It consists of a cylindrical tower 25.80 metres (84.6 ft) high, with balcony and lantern, rising from the centre of the keeper's house.

It was one of a series of coastal defences constructed by the Republic of Genoa between 1530 and 1620 to protect against attacks by Barbary pirates.

The tower is owned by the French state and in 2008 was listed as one of the official Historical Monuments of France.

The race starts in St. Tropez, France, passes through the Îles d'Hyères off the French coast near Toulon, then around Giraglia, and finishes off in Genoa, Italy, a total distance of 243 nautical miles (450 km; 280 mi).

[6] The island contains a small colony of Scopoli's shearwaters where around 25–30 pairs of birds breed in old rabbit holes.