Genoa Holidays

Holidays in Genoa take you to a place where history effortlessly melts into a modern and dynamic cityscape. Perfect for a couple’s holiday, the mid-sized Ligurian capital offers stunning sights, a maze of winding cobblestone paths and family owned hotels and restaurants where visitors are greeted with gregarious Italian hospitality. History buffs will marvel at Genoa’s Doge’s Palace and imagine life in the days of Columbus. Families will find countless fun things to do, from visiting the largest aquarium in Italy to tasting their way through dozens of superb gelaterias dotted throughout the city.

For the casual visitor, city breaks in Genoa are mainly about history and the magnificent architecture, which is so ubiquitous in its splendour that it becomes part of the scenery. But dig a little further beneath the surface and you will find hidden delights such as hole in the wall cocktail bars, forgotten sleepy churches where no tourists set foot and residential areas where you can watch the real, unpolished Genovese life roll by.

Explore Genoa like no other

At Citalia we’re the leading specialist for holidays in Italy. We have almost 90 years of expertise and will help you to create a city break in Genoa like no other.

Find the hidden gems with Citalia, including the Bocadasse neighbourhood. An hour away from Genoa’s city centre along a coastal walk, this old fishing village is a photographer’s heaven. Most scenic is the tiny harbour, where colourful houses stacked like building blocks overlook the Mediterranean which gently laps the pebbly beach directly below them.

If the sea breeze doesn’t provide enough cooling on a hot summer day, try to make it to the Villetta Di Negro; a beautiful park with artificial caves and a gorgeous, multi stair waterfall. If you make it to the very top up the winding paths, you are well rewarded with a panoramic view of the city.

If you’re visiting Genoa in October, make sure to experience the Rolli Days. On this annual occasion, the city opens the gates to the palaces which line the Via Garibaldi, a UNESCO World Heritage site.  Each year, one or two new palaces join the open door policy, delighting visitors with their Baroque and Renaissance splendour.

Starting out at the Palazzo di San Giorgio, you can marvel at its exterior frescoes and picture Marco Polo, its most famous resident, dictating his memoirs. A few minutes from there you pass through the heart of Genoa - the central Piazza De Ferrari with its giant water fountain, flanked by the opera and Doge’s Palace

From there it’s a short walk to the must see Via Garibaldi, which is the cobblestoned cultural artery of the city. You can take a break from palaces by climbing a steep hill to the Castelletto, a residential area with fabulous views over Genoa. Grab a gelato on your way back down and catch a cab to the harbour where Italy’s biggest aquarium waits for you.

Expand your horizons beyond the city and take the train to Riomaggiore, the jump off point for a tour of Cinque Terre, a portion of the Ligurian coast where you’ll find colourful villages perched precariously on steep cliffs. Hire a car or just hop from town to town using the local train. Each of the five villages has its own special charm, and it’s worth seeing them all.