Liguria

A narrow strip of coast where the sea is always the answer.

Liguria is one of those places that works on you gradually. The first time, you notice the colours — the stacked villages, the boats, the particular shade of blue the sea goes on a clear afternoon. The second time, you start thinking about what it might be like to actually live here. By the third, you're looking at property listings.

The coastline alternates between small fishing harbours, rocky coves and the occasional stretch of open beach, with steep wooded hills dropping almost directly into the water. Walking paths cut along the clifftops, connecting villages that would otherwise only be reachable by boat or winding road. In spring and autumn — when the summer crowds have gone — these paths are quiet and extraordinary.

The food is unpretentious and very good. Pesto, made with the local basil that only seems to taste right here, is the obvious entry point — but there's also farinata fresh from the wood oven, focaccia still warm from the bakery at seven in the morning, and fish that arrived this morning. The wine is light and coastal, the kind you drink with a view of the sea without overthinking it.

The climate is the other thing. More than 300 days of sun a year, mild winters, warm evenings from April through to October. People garden in January. They swim into November. Once you've spent a winter here, the grey skies of the north feel like a different life entirely.

Rocky coastline & covesCliff-top walking routesSea swimming & kayaking300+ sunny daysPesto & focaccia country