Napoléon Avenue

The Cours Napoléon, in Ajaccio

The Cours Napoléon is the main artery of the town centre of Ajaccio, wanted by Napoleon the first within his great project of embellishment of his native town. The Ajaccio audio-guided tour stops here to evoke this great avenue, traditional place of promenade of the people of Ajaccio and lively backbone of the imperial town.

The great avenue wanted by Napoleon

You are on the Cours Napoléon, the main artery of the town centre of Ajaccio. Designed at the request of Napoleon the first, this great street was at the heart of his project of embellishment of his native town. From its opening, it became a privileged place of promenade, where you went to see and to be seen. The inhabitants took the habit of going there, traditionally from five to seven in the evening, two hours during which the strollers made round trips. According to the writer Paul Lucchini, author of several works on the customs of Ajaccio, this tradition would stem from the Italian wars: the news from the front being displayed each evening on the walls of the prefecture, the inhabitants crowded in front of the Palais Lantivy to follow the progress of the fighting, and the habit, taken at the end of the war, turned into a ritual of sociability. The cours today links the Place du Général de Gaulle to the district of the station, crossing the commercial and administrative heart of the town, lined with shops, cafés and fine buildings. Recently entirely renovated, it has recovered all its lustre of a great urban promenade. With its imperial name and its long tradition of strolling, the Cours Napoléon is the living soul of Ajaccio. A great avenue and a place of promenade, the Cours Napoléon is a fine stop of the discovery of the town.

What to see

Here you discover the great artery of the town centre wanted by Napoleon the first to embellish his native town, become from its opening the place of promenade of the people of Ajaccio, who gathered there traditionally at the end of the afternoon; lined with shops, cafés and fine buildings, linking the Place du Général de Gaulle to the district of the station, the cours, recently renovated, has recovered all its lustre. The Cours Napoléon is the living soul of Ajaccio. It is a fine stop, to be explored on foot.

Practical information

The Cours Napoléon lies in the heart of Ajaccio, linking the Place du Général de Gaulle to the district of the station, reachable on foot. It is a great avenue freely accessible, lined with shops, cafés and buildings like the Palais Lantivy. You discover it during a walk in the centre.

Why is the Cours Napoléon in Ajaccio named so?

Because this great artery of the town centre was wanted by Napoleon the first within his project of embellishment of his native town; become from its opening the place of promenade of the people of Ajaccio, who gathered there at the end of the afternoon, it links the Place du Général de Gaulle to the district of the station and has been recently entirely renovated.

Where is the Cours Napoléon in Ajaccio?

In the heart of Ajaccio, linking the Place du Général de Gaulle to the district of the station, in Corsica.