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Long considered merely a stopping off point for the Cinque Terre, Lerici and Portovenere, the ancient city of La Spezia didn't really arrive on the tourist map until a few years' back. A resolutely industrial town, with Italy's largest naval base and a large harbour, this is a working, working class town, and many of its older buildings were razed by Allied bombing during the Second World War. But things have started to change, with some excellent regeneration work, and a clutch of important museums (of which more below). Even if you are only stopping on your way elsewhere (the ferries to Corsica and Sardinia also go from here), make time to explore the city. As well as the superb collection of Titians, Bellinis et al at the Museo Amedeo Lio, you'll find good restaurants, bars and cafes, and a superb cuisine featuring seafood, pesto, anchovies, foccacia and excellent white wines. Main sights include a number of fine churches including the 1970s cathedral of Cristo Re dei Secoli, the 13th century Abbey Church of Santa Maria Assunta, and Santi Giovanni e Agostino. There are fine museums including the Ubaldo Formentini civic museum in the Castello San Giorgio, The Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, the Diocesan Museum, Ethnographic Civic Museum, Technical Naval Museum and National Transport Museum. and the Museo Amedeo Lia is a superb collection of medieval and Renaissance art. See too the restored 13th century Castello San Giorgio, the fine public gardens and some impressive Art Nouveau villas. And check out the main post office, with a futurist mosaic by Prampolini. Events in the town include the Cercantico antique fair, on the first Sunday of every month (barring July and August), the Palio del Golfo on the first Sunday in August, and the feast of San Giuseppe, patron saint of the town, on 19 March.
To the left you'll find a selection of La Spezia hotels, just to whet your appetite.
See also La Spezia hotels (full listings) and our La Spezia hotel map.
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