Explore Italy: Viareggio
Last updated November 3, 2024
Viareggio is an active town on the coast of Tuscany synonymous with beaches and Carnevale. This is the place to go for one of the largest Carnevale celebrations in Italy and beyond.
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Viareggio in a nutshell
Location: Tuscany
Best known for: Seaside access and beaches, Carnevale
Days needed to explore: 1+ Most people go to Viareggio for the beach or Carnevale, not so much the town. If you do explore the city, a day is plenty, but then again, one beach day might not be enough. In that case Viareggio is always an option to stay and take day trips from.
What to see and do: Viareggio is a very popular destination or seaside “escape” from the cities during the summer. In the late winter Viareggio hosts one of the largest and most lavish Carnevale celebrations in Italy.
Established: Viareggio is first mentioned by name in the 12th century, regarding a wooden tower built along the sea as a means of defense. It sprung up in importance when it became the sole sea port of for the Republic of Lucca in the 16th century. It was during this time that the Lucchesi built the still-present Torre Matilde to help defend against pirates.
Viareggio’s history is speckled with hardships, from originally being very marshy with mosquitos and malaria running rampant, battles and pillages, and the pestilence, to a large part of the city burning down in 1917, to being bombed during World War II. Despite all of this, Viareggio has always rallied and is today well known for its lavish Carnevale festivities as well as its beautiful beaches.
Typical foods to try:
Tordelli - derivative of tortelli, which are very, very similar to ravioli. Fillings can vary but the sauce is always a meat sauce
Scarpaccia - a zucchini cake that is so named for resembling an old shoe. There are two varieties, sweet and savory, but it is the sweet or “dolce” version that is purely Viareggina
Cacciucco alla Viareggina - a very typical fish stew featuring inexpensive local fish varieties, cuttlefish, and octopus
Pasta alla Trabaccolara - a poor man’s dish using more of those inexpensive fish varieties: Red mullet, scorpion fish, European Hake, and others.
Spaghetti con le Arselle / Spaghetti con i Nichi - spaghetti with wedge shells (small clams)
Why I like Viareggio
Viareggio reminds me of sunburns and crowded beachs, a little mini adventure/escape from the hot cement city to the salty seaside.
I grew up in Michigan, just a few minutes drive from Lake Michigan where the water is as many shades of blue as the Mediterranean, so I am no stranger to beautiful water and beaches. Ironically, I’ve never been much of a beach person, but that doesn’t mean I don’t like my key beach days each summer. Florence has no beach, and while there are lakes just a short drive away, not having a car meant the quickest way to get to the beach was taking the 45 minute train to Viareggio. This is close enough to make it feel attainable, yet far enough that it usually happens just once or twice a summer, realistically.
Viareggio is mostly private beach, meaning you have to pay to get in. The public sections are mostly a part of the National Park. Most go for the private anyway, and if you want to experience the beach like the Italians, you should try the pay-for-beach at least once. It’s usually somewhere around 30euro per umbrella, which comes with two beach chairs. If you have more than 2-3 people in your party, plan to pay for multiple umbrellas. Rate is for the whole day, however long you plan to stay. Note the picture above, as you may not be all that close to the beach. A boardwalk will take you down to the sea, often with a little faucet where you can rinse sand off before heading back to your umbrella. There are designated areas for changing. It’s still hard for me to pay for a spot on the beach, but Viareggio is a very Italian experience that feels like an adventure.
More than half the beaches in Vaireggio are private, but there are some free public beaches. One such free beach, is Spiaggia alla Lecciona inside the natural reserve. I’ve read there is a path, stroller friendly, through the pine forest to the beach. However, getting there requires a car, so not an option if you take the train from say, Florence. I believe there are some other free beaches, but they’re often overcrowded or not as easy to get to, so even for someone like me who loathes paying for water access,it becomes inevitable to pay to keep a beach day as relaxing as possible.
Overall, while I in no way dislike Viareggio, it is not amongst my favorites. I’ve been a couple times during the summer, and I think it would be interesting to go during Carnevale. Other than that, it’s checked off my list and there are many other places in Italy that I enjoy more than Viareggio and many, many others I would still like to see.