Italian Beaches
 

Hubby and I are going to Paris and Rome next month.
I want to go to an Italian beach. One with pretty sand and water. No pebble shores like in England and no gray/black water. Touristy or semi-touristy area. Don't want to be secluded- I like to people watch and be in the mix of things. BUT- I don't want to be on one of those beaches were the entire shore is covered with umbrellas and lounge chairs. Not asking too much- huh?!

Sperlonga or Gaeta would meet your criteria.

Monterosso has a sandy beach. It is in the Liguria region of Italy. But it is a small beach and usually very crowded.

Please check out Tropea in Calabria, they have perfect unspoiled beaches at very affordable prices.

Calabria is in southern Italy and is gorgeous. It has its share of tourists but, nothing compared to other parts of Italy.

Best regards!

oops! I re-read your message, and if you are not planning to venture out of Lazio...then Calabria is not a good choice!

If you had at least a week to spare (probably not!), Sardinia would be a quick budget flight from Rome. This island has the most varied and beautiful beaches that I've seen in Italy this far. Tropea is wonderful. I'm not sure if late-May is beach weather yet in Italy, the water would probably be cool.

We plan on going to Tropea in June. "Iloveitaly" do you have any specific recommendations? There is very little information available for this area. Thank you.

I would go as far south as possible. May is very early for a beach holiday in Liguria, for instance. Average temps are only 20°C.

I've done a daytrip to Tropea, and in the future I would like to spend more time there. I bookmarked this page: http://www.tropea.biz/index_eng.htm

It seems like it would be useful for hotels. You can fly from Rome to Lamezia Terme (1 hour). If you consider it, when you contact hotels make sure to ask if the beaches will be open next month.

Off the top of my head, the best beaches (annually listed in the Blue Guide/Guida Azzurra) are 3-4 in Sardinia (Arbus, Bosa, along the Costa Smeralda or Orosei), 1-2 in southern Tuscany, usually Sirolo in Le Marche, Tropea in Calabria, and occasionaly some in Sicily. Sperlonga in Lazio is also very nice, as is Eraclea Minoa and Fontane Bianche in Sicily.

We are going to Sicily in September and, while we are not going expressly for beaches, I would like to visit at least one. Where in Sicily is Fontane Bianche?

Just south of Syracuse, about 20 minute drive.