Quick guide to the Liguria region of Italy
Liguria is a region in north-west Italy. Curving around the neck of the northern Mediterranean, it borders with Tuscany at its southern reaches, and meets France to the west, Piedmont (Piemonte) and Emilia-Romagna to the north. A narrow strip of land tucked between the sea and the mountains, this may well be the first part of Italy you will hit if you drive overland to Italy from France. You leave the French Riviera and its chi-chi resorts of Nice and Monaco, and arrive on the Italian Riviera. There’s quite a contrast though. The Italian side, though popular with visitors from Italy and mainland Europe since Victorian times, is less busy than the French Riviera, and there’s a marvellous diversity of geography and architecture.
The steep slopes that soar up from the Mediterranean get good rainfall and are lushly carpeted with vineyards and olive groves. The geography also means Liguria enjoys a temperate climate, never too hot and cold. The 18th of the 20 Italian regions in area, it is number 12 in population count. Most of that population is concentrated in the coastal towns of course, with large parts of Liguria relatively inaccessible wooded mountanside. Drive up here from the popular coastal resorts and you’ll find little, isolated mountain villages and some quite stunning scenery.
Communications are excellent, with easy access to central Italy and with mainland Europe to the north. Genoa (Genova) has its international airport. (Aeroporto Cristoforo Colombo), and the region’s main railway route runs along the coast, coming in from Monaco in France. From there, just about every Ligurian coastal town of any size has a railway station, even the picturesque Cinque Terre villages, and the railway heads out, via La Spezia, into Tuscany. Rail lines also head north from the coast to Parma, Milan and Turin. The A12 coastal highway clings to the same narrow strip of land, with major roads heading north at intervals to Turin, Milan and northern Europe.
The major town of Liguria is Genoa, a marvellous old port town that, in the 13th century, was one of the major seapowers in the Mediterranean. The long and thin town is stretched out, for miles it seems, along the seafront of the Golfo di Genova. The port became very run down in the twentieth century, but in recent years a concerted programme of renewal has seen holidaymakers discovering this historic city anew. Henry James described Genoa as ‘the most winding, incoherent of cities’, and behind the port is a byzantine warren of alleyways and little streets. Since its crowning as European City of Culture in 2004, development in Genoa has continued apace, and this home of Columbus and Garibaldi’s ‘Thousand’ - a fascinating melting pot of cultures, architectural styles and cuisine from around the Mediterranean - makes for a marvellous vacation weekend or longer. It’s also the home of pesto!
Other notable towns in Liguria (all on the coast) include San Remo, Alassio, Albanga, Savona, Imperia, Portofino, Ventimiglia and La Spezia. There are dozens more villages spread out along the Ligurian coastline, comprising the Riviera di Levante to the east and the Riviera di Ponente (further split into Riviera dei Fiori and Riviera delle Palme) to the west. And one of the must-sees in Liguria is the Cinque Terre (literally ‘five lands’), five coastal villages occupying a stunning position near La Spezia in the southern reaches of the region. Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore are squeezed into the cliffs of the coast, and are joined by a coastal walkway.
Between France and Genoa we are on the Riviera Ponente then, with sandy beaches and towns such as Finale Ligure, Noli and Albenga. There is the chic resort of San Remo and lovely hill towns (barely visited) such as Taggia and Dolceacqua. Pass Genoa and the coastline changes as we enter the Riviera di Levante. There are far fewer sandy beaches here, but some astonishingly picturesque towns, such as the hip and expensive Portofino, and pretty towns such as Santa Margherita Ligure. Recco has some superb restaurants, while Camogli (once a major sea power which saw of Napoleon with a fleet of 700 ships) is a delightfully unspoiled little port.
Liguria feste and festivals
Liguria, like ever Italian region, has a host of feste and festivals. It’s impossible to list them all, but some of the most worth seeing are as follows. Camogli has its spectacular Stella Maris water pageant in August, and Sestri Levante its historical regatta each June. Masone has an historical parade in June and Portofino its St George’s Day Bonfire (yes, the same as the patron saint of England) in April. Casaria Ligure has the strawberry festival in August, Pontinvrea a cherry festival in June, Rossiglione the chestnut festival in October, and Castiglione the eggplant/aubergine festival (yes really) in August. The Corpus Domini flower festival in Calizzano each June is marvellous and the same town hosts an historic horse race and games each July. Monterosso al Mare also has a flower festival for Corpus Domini (June) and the lemon festival in May. Cosseria hosts the festival of San Damiano (September), and Riomaggiore the San Giovanni festival in June. Look out for July’s Waterfront Festivities for Sant’Erasmo in Lerici, and the Levanto Maritime Festival. August has the mouthwatering porchetta festival in Carrodano, and at Portovenere around Christmas there are numerous nativity scenes, including the living nativity at Diano Arentino.
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