Has anyone ever visited the East Coast of Italy. I am looking to visit there, near Palena, if possible and was wondering where to stay, eat, if there are beaches on that side, etc. Any information would be great. Thanks.

The woman who owned the house in Tuscany where we stayed last year referred to the beaches up and down the coast from Rimini as "Italy's Coney Island," which about says it all, to me. She said the beaches are very popular with German tourists. Having said that, I coulnd't find Palena on the feeble map I have with me, so I'm not sure if I've been any help to you....

If all you are interested in is a beach, you will find the entire coast of Abruzzo, Molise and Puglia is lined with them. Just drive east about 40 miles until you hit the coast. <BR> <BR>If you go north along the coast about 20 miles there is Pineto, a few miles past Pescara. You will find miles and miles of beach chairs and umbrellas and a beach backed with pine trees and, in the summer, lots of campers packed like sardines. <BR> <BR>Going south along the coast about 10 miles is Vasto, an interesting hill town, and its beach Vasto Marina. The beach along the south side of town is less crowed. <BR> <BR>The best place for a combination of interesting town, nice beach and water, and scenic landscape is the Gargano Promontory, the "spur" of the boot-shaped country. This is about 70 miles south of Vasto. Here you can stay in Péschici or Vieste, backed by dramtic limestone cliffs. <BR> <BR>From Termoli (about 10 miles south of Vasto) you can take a ferry one hour to the Trémiti Islands. You will think you have gone to Greece. Be prepared to do a lot of walking if you go. <BR> <BR>Be aware that if you are any where near a beach in August you will hit traffic jams lasting hours and be sharing the beach with the rest of Europe; however, in June or September, it is not difficult to find some privacy. Have fun! <BR>

P.S. to last post. <BR> <BR>Palena is about 40 miles south-west of Fossacésia, which is on the Adriatic coast, about half way between Pescara and Vasto.

Thanks so much for the info. I am interested in the whole area. What points of interest are there, where to stay, what to do, where to eat, what I should not miss, etc. My grandmother (deceased) was from Palena, but we do not know her relatives and are hoping to at least see the town she grew up in. What is Palena like? How much time do you think I should spend on this coast, we were thinking about driving over to the Amalfi coast as well and staying in Sorrento. Do you think that is too much?

I have never been to Palena, but 2 years ago I went to the town where 3 of my grand parents were born – Colli al Volturno, near Isernia in Molise. It was a great experience. <BR> <BR>If you are contemplating the Amalfi Coast, I urge you to go there and skip the Adriatic entirely. You just can’t compare them for scenic beauty, charming towns and historical sites. I stayed in Positano for 4 days and from there did Pompeii, Sorrento, Capri, Amalfi and Ravello (which is not to be missed). Do a search on this forum for any of those cities, or the Amalfi Coast, and you will find reams of info. Good luck! <BR>

We are definetly looking into a villa in Amalfi, maybe one in Sorrento, and make that our base location and head out for day trips from there. We found some reasonably priced weekly rental (Villas) on the web and thought we might go that way. I just wanted to maybe find some of our relatives in Palena and just make contact with them. Its going to be hard though. Thanks for your thoughts.