Liguria Travel Guide

Liguria - the Italian Riviera - is sandwiched between the French Riviera and the Tuscan Coast bounded to the north by the Piemontese Alps.

Best known for its string of glamorous resorts (Portofino, Cinque Terre) and picturesque fishing villages (Camogli), Liguria's destiny has always been closely connected to the sea.

Liguria gave the world pesto - a basil, garlic and pine nut sauce - invented by sailors to avoid scurvy. The regional capital, Genoa (City of Culture 2004), was the birthplace of Christopher Columbus and today is a major commercial port with a winding medieval centre and grand neoclassical palazzi.

Liguria's coastline is divided into the western Riviera di Ponente (Imperia, Savona) between San Remo and Genoa - famed for its roses, almond and citrus groves; and the eastern Riviera di Levante (Portofino and Cinque Terre) - a more rugged stretch of coast between Genoa and La Spezia.

Inland, chestnut forests, rugged mountains and ruined castles lure adventurous tourists away from the beaches.

Summers are hot (Aug 35°), winters are cool (under 10°C).