Savoring Savona: A Fusion of Beach Bliss and Cultural Riches
The municipality of Savona is situated along the Western Ligurian Riviera at the meeting point of the Lavanestro and Letimbro streams. It is surrounded by a verdant hinterland and a collection of quaint beaches. All of these beaches have received the Blue Flag in recent years due to their clean waters.
Savona is a strategic location at the intersection of the A6 Savona-Turin and the Autostrada dei Fiori, which connects Genoa to Ventimiglia. This makes it an ideal starting point for anybody wishing to explore the Riviera delle Palme or head towards the adjacent French border. Reaching it and enjoying its welcome environment and sea wind is not difficult because of the many communication lines that pass by it. In terms of yearly passenger count, it ranks fourth in Italy and is a well-known cruise port.
Where to sleep in Savona
There are many different kinds of hotels in Savona, but they fill up fast in the summer. Our top pick is the B&B Hotel Savona, which has a lot of rooms and is situated in front of the expansive Fornaci beach. It’s a great place for people who want to stay a short distance from the ocean. It is an excellent option for people who wish to visit the city center because it has 300 MB/s of WIFI, paid parking that includes electric car charging stations, and a location close to the Priamar Fortress. To round out our list of amenities, we also provide SKY channels, Chromecast, a breakfast buffet, and a variety of lodging options.
What is the best time of the year to visit Savona?
Visitors are greeted with a wonderfully Mediterranean climate that features hot summers that are never stuffy and are constantly cooled by breezes, as well as sunny winters that frequently see temperatures that are distinctly closer to spring. The region only gets colder when the powerful, black Tramontana wind blows, bringing frost and occasionally even snow directly to the coast.
Normally, the Azores Anticyclone protects the area. But generally speaking, January is the coldest month, with an average minimum temperature of 5°C and an average maximum temperature of 12°C. The hottest months are July and August, with average values ranging from 21°C minimum to 29°C maximum. The rains occur more frequently in the spring and fall, lasting for a week or a month before virtually ceasing to fall in the summer.
Which Savona attractions are a must-see?
Savona has many beaches that are plowed by crystal-clear waves and brushed by the wind, in addition to an intriguing historic core that is brimming with treasures that are well worth exploring in terms of architecture and art.
Seeing the cathedral is definitely worthwhile. Constructed around the close of the sixteenth century, the cathedral experienced numerous changes throughout the succeeding years. Inside, there are some magnificent Renaissance statues and a number of smaller chapels, notably the Sistine Chapel, which was constructed by Pope Sixtus V della Rovere. The rich and majestic Baroque front was constructed in 1886.
After leaving the church, proceed towards the historic Via Paleocapa, the central thoroughfare that is crowded in the summer and covered by porticoes. En route, you will pass the Art Nouveau-styled Palazzo dei Pavoni from 1912 and, not far from there, the unfinished Palazzo della Rovere, which is currently the court’s seat and was designed by Sangallo for the Pope.
When you pause outside the palace and survey the area, the tops of many medieval towers come into view, the most notable of which is the Torre del Brandale, dating from the 12th century. As you proceed down the street, you come to the spacious Piazzale Eroe dei Due Mondi. At this point, the public garden of the city opens up, providing a breathtaking overview of the Ligurian coast and the remainder of Savona.
Priamar Fortress
If you look attentively, you may see the remnants of the historic Priamar Fortress, which was constructed between 1542 and 1543 on the site of a former Republic of Genoa suburb, at the summit of a neighboring hill. The Sandro Pertini Museum of Contemporary Art, the Renata Cuneo Museum, and the Archaeological Museum are now housed in the manor.
Civic Art Gallery
Lastly, the Civic Art Gallery is a fascinating place to see. It was established in the latter part of the 1800s in response to Napoleon’s abolition of religious organizations, and its primary goal was to preserve the artwork that the local convents possessed. Valuable pieces by Taddeo di Bartolo, Vincenzo Foppa, Giovanni Mazzone, and other seventeenth-century Genoese school paintings are still on display, together with an exquisite assortment of painted ceramics.
Celebrations, festivals, and fun things to do
Attending one of the many annual festivals or events conducted in Savona is a great way to get a deeper understanding of the city’s actual character. The Good Friday Procession, which takes place every two years and involves a procession of the so-called “casse” from the Cathedral to the Municipality Square, is highly treasured by the local community. The chests are priceless wooden figurines that are kept in the city oratories and are blessed this time around together with the attendees.
The San Bartolomeo Fair, which is held on September 10 and is devoted to agriculture and livestock, the Santa Lucia Fair, which is held on December 13 and is an evocative festival of markets that heralds the arrival of Christmas, and the Santa Rita Fair, which is held in May and features the sale of a variety of goods and, most importantly, traditional roses, are among the popular fairs.
What to visit around Savona?
Towns like Millesimo, which have a (singular) triangular-shaped medieval center and are well-known for their excellent local truffle, may be found in the hinterland between lush forests. Nestled amidst the verdant surroundings of Valbormida lies Altare, renowned for its artistic glass processing that is still produced today in the artisan workshops for glassblowing and engraving as well as in the furnaces of the Museum of Glass Art, housed inside Villa Rosa, a quintessential example of Liberty architecture. And then there are two cities combined into one, Albissola Marina and Albisola Superiore. They are distinguished by a “s,” but they are closely related to one another because of the art of ceramics, where polychrome masterpieces that are treasured worldwide are created.
How to get there
If you’re traveling by airline, Genoa airport, which is accessible to most major European cities and is located approximately 43 km from Savona, is where you land. By car, however, you can use the A10 Ventimiglia-Savona (Autostrada dei Fiori), the A10 Genoa-Savona, or the A6 Turin-Savona. The distance between the motorway toll booth and the city’s center, Piazza Mameli, is roughly 4 kilometers.