France Roadtrip Wildfire Safety & Avoidance GuideFree guide, 14 chapters
Satellite and forecast figures refreshed 16 August 2026 at 10:23 UK time. Fire and disruption reporting verified against official sources the same day. Conditions change hourly during fires. National authorities are always right. In danger anywhere in the EU, call 112.

Corte and the Restonica valley destination risk · checked against official sources 16 August 2026 at 09:47 UK time

Corte and the Restonica valley Wildfire Risk: Should I Travel?

The préfet of Haute-Corse and the mayor of Corte declared the fire above the town fixé on its whole perimeter on 31 July, and the Restonica and Tavignanu valleys reopened the same day. Two Restonica footpaths are still shut by prefectural order.

Short answer: Corte is open, the Restonica valley is open and the Tuani campsite is back in use. The fire above the town was started by lightning on 13 July and ran for eighteen days. On Friday 31 July the préfet de la Haute-Corse and the mayor of Corte announced that it was fixé, meaning held on the whole perimeter, and the Restonica and Tavignanu valleys reopened to the public at midday. The departmental operations centre and the town's own emergency plan were stood down at the same time, and the number 13 shuttle up the Restonica ran again from half past six on Saturday 1 August. What nobody has said is that the fire is out. Fixé is the stage before maîtrisé and before éteint, and the ground it crossed is high mountain that crews reach on foot. Two footpaths in the valley are still closed by prefectural order until further notice: U Chjassu di a Muntagnera, which starts at the Tuani campsite, and U Chjassu di u Finellu between the Restonica information point and the Punta a u Finellu. The préfecture did lift one closure, on 3 August, for the Mare a Mare route from Corte to the Refuge de la Sega, which is the reason to treat the ones it has not lifted as real.

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What is still disrupted in Corte and the Restonica valley

Checked against Préfecture de la Haute-Corse, forest massif access orders, and the préfet and the mayor of Corte reported by France 3 Corse and Corse Net Infos on 2026-08-15. Conditions change daily during and after a fire, and the source below is the authority.

Préfecture de la Haute-Corse, forest massif access orders, and the préfet and the mayor of Corte reported by France 3 Corse and Corse Net Infos →

Free destination checks

Your campsite

If you are booked in the Restonica valley, contact the site directly and confirm it is open.

The Restonica valley road

Access to the upper valley is managed in summer. Check whether the shuttle is running and where you can park.

Path conditions

Burned slopes shed rocks. Ask at the Corte tourist office or the park office before walking.

Prefecture access rules

Haute-Corse restricts entry to some wooded massifs on high-risk days.

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Under control, not out in Corte and the Restonica valley

Authorities describe the fire near Corte and the Restonica valley as heading to out, and not out yet. Controlled means the perimeter is holding and the fire is expected to be extinguished, not that it has been. Restrictions usually outlast this stage, so before you travel check:

How we reached this: the status moved on time, not on a source. There was no satellite heat and no confirmed burnt area near Corte and the Restonica valley for a run of consecutive days (from 2026-08-15). No official statement has confirmed anything either way, so treat it as the absence of a signal rather than an all-clear, and check the official sources below before you rely on it.

  • Roads and rail: routes can stay closed for clearance, resurfacing and unstable trees long after the fire is out.
  • Campsites, aires and accommodation: some stay shut, some reopen partially; confirm directly rather than assuming a booking stands.
  • Forest, park and footpath access: access bans are common for weeks afterwards, and fines apply. Walking and cycling routes are often the last to reopen.
  • Water, power and phone signal: rural supplies and masts can take time to restore.
  • Air quality: smouldering ground and ash can affect air well after the flame front has gone.
  • Flooding and debris: burned hillsides shed mud, rock and ash in the first heavy rain, which can close roads again.

The official sources below carry the current position; they take precedence over this page.

Sources used for this page

Europe Fire Map is travel decision support, not an emergency service or an official incident feed. Conditions can change faster than this page. Follow local authorities, accommodation providers and emergency services first. In danger anywhere in the EU, call 112.

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