Viareggio Beach Resort in Tuscany

The first place that you could start on your Tuscany tour is to travel from Pisa to the nearest beach resort of Viareggio, which is at a distance of about 20 km from the Pisa airport and about 80 km from Florence. The drive might take about 30 to 40 minutes. Viareggio is connected by train that runs from Genoa to Rome, along the coast. It is also very near to the A12 autostrada running along the coast up to the French border. The Riviera Versilia resort town of Viareggio is internationally known as the ‘Pearl of the Tyrrhenian Sea’. The coastal line of Viareggio extends for about 10 km. More than two thirds area of this scenic beach is managed by private hotels and resorts.

The beach shelves gradually into the sea and the beach is dotted with a promenade containing, cafes, galleries, entertainment areas, and shops. As such, Viareggio is a perfect family holiday resort in Italy. Beach chairs, umbrella, and changing room facilities could be obtained for a price. For those who wish to enjoy life, the nightlife facilities are also plentiful in this town. For gourmets, this town offers an excellent choice of variety of restaurants that offer enticing seafood. If you like to explore nature, you could hire a motorbike and ride into the nearby hills. The medieval villages would keep you captivated with their old-world charm. Sailing on the Torre del Lago Lake is another exciting diversion in this charming town.

Moreover, the town is quite famous for the top carnevale festivals or mardi gras for people who love musical entertainment. It is estimated that this town attracts at least a million tourists in the month of February alone due to this carnival. For three Sundays before the carnevale, elaborate parades are held along the promenade at the seafront. Similar parades are held on Shrove Tuesday, the day of the carnevale, and the next Sunday also. Music, theater, masked balls, and other entertainment events mark this carnival. The town even possesses a carnival museum that contains an exhibition of masks, floats, carnival postcards, and other carnevale related memorabilia. Admission is free and the museum is open on Saturdays and Sundays.


Apart from the carnevale, other festivals conducted in Viareggio in summer include the Cittadella Jazz and More. This is a concerts festival conducted from the middle of June up to the middle of August. Near the town, at Torre di Lago Puccini, the Puccini Opera Festival is held in summer. You could also enjoy the leisurely Puccini opera in open-air theatre atmosphere at times here, since such operas are conducted from time to time.

Other places of interest in the town of Viareggio include the large pinewood park called Pineta di Ponente, which is near the beach. You could take a leisurely walk in this park to escape from the hot sun. One town square had been named after the poet Shelley, known as Piazza Shelley, in memory of the poet who drowned off the coast in the nearby area in 1822. Very near Piazza Shelley is Villa Paolina, which had been named in the memory of Napoleon’s sister. This villa is one the many art nouveau villas in Viareggio.

Anna is an exeperienced travel agent from Tuscany providing tips and tricks to travellers to book Bed and Breakfast in Firenze as well as in all the major cities in Tuscany