Tellaro

Once per year, if not once per trip, I like to reward myself with a little getaway. These are typically weekend beach getaways to grant myself a little relaxation time in between all of the garden and house chores. Last spring it was a full week exploring Puglia, an area of the country I have never experienced before I will write a specific post about Puglia, as it deserves that and more). This weekend, Mother’s Day, I am treating myself to a long weekend in Tellaro, Italy.

After climbing tons of stairs (the vertical up and down reminded me of Positano) and exploring this morning, then spending an extremely relaxing afternoon on a lounge chair staring at the sea, I felt inspired to write a little and share this lovely little piece of paradise while I cool off.

I am not 100% certain how I discovered Tellaro, I think from a FB post where someone was commenting on how expensive and crowded Viareggio is and how much more they prefer Tellaro. I had been considering Viareggio for my getaway but after researching, I knew Tellaro was the place for me.

Tellaro is a village along the Gulf of La Spezia, along the Ligurian Coast (you can see it on the map below). It is often referred to as the Poet’s Gulf (Golfo dei Poeti) because many literary giants, such as Lord Byron and D.H. Lawrence called this place home. I liked it because the more I researched, the more I learned that very few tourists / travelers have ever heard of it. It hasn’t been named one of Italy’s Most Beautiful Villages, it’s not frequented by Insta Influencers, it is literally a small, quiet village with breathtaking character and water views.

HINT: Get here before it gets discovered! Once Rick Steves started writing about a place, it gets overrun with tourists. Fortunately it took a long time for Le Cinque Terre, that coupled with the fact that they started allowing cars and tour buses in, it’s unbearable. He recently wrote about Sestri Levanti, another beautiful beach vacation getaway, describing it as similar to Le Cinque Terre but without the crowds. I went last year before Steve’s post and loved it! But now I tell my friends GO ASAP before it gets ruined.

As you can see from the photos, it does resemble the villages in Le Cinque Terre, but without the HOARDS of tourists. Amen!

The Legend of the Octopus!

Legend has it that in 1660 a Saracen pirate named Gallo d’Arenzano wanted to conquer the town. He chose a night of bad weather with fog and thunderstorms. Back then, the bell tower of Saint George church was used to alarm the town in case of danger. But the night of the pirate’s attack, the guardian of the bell tower fell asleep. When the pirates began to disembark their ship, the bell started to ring anyway, waking all of the inhabitants so they could defend their town. Tellaro was saved! The townspeople later discovered that it was a giant octopus that warned everyone by climbing up the church tower from the sea and ringing the bells. Since that day, the octopus is the symbol of Tellaro.

It is still very much a village and not a big town. There are a few shops and restaurants, but it’s not a place to come if you are looking for a lot of things to do. Come, relax, eat some amazing food, get a million steps in walking up and down from town to beach, and just enjoy the quaintness and peace. You can rent boats and kayaks, there is also another beach nearby where you can rent paddle boards, and there are hiking trails all around. But for me, I burn a gazilion caleries when I have to weedwack and mow all of the garden so just relaxing and reading my book all afternoon after getting my morning walk / hike in is the perfect experience.

The Saint George church was built in the XVI century along the rocky shoreline. You can litereally hear the sea crashing into the rocks below when you are inside.

I am staying at Hotel Nido, just about a 2 min walk up the road from the new town of Tellaro and about a 5 min walk from the old town and the sea. I have attached a few pics of the hotel and the view along the walk. The pic below shows the hotel on the left and their apartments & parking on the right. Right now, all of the jasmine is in full bloom and the entire town smells magical.

If you are here for longer than a few days and are itching to explore elsewhere, the town of Montemarcello is very close by. I took a picture of it from the road as I was driving down into Tellaro. YES, I AM that person who sees a view, turns around, finds a safe space to park and snap a few pics. A picture is worth a thousand words! Fair warning, it was named as one of the Most Beautiful Villages of Italy in 2006.

A little further out is the town of Camogli, which is on the Gulf of Paradise on the Italian Riviera di Levante. (So closer to Sestri Levanti). From my research and the pictures, this place is beautiful but it’s not on my visit list this trip.

Enjoy some more of Tellaro!