bulldogs

We are headed to Italy in late June 2014 with our 10 & 12 year old girls. We plan to spend the first 4 nights in Venice and the last 4 nights in Florence. With the 8 days in between those cities, we would like to spend around 4 days on the beach and 4 in a small town. Does anyone have any suggestions for a great beach town? We are open to either coast but don't want to head too far south. We'll have a car.

MLTimes

The Conero Coast in Le Marche would be my choice but may be a bit too south for your other locations. I I am partial to Sirolo, but Numana and Senigallia seem more kid-friendly. In addition to the beach, the area is a quick (20 minute or less) drive to the mountain, many small hill towns and some amazing verdicchio. .

Suzette85

I am also looking for a beach destination in Italy for next summer. Not to hijack this posting, but would like to add on if I may- how far south do you need to go to get that 'beach town' feel?

simpsonc510

We just happened onto Viareggio while driving from Switzerland to our friends' home near Orvieto. We needed to make one over night stop along that drive. We really enjoyed Viareggio. It has a lovely wide/long beach, with hotels and restaurants lining the beach street.

stevewith

Sestri Levante, on the Italian Riviera, is a great beach spot for kids who like to swim, with easy access to le Cinque Terre and Portofino (and the boat rides that go along with that). In between Venice and the Italian Riviera, I would consider staying in Mantova with kids if they like to bicycle, or on Lago di Como or Lago Maggiore if they like flowers and hikes and cooler weather. Or I might pick Parma or Reggio 'nell Emilia as a place to stay, and take excursions to the castles of Torrechiara and Fontenellato, quite near there. Plus visit some cheese factories. And visit Pontremoli on the way to the coast.

On the Adriatic coast, I might pick Rimini or Cesanatico, south of Venice, for a beach town. They are not as scenic as the Riviera, but they can be fun and easy going. If your kids end up very taken with the mosaics in Venice, be sure to spend some time in Ravenna on the Adriatic coast (and see the mosaics in Florence). On the way from the Adriatic coast to Florence, I would pick Sant'Angelo in Vado as my small town, or possibly Brisighella, or Anghiari, but there are large places like Modena or Bologna, or Gubbio or Urbino if people don't mind steep hill climbing. There are also lots of agriturismi in that area if you think your kids would like staying on a farm with animals and eating farm-fresh food.