8 things to do in the Italian Riviera

The Italian Riviera is located in the north west of the country and includes pretty much all of the coastline within the Liguria region. There’s so much to love about this part of Italy and I simply adore the intricately painted colourful buildings, gorgeous beaches, pretty coves, amazing food and laid-back lifestyle.

1. Visit Santa Margherita Ligure

Santa Margherita is one of my favourite spots in the Italian Riviera and is a beautiful Italian resort town, loved by Italian families.

There are colourful buildings, palm trees, chic hotels, delicious restaurants, a stony beach and a modern marina with small and mid-sized yachts. Basically it has everything you could want from a seaside town, plus lots more.

I always choose to stay in Santa Margherita when visiting the Italian Riviera, as I think it’s a perfect base from which to explore more of the area. It’s not as pricy as staying in Portofino, but is still stylish, colourful and relaxing.

2. Get out on the water

The coastal areas in the Italian Riviera have these amazing inky turquoise waters that are so inviting. It would be rude not to get out on the water in this area by hiring your very own boat, or hopping onto one of the little boats that run between towns in this area.

3. Explore Portofino

No visit to the Italian Riviera would be complete without visiting it’s most well known spot - the little town of Portofino. This is one of the most glamorous Italian towns I’ve ever visited and it attracts visitors from all over the world to admire it’s trompe-l’oeil frescoed buildings - a style of painting which makes buildings look covered in beautiful handcrafted moulding, but is actually just painted.

Portofino is expensive and gets rather crowded during the day when everyone comes to visit from near and far. Try to visit early in the morning, or later in the day if you want a more relaxing experience.

4. Discover Genoa

Genoa is the biggest city in the Liguria region and has been an important port city for thousands of years. Today it has a wealth of history, dozens of chic restaurants and bars, a buzzing cultural scene and so much to offer visitors.

The city is home to many impressive palaces and museums and has the largest medieval city centre in all of Europe. It’s safe to say Genoa is a place with a lot of interesting history and culture, so spending a few days here discovering what it has to offer is certainly a great way to spend some time in this area.

5. Hike from San Fruttuoso to Portofino

I’ve written before about this hike that was one of my favourite parts of my last trip to this area.

The hike was gorgeous and although for the majority of the time we were enshrouded by trees, it meant when we did come to a clearing we enjoyed those stunning views over the Mediterranean even more!

6. Eat fresh seafood

Being a coastal area it’s only to be expected that the seafood is pretty fabulous here and there are no shortage of restaurants offering the freshest and best quality seafood.

Pesto also originates from the Liguria region, so you’ll see plenty of dishes that include this delicious sauce. Be sure to try some!

7. Visit the Cinque Terre

Cinque Terre translates to five towns in English and describes five incredibly pretty little towns dotted along a small stretch of coast to the east of the Italian Riviera. They’re built upon the steep cliffs rising out of the water and are colourful and charmingly different.

Whilst they weren’t quite as fabulous as I was expecting, they were absolutely beautiful and I’d have liked to have spent a little more time exploring them. As it was, I only visited three of the five towns and would certainly go back to visit the remaining two on another trip to the area.

8. Relax, Italian Style

This part of Italy is an extremely laid-back, relaxing area so it’s only right that you should set aside some time for rest and relaxation.

There are numerous beach clubs (lidos) along the coastline of the Italian Riviera, where you can stretch out on a sun lounger or a stretch of beach. They’re loved by Italians and a visit to this area wouldn't be complete without indulging in this side of Italian life.