Cinque Terre
Villages wrested from the sea along one of Liguria's most dramatically jagged stretches of coastline: these are the Cinque Terre, one of Italy's top attractions.
When you hear La Spezia mentioned, its port is the first thing that springs to mind. It’s almost a conditioned reflex, an instinctive reaction: there’s no La Spezia without its port.
And it’s true – the port has profoundly shaped the history and identity of this Ligurian city nestled in the centre of a spacious gulf. Yet La Spezia (or simply Spezia to its residents) is far more than just a departure point for a trip to Cinque Terre or a Mediterranean cruise.
It’s a city worth visiting for its fascinating, well-maintained museums, the characterful alleyways of its historic centre, leisurely walks beneath the shade of palm trees, elegant Art Nouveau staircases, a wonderfully vibrant market and striking panoramic views. Inevitably, maritime-themed attractions are the most famous and visited, but there’s plenty here too for art and history enthusiasts.
Many travellers still dismiss it as a dreary, run-down port city, but in recent years La Spezia has undergone a remarkable transformation with significant restoration and urban regeneration projects. Perhaps it’s time to give it a proper look.
La Spezia’s attractions are scattered among the caruggi (the characteristic narrow alleyways of the historic centre) and the waterfront area. Between museums and charming corners, you could easily fill an entire day.
Although Via del Prione, the main street through La Spezia’s centre, isn’t perfectly straight, it’s famous as the Carugio Drito (the Straight Alley).
It’s one of the city’s oldest streets and certainly its liveliest, packed with shops and busy bars. You can stroll along admiring splendid nobleman’s palaces and the Civic Theatre, or do as the locals do – shop and relax over a coffee at one of the outdoor tables.
You can’t say you’ve visited La Spezia without spending some time at the waterfront, the nerve centre of the commercial activity and exchange that made the city’s fortune and is now a popular meeting spot.
Don’t expect a dreary, characterless port zone: the walk along the waterfront from the Italia Pier (on whose point stands the famous red lighthouse) to the new marina is thoroughly pleasant.
The Costantino Morin Promenade, which runs alongside the wharf in the port area, is a pedestrian path lined with palm trees and dotted with benches where you can sit and watch boats and no shortage of luxury yachts.
The Thaon di Revel Bridge is the symbol of the new La Spezia: a 150-metre pedestrian bridge built in steel, concrete and wood that connects the Morin promenade to the Mirabella tourist marina. From the bridge you can enjoy a sweeping view of the port area.
In a region boasting numerous maritime-themed attractions, La Spezia stands out for housing in its historic centre Italy’s greatest naval museum and one of the world’s oldest. The current building beside the Arsenal gate was inaugurated on 12 May 1958, though the museum’s original core dates back to the late eighteenth century.
Now curated by the Italian Navy, the La Spezia Naval Technical Museum displays artefacts, historical documents and memorabilia from the navies that existed before Italian unification, the Royal Navy and today’s Italian Navy. You can see scale models of vessels used around the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, a collection of original figureheads from the fifteenth to seventeenth centuries, ancient weapons, underwater weapons and diving suits.
The exhibition is organised into four sections (Origins, Craftsmanship, Men Enterprises Heroes, Technology and Excellence) and offers a fascinating insight into the relationship between the navy and La Spezia, as well as the constant technological advancement of navigation tools and equipment that enabled exploration and scientific research above and below the seas.
San Giorgio Castle in La Spezia is a defensive fortress standing atop a small hill known as Il Poggio. Its origins are uncertain, though the fortress is mentioned in historical documents from the fourteenth century; its current appearance is due to work carried out in the seventeenth century.
It now houses the La Spezia Civic Museum, founded in 1873 and relocated here in 2000 following the castle’s restoration; the museum is named after Ubaldo Formentini, who was its director for over thirty years.
On display are historical artefacts from prehistoric times through the Middle Ages found in the area.
That La Spezia is a modern, dynamic city is demonstrated by local authorities’ commitment to a space entirely dedicated to twentieth-century artists and movements and contemporary artistic developments.
Inaugurated on 23 May 2004, the CAMeC – Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in La Spezia occupies the former courthouse building (originally used as an all-girls primary school) and spans three floors and two terraces. It hosts a permanent exhibition and important temporary shows, giving space to young artists as well.
La Spezia’s other civic museum is named after Amedeo Lia, a collector who amassed and donated to the city more than 1,200 works from classical times through the eighteenth century.
The Amedeo Lia Civic Museum is housed in the San Francesco di Paola convent complex, built in the seventeenth century, and comprises 13 rooms spread across two levels.
On display are paintings (including works by Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese, Canaletto and Gentile Bellini), furnishings, miniatures, sacred art and much more.
As you walk around La Spezia’s centre, you’ll come across the famous staircases that connect the waterfront to the upper parts of the city. They’re lovely vantage points from which to observe characteristic views, but they’re worth a look in themselves for their elegant Art Nouveau architecture.
The most famous are the Cernaia Staircase8, the San Giorgio Staircase9 and the Lazzaro Spallanzani Staircase10.
In the following map you can see the location of the main places of interest mentioned in this article.
There are no beaches in La Spezia: locals wanting a swim leave the city centre and head for the coastal resorts in the province. Just a few kilometres away, you’ll find dream spots where you can sunbathe and dive into blue waters.
Don’t expect vast stretches of sand – the beaches here are often tiny coves or little more than clusters of rocks to compete for with crowds. That’s the beauty of Liguria: finding your own little piece of paradise anywhere.
For many travellers, La Spezia is a stopover on the way to Cinque Terre and western Liguria, or a port to embark from. The city’s hotel offer therefore primarily caters to tourists spending a maximum of one or two nights and business travellers.
The former generally look for budget options, reserving a larger share of their holiday budget for other destinations: if you want to do the same, budget hotels near the station might suit you. For something nicer, choose from hotels, B&Bs and apartments in the centre.
Average accommodation prices in La Spezia are considerably lower than in Cinque Terre or famous seaside resorts, and the city is well connected to these destinations by trains and ferries. So consider staying here and making day trips to other places.
La Spezia province is Liguria’s easternmost province: the gateway to Cinque Terre, about 100 km from Genoa and just over 30 km from Massa, the nearest Tuscan province.
Getting to La Spezia by car is very easy since the city sits at the beginning of two major motorways: the A12, which connects it to Genoa and Livorno; and the A15, which reaches as far as Parma, linking the Ligurian coast with the heart of the Po Valley.
Train is also a very convenient way to reach La Spezia. The city lies on an important railway line with frequent regional and inter-regional services; there are direct trains to Genoa, Turin, Pisa, Milan and all the tourist attractions in the area.
Finally, consider arriving in La Spezia by ferry or using this means to travel from the city to tourist destinations. La Spezia is connected by sea to all the Cinque Terre villages (except Corniglia), Levanto, Lerici, Portovenere, Tellaro and Genoa. Bear in mind, however, that many services are seasonal.
There are no car ferries to La Spezia. The port comprises a commercial dock and a cruise terminal, but no car ferries depart from here.
What's the weather at La Spezia? Below are the temperatures and the weather forecast at La Spezia for the next few days.
La Spezia province is one of Liguria’s most visited because it’s home to some of the region’s most famous tourist attractions, all reachable from the provincial capital for a day trip.
For everyone, the top attraction is Cinque Terre, villages perched above the sea steeped in romance and charm that the world envies: from east to west we find Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia (the only inland village), Vernazza and Monterosso al Mare.
A nineteenth-century style of romance permeates Lerici and Portovenere, the leading resorts of the Gulf of Poets, an enchanting stretch of coast so named because it was much loved by writers and intellectuals, including English poets Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley.
Also not to be missed is Levanto, at the western edge of the province – an elegant town with lovely beaches nearby that’s also an excellent base for outdoor activities including hiking, mountain biking and climbing.
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