Italian Riviera Cities & Towns: Top 10 Places to Visit (Ligurian Riviera)

» Where is the Italian Riviera?

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The Italian Riviera (also called Ligurian Riviera) is a coastal strip in Italy found between the Ligurian Sea and the towering mountains of the Maritime Alps and the Apennines. It primarily crosses all four (4) of the Ligurian provinces and their capitals namely, Geona, Imperia, La Spezia, and Savona, spanning a total length of about 350 kilometers.

» Best way to go around the Italian Riviera?

As such, the Italian Riviera encompasses all of Liguria’s coastline and it is said to be divided into 2 parts: from the western side of Genoa called ‘Riviera di Ponente‘ (bordering the French Riviera) and the eastern side called ‘Riviera di Levante’ (includes Cinque Terre and bordering Tuscany). By bus. Bus service is frequent along the Riviera but only for short distances such as that of places like Portofino, Portovenere, and Lerici. (You can see all bus schedules on Google Maps or Rome2Rio apps).
By car. If you want to see more of the Italian Riviera cities or little towns, then traveling by car would be ideal — especially if you are staying inland. It will even save you from going through the trouble of sorting out train and ferry schedules; so in case you don’t have your own, renting a car is easy and hassle-free if you do it with Hertz, a highly-recognized and trusted rental company worldwide. I actually had the chance to try them out and it was a joy to explore the coast with their help!
To jumpstart your holiday, there are surely a number of places that you can visit but if you’re pressed on time, below are the top 10 Italian Riviera cities or towns that you must see!
By ferry. Depending on the season, there are ferry lines that run from major cities to smaller Riviera towns but take note that they are mainly intended for day-trippers and are not so useful if you want to do point-to-point journeys.
By train. If, however, you plan to explore places like Cinque Terre or are staying in places near the coastal train line, it will make more sense to use the public trains. After all, the train lines serve almost all major tourist destinations on the Riviera and you can navigate your way through them easily with Google Maps or Rome2Rio apps.

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