardinia where the Mediterranean meets the Tyrrhenian Sea…. no words.”

Direct flights to Corsica from the UK can be found from London Gatwick, London Stansted, and London Heathrow airports.