We’ve travelled along the Italian Riviera to find the most desired stops and local hideouts.  For specialty insider knowledge, we worked with luxury travel consultant, Merrion Charles, to plan our bespoke itinerary along the Ligurian coast. We began in the historic port-side town of Genoa travelling South towards Camogli, Portofino, Monterosso, Corniglia and finally, Manarola.

Merrion’s profound knowledge and experience of planning trips in the region ensured we discovered the favoured local spots and touristy must-dos. Merrion says,

“Rich and colourful Liguria is steeped in history (from Genova where banking first began to the Gulf of Poets frequented by the likes of Byron, Shelley & DHLawrence), colourful dramatically perched coastal towns, enviable Tyrennhian crystal clear sea, and the home of delicious, traditional dishes & wines including focaccia, pesto, cappon magro, Cinque Terre Sciacchetrà and Gulf of Tuglio Pigato. For those who enjoy coastal hikes then there is a plethora of choice and a private boat exploring the many hidden coves and beaches is simply magical not forgetting ‘dropping in’ to the much loved and photographed towns of Portofino, Portovenere, Camogli and Santa Margherita to name just a few.”

We discovered the Italian Riviera by car – flying into Nice and hiring a car enabled us to drive through the magnificent mountain terrain which sweeps through the French-Italian border provinces of Monaco, Menton and into the Italian seaside town of San Remo. The Italian Riviera is around 218 miles long, crossing through four Ligurian provinces and their capitals Genoa, Savona, Imperia and La Spezia.

Explore the Italian Riviera with JOSHUA’s: