Italy is the lucky country, where whichever direction you go after a short drive you can meet the sea with the sandy shore. Here you can read some useful information about one of the most popular stripes of sand in Italy, some 130 km long Riviera Adriatica.
Baia Flaminia near Pesaro
From the North the stretch borders with Pianura Padana, the delta of river Po, the largest river in Italy.
Here, in the neighbourhood of Ravenna lies 35 long strip of white sand with well developed beaches. The most popular is Punta Marina di Ravenna, a crowded and lively place both during the day and the night. Somehow quieter places are beaches at Marina Romea, Casalborsetti and Porto Corsini with the hut where Garibaldi was hiding during his fight for Italian independence.
Regular bus line connects Marina di Ravenna with Ravenna, the ancient town, once the capital of Western Roman Empire at the time of decline of Rome.
Due to its location, however it fell under Constantinople influence and today is one of the best places to see the early Christian mosaics both Roman and Byzantine dating back to the 6th century.
Ravenna is also the town with many of Renaissance history, including house of Dante, in which he spent the last years of his life.
But the real heart of Adriatic Riviera is Rimini, a shorter strip, some 15 km long, but with endless line of beach umbrellas, restaurants and clubs. Relatively unknown earlier, it became popular only after the World War II in large part due to the early movies by Frederico Fellini, who was born and grown there. Today Rimini is the resort chosen by many Italians and foreigners, who came here regulary year after year, so in spite of large number of hotels ( over 1000 ) it may be difficult to find a room during the Summer season.
Rimini features the history starting from a Roman colony, through Medieval rule of malicious Malatesta family, but it’s monuments are somehow faded in the shade of Adriatic sun, tempting to use the pristine beaches. The Rimini area ends with small resorts at Miramare and Riccione.
One can say that the Riviera’s nightlife ends with Riccione, further, the shore between Cattolica and Pesaro is incorporated with Natural Park of Monte San Bartolo. (this is also the beginning of another region – Marche).
The panoramic views of the shore with green slopes of Monte San Bartolo can be admired from one of the tourist boats, that start from Gabicce Mare and Baia Valluoga.
Going deeper into the land the tourist can visit medieval town Rocca di Gradara and tiny country Republic of San Marino, known only for stamp collectors and the lovers of good drinks, which are much cheaper in San Marino.
[photo courtesy of greenmarlin]
