There are Mediterranean coastlines that reveal themselves best from the sea, and few make that case more convincingly than the French and Italian Rivieras. In 2027, Star Clippers will return to this classic stretch of the Western Mediterranean with four seven-night round-trip sailings from Nice, combining the visual appeal of tall-ship sailing with a sequence of small ports, island calls and historic coastal towns.
The programme will be split between two itineraries, Corsica & French Riviera and Ligurian Sea, operated by the 227-guest Royal Clipper in spring and the 166-guest Star Clipper in autumn. The concept is simple but particularly well suited to the area: sailing remains part of the experience rather than merely the means of getting from one port to another, with guests watching the coastline change from Ligurian villages to Corsican cliffs, Sardinian waterfronts and the more polished ports of the Côte d’Azur.
The first departure, aboard Royal Clipper on April 24, follows the Corsica & French Riviera itinerary and begins with Portofino before continuing to Propriano and Calvi in Corsica, Alghero in Sardinia, Sanary-sur-Mer and St. Tropez. It is perhaps the most recognisably Riviera-focused of the four voyages, balancing the postcard appeal of Portofino and St. Tropez with smaller harbours that feel more naturally aligned with Star Clippers’ scale. A week later, on May 1, Royal Clipper turns toward the Ligurian Sea on a route that puts greater emphasis on Italy and the islands. Porto Venere opens the itinerary, followed by Portoferraio on Elba, Bonifacio in Corsica, Alghero, Ajaccio and Menton. Both spring departures start from $2,660 per person based on double occupancy, but their character is noticeably different: the April sailing leans more strongly into the French Riviera, while the May itinerary spends more time around the Italian coast and the large Mediterranean islands.
Autumn brings Star Clipper onto similar routes, though with enough changes to give the sailings their own identity. The October 2 Ligurian Sea departure revisits Porto Venere, Elba, Bonifacio and Alghero, while adding Porticcio Beach in the Gulf of Ajaccio and a call at Monaco before returning to Nice. The October 9 Corsica & French Riviera voyage once again includes Portofino, Calvi, Sanary-sur-Mer and St. Tropez, but shifts the balance further toward Corsica with calls at L’Île-Rousse and Ajaccio replacing Propriano and Alghero. Fares for both autumn departures start at $2,500 per person. These variations may appear subtle on paper, but in this part of the Mediterranean they change the rhythm considerably, moving from glamorous harbour towns to fortified island ports, beaches and places where the arrival itself remains one of the most memorable parts of the day.
That sense of arrival is central to the Star Clippers proposition. “Some coastlines are meant to be seen from the water, and the French and Italian Rivieras are among them,” said Terri Haas, vice president of sales and marketing for Star Clippers, noting that guests first watch villages and headlands come into view under sail before going ashore to explore them. Between ports, the ships retain the informal nautical atmosphere that distinguishes the brand from conventional cruising: guests can watch the crew raise the sails, learn basic knots, climb toward the crow’s nest or simply settle into the bowsprit net as the next coastline appears ahead. Deck pools, daily briefings, a piano bar and occasional local musicians provide a relaxed backdrop rather than a heavily programmed onboard schedule. In a region already saturated with cruise itineraries, that slower, more visual relationship with the coast gives these sailings their strongest personality, particularly in ports where a smaller sailing ship still feels like part of the scenery rather than an interruption to it.
Gabriele Bassi
