Theme Week Liguria

Monday, 24 March 2025 - 12:00 pm (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination:
Category/Kategorie: General, Bon voyage, Theme Weeks
Reading Time:  7 minutes

Portofino © Pierre-Selim Huard/cc-by-4.0

Portofino © Pierre-Selim Huard/cc-by-4.0

Liguria (Ligurian: Ligûria) is a region of north-western Italy; its capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennines mountain range and is roughly coextensive with the former territory of the Republic of Genoa. Liguria is bordered by France (Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur) to the west, Piedmont to the north, and Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany to the east. It rests on the Ligurian Sea, and has a population of 1,557,533. The region is part of the Alps–Mediterranean Euroregion.

Liguria has many small and picturesque villages, 20 of them have been selected by I Borghi più belli d’Italia (English: “The most beautiful Villages of Italy”), a non-profit private association of small Italian towns of strong historical and artistic interest, that was founded on the initiative of the Tourism Council of the National Association of Italian Municipalities.

Liguria is the original source of pesto, one of the most popular sauces in Italian cuisine, made with fresh basil, pine kernels, olive oil, garlic and Parmesan cheese. Seafood is a major staple of Mediterranean cuisine, the Ligurian variety being no exception, as the sea has been part of the region’s culture since its beginning. Ciuppin soup is made from fish leftovers and stale bread, flavoured with white wine, onion, and garlic. Vegetables, especially beans, are important in Ligurian cooking. Mesciua soup is made from beans, olive oil and farro (old kinds of wheat including emmer). The Badalucco, conio and pigna beans are a Slow Food Presidium. Ligurian pasta includes trenette and trofie, and the fresh pasta pockets called pansòuti.

Liguria is an Italian wine region located in the northwest region of Italy along the Italian Riviera. It is bordered by the Piedmont wine region to the north, the Alps and French wine region of Provence to the west, the Apennine Mountains and the Emilia-Romagna wine region to the east with a small border shared with Tuscany in the south-east along the Ligurian Sea. Liguria has several Denominazione di origine controllata regions with the most notable being the Cinque Terre DOC from cliff side vineyards situated among the five fishing villages of Cinque Terre in the province of La Spezia. The DOC produces light white wines made from grape varieties such as Bosco, Albarola and Vermentino. In the west is the red wine-producing region of Dolceacqua, producing wine from the indigenous Rossese grape (Liguria wine).

Alassio © Davide Papalini/cc-by-sa-3.0 Port of Genoa © flickr.com - dronepicr/cc-by-2.0 La Spezia © Zucchero82/cc-by-sa-4.0 Porto Maurizio, a borough of Imperia © Ivan Dalmonte Portofino © Pierre-Selim Huard/cc-by-4.0 Savona © Roberta Salamone/cc-by-3.0
<
>
Porto Maurizio, a borough of Imperia © Ivan Dalmonte
The Italian Riviera or Ligurian Riviera is the narrow coastal strip in Italy which lies between the Ligurian Sea and the mountain chain formed by the Maritime Alps and the Apennines. Longitudinally it extends from the border with France and the French Riviera (or Côte d’Azur) near Ventimiglia (a former customs post) eastwards to Capo Corvo (also known as Punta Bianca) which marks the eastern end of the Gulf of La Spezia and is close to the regional border between Liguria and Tuscany. The Italian Riviera thus includes nearly all of the coastline of Liguria. Historically the “Riviera” extended further to the west, through what is now French territory as far as Marseille.

The Italian Riviera crosses all four Ligurian provinces and their capitals Genoa, Savona, Imperia and La Spezia, with a total length of about 350 km (218 miles). It is customarily divided into a western section, the Ponente Riviera, and an eastern section, the Levante Riviera, the point of division being the apex of the Ligurian arc at Voltri. It has about 1.6 million inhabitants, and most of the population is concentrated within the coastal area. Its mild climate draws an active tourist trade in the numerous coastal resorts, which include Alassio, Bonassola, Bordighera, Camogli, Cinque Terre, Lerici, Levanto, Noli, Portofino, Porto Venere, Santa Margherita Ligure, Sanremo, San Fruttuoso, and Sestri Levante. It is also known for its historical association with international celebrity and artistic visitors; writers and poets like Percy Bysshe Shelley, Lord Byron, Ezra Pound, and Ernest Hemingway were inspired by the beauty and spirit of Liguria.

As a tourist centre, the Italian Riviera benefits from over 300 days of sunshine per year, and is known for its beaches, colourfully painted towns, natural environment, food, and luxury villas and hotels, as well as for its popular resort facilities, major yachting and cruising areas with several marinas, festivals, golf courses, sailing, rock climbing and scenic views of centuries old farmhouses and cottages.

Industries are concentrated in and around Genoa, Savona, and along the shores of the Gulf of La Spezia. Genoa and La Spezia are Italy’s leading shipyards; La Spezia is Italy’s major naval base, and Savona is a major centre of the Italian iron industry. Chemical, textile, and food industries are also important. A number of streets and palaces in the center of Genoa and the Cinque Terre National Park (which includes Cinque Terre, Portovenere, and the islands Palmaria, Tino and Tinetto) are two of Italy’s 58 World Heritage Sites.

The Riviera’s centre is Genoa, which divides it into two main sections: the Riviera di Ponente (“the coast of the setting sun”), extending westwards from Genoa to the French border; and the Riviera di Levante (“the coast of the rising sun”) between Genoa and Capo Corvo. It is known for its mild climate and its reputation for a relaxed way of life, old fishing ports, and landscapes. It has been a popular destination for travellers and tourists since the time of Byron and Percy Shelley.

Here you can find the complete Overview of all Theme Weeks.

Read more on Cuisine of Liguria, Wikivoyage Liguria and Wikipedia Liguria. Learn more about the use of photos. To inform you about latest news most of the city, town or tourism websites offer a newsletter service and/or operate Facebook pages/Twitter accounts. In addition more and more destinations, tourist organizations and cultural institutions offer Apps for your Smart Phone or Tablet, to provide you with a mobile tourist guide (Smart Traveler App by U.S. Department of State - Weather report by weather.com - Global Passport Power Rank - Travel Risk Map - Democracy Index - GDP according to IMF, UN, and World Bank - Global Competitiveness Report - Corruption Perceptions Index - Press Freedom Index - World Justice Project - Rule of Law Index - UN Human Development Index - Global Peace Index - Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index). If you have a suggestion, critique, review or comment to this blog entry, we are looking forward to receive your e-mail at comment@wingsch.net. Please name the headline of the blog post to which your e-mail refers to in the subject line.




Recommended posts:

Share this post: (Please note data protection regulations before using buttons)

Palma Cathedral

Palma Cathedral

[caption id="attachment_236309" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Interior © José Luis Filpo Cabana/cc-by-3.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]The Cathedral of Santa Maria of Palma (Cathedral of St. Mary of Palma), more commonly referred to...

[ read more ]

Theme Week Moldova - Soroca

Theme Week Moldova - Soroca

[caption id="attachment_215125" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Soroca Fort © Photobank MD[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Soroca is a city and municipality in Moldova, situated on the Dniester river about 160 km north of Chișinău. It i...

[ read more ]

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City

[caption id="attachment_232491" align="aligncenter" width="590"] David H. Koch Theater (left), Metropolitan Opera House (front), and David Geffen Hall (right)© flickr.com - Ajay Suresh/cc-by-2.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Lincoln Cent...

[ read more ]

Theme Week Scottish Borders - Peebles

Theme Week Scottish Borders - Peebles

[caption id="attachment_191823" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Tweed Bridge © Kjetil Bjørnsrud/cc-by-2.5[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Peebles is a royal burgh in Peeblesshire, of which it is the county town, within the Scottish Borde...

[ read more ]

Ludwigsburg on the Neckar

Ludwigsburg on the Neckar

[caption id="attachment_154382" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Ludwigsburg Residential Palace © Mussklprozz/cc-by-sa-3.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Ludwigsburg is a city in Baden-Württemberg, about 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) north of S...

[ read more ]

Theme Week Moscow, the third Rome

Theme Week Moscow, the third Rome

[caption id="attachment_154160" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Bolshoy Kamenny Bridge, Kremlin in the background © Ikar.us[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subje...

[ read more ]

The hotel ship Barken Viking

The hotel ship Barken Viking

[caption id="attachment_150798" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Barken Viking © Pär Henning[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]The Viking (better known by the ship type as a prefix, Barken Viking) is a four-masted steel barque, built in 190...

[ read more ]

Hever Castle in Kent

Hever Castle in Kent

[caption id="attachment_192336" align="aligncenter" width="590"] © Nessy-Pic/cc-by-sa-4.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Hever Castle is located in the village of Hever, Kent, near Edenbridge, 30 miles (48 km) south-east of London. It beg...

[ read more ]

With the Train des Pignes from Nice to Digne-les-Bains

With the Train des Pignes from Nice to Digne-les-Bains

[caption id="attachment_161278" align="aligncenter" width="556"] Route map © Chemins de Fer de Provence[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]This 1-meter gauge railway runs between Nice and Digne-les-Bains, 151 km, and takes about three hours. ...

[ read more ]

German Unity Day

German Unity Day

[caption id="attachment_2486" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Tag der Deutschen Einheit 2011 © bonn.de"][/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]For 28 years, the Berlin Wall cemented the political division of Germany and Europe. It becam...

[ read more ]

Casa Casuarina in Miami Beach

Casa Casuarina in Miami Beach

[caption id="attachment_247040" align="aligncenter" width="590"] © Vadelmavene/cc-by-sa-4.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Casa Casuarina, also known as the Versace Mansion, is an American property built in 1930, renowned for being owned ...

[ read more ]

Theme Week Tunisia

Theme Week Tunisia

[caption id="attachment_168254" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Beach in Hammamet © Faresbenrayana/cc-by-sa-4.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Tunisia is a country in North Africa, covering 165,000 square kilometres (64,000 square miles)...

[ read more ]

Return to TopReturn to Top