With miles and miles of coastline, and often-times, mountains coming right down to the sea, Italy has many beautiful beaches and picturesque seascapes.
Comparing the beaches in the Mediterranean with those of the Pacific, Caribean, Florida, etc: The water is generally cooler, and the sand is coarser. The Mediterranean water is also more salty, and sometimes the beaches can be rocky (including cliffs). But that doesn’t mean you can’t find a beautiful location to take a swim. In fact, there are many! You will find the Italian beaches most crowded in July and August.
Here are some of Italy’s best beaches (From North to South)
 |
Cinque Terre
Riomaggiore – very rocky beach with cliffs, etc. A 2 minute walk from town, east of the village, past the tunnel. It is quite an impressive beach.
Monterosso al Mare - westernmost of the Cinque Terre - reached by walking along the most difficult part of the "Sentiero Azzurro" footpath. However, the beach is just opposite the train station.
Northeast Italy Beaches
Rimini – Northeast coast of Italy, 200 miles south of Venice. Rimini beach is approximately 15km of sandy beach. Known as a spring break mecca for Europeans. Filled with nightlife, bars, café’s, etc.
Tuscany Beaches
Tuscan island of Giglio – visit the picturesque village of Giglio Porto, regular ferry service (1 hour trip) from Porto Santo Stefano.
Capalbio – a little off the beaten path, but well worth it. Frequented by many jet setters, VIP’s, politicians, etc.
Sardinia Island Beaches
Sardinia’s West Coast - La Costa Smeralda – Sardinian 5-star resort area – Bill Gates has a house here….not much more to say than that.
Alghero on the western coast of Sardinia - miles of lovely beaches: long, sandy and etched with cool fragrant pine trees.
Villasimius on the south-eastern tip of the Sardinian island, close to the capital of Cagliari, is also known for it's night-life.
Rome Beaches
Lido di Ostia – This is where many Romans will go when they want a short beach getaway. Many great restaurants, wide sandy beaches, shops, etc.
Terracina – about 1.5 hours Southwest of Rome, on the way to Naples. A long and fairly-wide beach with plenty of space. One of Italy’s best beaches on the mainland.
Amalfi Coast Beaches
quaint little villages, small beaches (not sandy), with beautiful cliffs, breathtakingly gorgeous seascapes and amazing beauty. Many Italian celebrities will be seen in this part of the country when they want to head to the beach. Positano and Amalfi are two of the more popular destinations.
Central (Adriatic coast)
Vieste Italy, a picturesque town on the Gargano Peninsula , the Adriatic side which offers plenty of sun and sand.
Calabria Beaches
Tropea / Capo Vaticano – crystal clear waters, and white sandy beaches. Not such a well known beach as the others.
Puglia
Otranto - picture-perfect blue waters, white buildings and diving rocks. Puglia is located on the southeastern coast of Italy on the Adriatic.
Sicily Beaches
Cefalu’ – about an hour east of Palermo, also a resort area, nice sandy beach, in a picturesque fishing village.
San Vito Lo Capo - located in a valley between spectacular mountains, on the north west coast of Sicily a couple hours west of Palermo.
Salina – one of the Aeolian islands, many Italian jetsetters will spend their summer here.
Lampedusa – Spiaggia dei Conigli or Rabbits beach (South side of island) - an island between Sicily and Africa, in the Mediterranean Sea (region: Sicily). Many experts agree Spiaggia dei Conigli is one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. Lampedusa is actually closer to Tunisia and Malta compared to Sicily.
With miles of beautiful coast-line, it is best to rent a car in Italy to see all of the beautiful beaches.
Pictured above is the beach in Cefalu', Sicily, about an hour east of Palermo.