Hotel in La Spezia

“The Gulf of Spezia is the most beautiful in the world” Napoleon Bonaparte.

Territory of La Spezia:

Not only poets but also a General like Bonaparte much appreciated the beauty of the Gulf of La Spezia, also renowned as the Gulf of Poets. Not far from Tuscany La Spezia rises in the centre of a deep natural gulf.

Partly situated in the national park of the Cinque Terre together with the area of Tramonti and the surrounding hills it offers unique views.

The town itself rises on a strip of land between the sea and the mountains is quite particular in that it branches out into hilly districts and the Port area was once marshland.

The gulf which shelters the town extends to about 150 hectares and is closed by a 2.210 metre dam. The inlet of the gulf is 4,6kms deep and 3,2kms wide.

Thanks to the length and space La Spezia enjoys a warm temperate climate of the mediteranean type, and because of its form one of the largest arsenals of the Italian navy was built here. Through the years La Spezia has become one of the major merchantile ports in the Mediteranean Sea.

Cultural La Spezia:

The following site offers information on the numerous museums in La Spezia with descriptions and maps:
http://www.museionline.info/component/search/?searchword=la+spezia&ordering=newest&searchphrase=all

The Ubaldo Formentini Civic Museum of Archeology:http://museodelcastello.spezianet.it

Theatre tickets are available on the following site:
http://www.vivaticket.it/index.php?nvpg%5Bricerca%5D&cerca=1&ocode=211&SiteVersion=1

Sports and Excursions in La Spezia:

There are numerous possibilities to practise sports in La Spezia: football grounds, tennis courts, volleyball courts,, sailing and surfing.

In addition to the above-mentioned sports there are also itineraries for cross-country motor biking, mountain biking, cycling and excursions on foot, for further information visit:
http://it.wikiloc.com/percorsi/outdoor/italia/liguria/la-spezia

On the following link you can find detailed information on suggested itineraries and some photos:
http://www.parconazionale5terre.it

Events in La Spezia:

• There are two main historic events in La Spezia; The Fair of San Giuseppe and the Feast of the Sea.
• The Fair of San Giuseppe takes place every year on 19 March and lasts three days.
• The Feast of the Sea takes place every year on the first Sunday of August during the period of the inter-district boat race. The day before there is a parade in costume. The whole event ends in a firework display.
• The "Pop Eye Festival", a musical event which has seen great names like Patti Smith, Lou Reed and Afterhours just to name a few. It takes place the first Sunday of each month except July and August.

Cuisine:

Focaccia, pesto, farinata di ceci(chickpea), i fiori di zucca ripieni(stuffed zuccini flowers) and the typical vegetable pies are all typical recipes of La Spezia and all of Liguria.

In addition there are the famous sgabei and testaroli ( similar to fried bread and ravioli) which are typical of this area of Liguria.

The real gastronomic tradition is the olive oil and the black peper which are the base of many traditional dishes among which are : the vegetable and cereal soup.

Another speciality is the “muscoli” (stuffed mussels).