La Spezia has a great combination of historical buildings, beautiful scenery, and fantastic surrounding sites. 

La Spezia is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy.

HIGLIGHTS

La Spezia is the second largest city in the Liguria region, just after Genoa. Located roughly midway between Genoa and Pisa, on the Ligurian Sea, it is one of the main Italian military and commercial harbours and a major Italian Navy base. A significant railway junction, it is notable for its museums, for the Palio del Golfo rowing race, and for railway and boat links with the Cinque Terre.

Main sight

La Spezia is an important port city on the western coast of Italy not far from Pisa, Genoa and Florence. This city is a major stop for Mediterranean cruise ships and passengers often stop at La Spezia before travelling to other cities in the Liguria region. Aside from its commercial port activities, La Spezia is also a major military hub and most of the Italian Navy is based here. The city has a population of 93,000 and is the second largest municipality in Liguria. La Spezia has seen some form of settlement since the prehistoric era and was an important trade centre during the Roman Empire. In subsequent history, La Spezia remained an important stronghold and has been a prominent Italian port for hundreds of years.

Churches

• Cristo Re dei Secoli, modern cathedral, consecrated in 1975, designed by Adalberto Libera.
• Abbey church of Santa Maria Assunta (“Our Lady of the Assumption”, thirteenth century). It houses a considerable series of artworks, some of them originally from other suppressed religious institutes. They include an Incoronation of the Virgin by Andrea della Robbia, the Multiplication of Bread by Giovanni Battista Casoni and St. Bartholomew’s Martyrdom by Luca Cambiaso.
• Santi Giovanni e Agostino. It has a single nave with eighteenth and nineteenth century decorations.
• Nostra Signora della Scorza. Built in 1900 in Piazza Brin, in the heart of what is now a working-class neighborhood, Quartiere Umbertino.
• Maria Ausiliatrice. Built in the second half of 20th century and administered by the order of Salesiani in the proletarian neighbourhood “Canaletto”.

Museums

• Ubaldo Formentini— Civic Museum in the Castle of San Giorgio
• Amedeo Lia Museum
• Palazzina delle Arti and Museum of Seals
• Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (CAMeC)
• Diocesan Museum
• Ethnographic Civic Museum
• Technical Naval Museum
• National Transportation Museum

Others

• Castle of San Giorgio, recently restored, probably originated from a watchtower. A first castle is known to have been built by Niccolò Fieschi in 1262. In 1273 it was destroyed by the Genoese, and a new fortification, along with a new line of walls, was erected by the podesteria of La Spezia from 1371. Annexed to this, the Republic of Genoa added a new castle starting from 1607.
• Public Gardens
• Art Nouveau–style villas
• Futurist mosaic by Prampolini inside the Post Office
• La Spezia is a point of departure for the villages of the Cinque Terre, either by train or boat. The boat also serves Lerici and Portovenere before turning into the open sea toward the Cinque Terre. The Cinque Terre villages are accessible by public transport, 15 kilometres (9 mi) from central railway station.

Today, La Spezia is the chief Italian naval base and arsenal and the base for a navigation school. It is also a commercial port, with shipyards and industries producing machinery, metal products, and refined petroleum.

The Waterfront

The port area adjacent to the Centro Storico and Porto Mirabello are amazing places to walk, people watch and enjoy the fine weather.

The Naval Technical Museum

Located to the west of Porto Mirabello and the waterfront, this museum is housed within a grand building and contains some fantastic displays and artefacts.

Cinque Terre

Cinque Terre is a world renowned stretch of coast not far from La Spezia and contains some absolutely phenomenal landscapes and gorgeous villages that hug the coastline and cliffs.

A trip to this region of Italy would not be complete without experiencing the idyllic scenery you can find here.