Portovenere is a traditional fishing village with a picturesque jumble of pastel houses, boats bobbing in the harbor and a network of meandering hiking trails. Crowds are sparse, so poke around the 13th-century, black-and-white striated church in peace, before marvelling at the views across the Bay of La Spezia, which has long inspired poets and writers, like Lord Byron.

 

Text: AMURA ± Photo: Grotta, Byron, Safari Partners.