The Italian Riviera

Where is the Italian Riviera
This stretch of Italian coastline is in the north-western part of the country and is essentially like an extension of the French Riviera. The area is a lot larger than you would think, so you can’t just pick one spot to base yourself out of for a couple of days and see the whole thing. That was one mistake I made when I was planning  my trip. It was only when I got into the nitty-gritty, did I realise its size. So hopefully this will help you plan accordingly.

How long should I go for?
Well, this is difficult because it depends what you want to see. If you want to just do big ticket places, like Portofino, then I’d probably allow 2 nights. If you want to dive a little more into the European holiday destinations like Santa Margherita and San Remo, 3–4 nights. Then if you want to add the Cinque Terre on top of that, I’d say 5-6 nights.

Where to base yourself - for easy access to Portofino
Again, this depends on the type of holiday you're after. We’d already seen the Cinque Terre, so our priority was seeing Portofino and also seeing some of the beach towns. We spent three nights in Santa Margherita and loved it.

We chose Santa (as the locals call it) because of its proximity to Portofino. It’s an easy 20 minute bus away, or 15 minute ferry ride, or an hour walk. It was A LOT cheaper than Portofino too and it has its own 'fishing town vibe', that we really liked. It’s also got a beautiful promenade that you can walk along.

If you’re willing to splash some cash, Portofino is obviously stunning, but I struggled to find any good deals - even looking well in advance. Then of course, if you splurge, it’s not just the hotel that’s more expensive, the drinks are more expensive, the shopping is more expensive etc etc. As an example, a Spritz in Santa Margherita cost 9 Euro, in Portofino, it was 16 Euro.

Then there’s Rapallo, which is a similar vibe to Santa, but slightly bigger and it’s the first/last stop on the ferry’s round trip.

Other spots worth visiting
I didn’t get here, it was on my “if we have time list”, but I’ve heard San Remo is another stunning coastal town that’s worth a look if your timing allows it. San Remo is located a lot closer to the French Riviera though, so it’s not just a ‘quick trip’ if you base yourself out of Genoa or Santa Margherita.

Where NOT to stay
I should say at this point, that obviously this is just my personal opinion, but I wouldn’t base myself out of Genoa, even if it is more convenient for public transport. In my view, if you’re going to the Italian Riviera, you want to be in a picturesque little fishing village, waking up among the locals, walking 5 minutes and hitting the beach. Genoa has a Port, but it’s more of a  city and it definitely doesn’t give you that ‘beach holiday vibe’ people dream about.

In saying that - we went to Genoa for a soccer game (Genoa v Brescia) and I absolutely thought it was worth it. It’s like when you go to America for that NFL, or Canada for the ice hockey. It’s an experience that I’m so glad I got to do. I’ll write about it in a separate blog post though - there was definitely good and bad to that little outing.

Seasons - when to go and why
Just be wary when you’re booking the Italian Riviera, it does have peak seasons and a lot of places close over winter. Obviously during Summer, it’s peak tourism and everything is open, so you’re battling the crowds. We went in shoulder season (end of October) which happened to be unusually warm for that time of year - so it was actually ideal - stunning beaches, without the crowds. In fact, we arrived on a weekday and it felt a bit like a ghost town. We were so confused why there wasn’t anyone there, but by Friday, the weekend visitors had filed in and it was interesting to see the difference.

However, it was evident things were still starting to close down for the season. Certain beach clubs weren’t open, the beach chairs had already been packed up and a lot of the hotels were preparing to shut down in the next week or so. The plus side to that was, pretty much all the beaches were a free-for-all, so we didn’t have to pay for a lounge chair.

Portofino
There’s a reason why this place is  renowned - Portofino has a charm to it that is indescribable. But because it’s a playground for the rich and famous, they charge what they want - and you just have to pay it. So make sure you factor that into your budget, when planning your trip.

In saying that, one of the best things to do here is just sit at one of the restaurants surrounding the dock and sip on your overpriced cocktail, eat your free snacks that you get with it - and just people watch.

There’s so much to catch your eye. It’s fun to watch the influencers and their insta-husbands, the tourists who dress like they’ve got money, the tourists who actually have money - the list goes on. If you’re really lucky, you might actually spot someone famous. Then of course, you can check out the overpriced yachts that pull into the port and play a game of ‘guess how much that one costs’. It was fun looking up the boat names and seeing if they belong to any one famous.

So, now a confession - I’m not much of a shopper. So when I walked past a lot of the boutiques and saw the price tags on a lot of the clothes, bags, shoes, I was in NO WAY tempted to go inside. I was happy to window shop and leave it at that. In saying that, if you’re one of those people who likes to splurge as a way of remembering that place you visited- well, you’ll definitely find yourself a statement piece in Portofino. - it just might cost you a kidney to pay for it.

Castello Brown - best photos in Portofino
Ok, there’s a trick to this place and I think we nailed it without even knowing. THIS is the spot where everyone gets their iconic photos looking down over the Portofino harbour - the ones that adorn every travel influencer’s social pages. It IS a hike, you DO have to pay 5 Euro entry into the castle for these views and it DOES have opening hours - but it’s still worth it in my opinion.

We caught the first ferry from Santa Margherita on a weekend and turned left, to take the stairs straight up to Castle Brown (it’s very clearly signed). The only way to get there is to walk, so make sure you’re prepared for about 15 minutes of a semi-challenging incline. But we realised as we reached the gate, we were about half an hour early (the Castle opens at 10am on weekends) - so we kept going and walked around the cliff and found more stunning viewpoints further along.

We timed it so we were able to return to the Castle exactly on 10am and we walked straight up, paid our money, and high tailed it straight to the viewpoint. We were so lucky because we were the only ones there for like 15-20 minutes. We got all the photos we wanted, then when we were done, we just sat and admired the view for a little while longer. There was a boat playing music down below, and it all just added to the atmosphere.

Then as more people started filing through, we explored the castle a little more and stopped and got a drink at the cafe before heading back down. 30 minutes later, there was a line at the viewpoint and I just felt like it took away a bit of the magic of that spot.

Beaches
There is a sandy beach called Paraggi Bay, that’s right in the middle of Santa Margherita and Portofino. The bus stops here, if you want to get a bus from either place, or you can walk. It’s lovely because it’s different to the rocky beaches that make up most of the coastline. In Summer, it is a paid beach club, but in the shoulder season, anyone can pull up with their towels and claim their spot. It has lovely clear water, like pretty much most of the Italian Riviera.

Baia Del Cannone. This place is a little closer to Portofino. it's not only a picturesque beach, but it's also famous for villa Mondadori . It definitely isn't a hidden gem anymore - its picture is all over Instagram these days, so it wouldn't be surprising if its full of tourists.

If you’re in the area during Summer, there’s something pretty cool about buying a beach chair and just parking up for the day. It’s usually around 20-30 Euro per person, which is a bit expensive (especially when in Australia, our beaches are free). BUT you get waiters who come by and take your drink/food orders, you’re more comfy sitting on a chair than on your towel, and it’s yours for the afternoon. It’s just one of those things that you do, because how often are you in Portofino drinking cocktails by the beach?

San Frutuoso
This place was recommended in passing to me, before we left and I didn’t do any research on it - but it was a beautiful little gem of a place. It’s a secluded beach with a monastery and that’s about it. It’s accessible by ferry, on the other side of Portofino’s peninsula. It’s the last stop on that Line 1 ferry loop. Again, we got the first ferry over and picked the best spot on the beach and just parked up for most of the morning. The water was crystal clear, the beach was rocky (but that’s pretty typical for Italy in general), and we just got to watch the ferries come and go).

Eventually, we moved to the 10 steps to go to the cafe for lunch. We had the gorgeous salami sandwiches with cocktails (because, we like to be “On the Spritz”).

You can also check out the monastery or do a little hike while you’re there. It’s just one of those places that is quite unique and not something you find many other places in the world. If you’ve got time, do yourself a favour and check it out (also go early, so you can pick the best spot).

Getting Around - Ferries, Buses and Walking the Peninsula

Ferries
There is a ferry that operates every hour or so (timetable) depending on the time of the year. It’s the most expensive form of public transport here (about 15 Euro if you do a round trip per person), but I’d say it’s also worth doing at least once. Line 1 goes from Rapallo to Santa Margherita, Portofino and then San Frutuoso and back again. You can purchase your ticket from the ticket office 5 minutes before it departs (I’d take a picture of the ferry timetable on your phone, so you don’t miss the last boat).

Buses
This is cheap and also just as easy. It’s definitely easier if you pre-purchase your tickets for these at the ticket booths near the stops - and then you just activate that ticket in the machine once you’re on board. Typically the bus drivers don’t check, but ticket inspectors do randomly hop on buses to do inspections - and you don’t want to be caught out not having logged your trip.

Walking
You can walk between Santa Margherita and Portofino. It’s probably the only two towns in this little peninsula I’d walk between (the others are just a bit too long, unless you’re into hiking). It takes about an hour to go between Portofino and Santa, but the benefit is that there’s some beautiful little hidden coves and beaches you can stop at along the way. One thing to note though, is that in some sections, there isn’t a dedicated path for pedestrians and you will be forced to walk around parked cars and onto the roads at some points. In saying that, it’s not as scary as it sounds and heaps of people do it daily. You won’t be the only one.