Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Amendola family, with en suite rooms (ask for a sea view) that cost between
70
and
€
95; private bathrooms (but not en suite) go for
€
60 to
€
85. The
Amendolas' restaurant, on the ground floor, has an excellent reputation.
€
€€
But if you don't mind a 5-minute walk to the beach,
Affittacamere da
Roberto
(Via S. Bartolomeo, 27;
%
0185-774094; www.camogliroberto.it)
offers
two independent studio apartments located in the olive groves behind town.
Surrounded by trees, they offer a rural ambience (good for families), yet are min-
utes from the promenade action (
€
60-
€
80 double).
€€
-
€€€€
If you have a little more money to burn,
Hotel Casmona
(Salita
Pineto, 13;
%
0185-7700156; www.casmona.com),
in a 19th-century seafront
villa, enjoys the best location, right on Via Garibaldi, the seafront promenade.
Almost all rooms boast idyllic sea views and cost between
€
85 and
€
145,
depending on the season.
(Via Cuneo, 34;
%
0185-7241; www.cenobio.it)
is by far the best hotel in town, and, given what you get for your money elsewhere
on the promontory, it's a very good value. Once the country retreat of Genoa's
doges, it is perched above the sea at the edge of the village, with expansive views
looking back on Camogli and the entire coastline—a truly wonderful location,
with a range of rooms to suit your budget. Doubles cost from
55
Cenobio dei Dogi
€€€€
€
150 to
€
217.
€€
At lunchtime, head for Via Garibaldi (the seafront promenade), where
you'll find the most wonderful seafood restaurant in a tiny timber Swiss-style
chalet cantilevered over Camogli's pebble beach. With great sea views, old-
fashioned decor, and personal service (I drank the proprietor's Vermentino wine
recommendation, Il Monticello, for the duration of my most recent trip),
La Camogliese
(
%
0185-771086)
is a lunch experience that evokes a Riviera hol-
iday: a dreamy afternoon spent slurping up the most memorable seafood pasta.
Primi
are around
€
8.50,
coperto
€
2.10.
555
(
%
0185-773411)
Other top Camogli picks are
Ristorante Rosa
€€
(
%
0185-773595)
for seafood so fresh it's almost still moving (the owners have their own boat), and
La Cucina di Nonna Nina
555
for superb sea bass and great sea views, tiny
Da Paolo
(
%
0185-773835)
for traditional Ligurian cuisine.
The latter is
the
place for pesto and very popular with the locals—make sure you
book early or you'll end up in the plastic tent behind the actual restaurant. You'll
pay between
€
8 and
€
12 for
primi
at all three.
Hotels & Restaurants in Santa Margherita Ligure
€€
55
With a bustling, jet-set atmosphere, its bars and cafes buzzing with people
(and the streets with cars and scooters), Santa Margherita Ligure is more glam-
town than laid-back village. And it attracts the lion's share of tourists. Run by one
of Santa's many eccentric and gruff hoteliers, the Liberty-style
Hotel Villa Anita
(Viale Minerva, 25;
%
0185-286543; www.hotelvillaanita.com)
is my first choice
in this price category, and with a small playground and outdoor table tennis, it's
ideal for families. Conveniently located in a tranquil neighborhood a few minutes'
