There’s a Sunday that smells of spring and that westerly wind that carries with it the promise of discovery. It’s the perfect moment to cast your gaze beyond the city limits, when Genoa becomes the starting point for a journey that lasts just fifty minutes but leads to a different world. The train runs along the coast, tunnels alternate with glimpses of azure sea, until a sight that seems straight out of a Nordic fairy tale opens before your eyes.
Just fifty minutes from Genoa and you find yourself in Sestri Levante, the city that Hans Christian Andersen loved so much he called it “the city of fairy tales”. It wasn’t merely poetic fancy: there is something about this village suspended between two bays that captures the imagination like few other places in the world.
The magical isthmus between two seas
Sestri Levante stretches across a thin peninsula that separates two bays so different from each other they seem designed by different hands. To the east opens the Bay of Silence, a perfect arc of light sand protected by pastel-colored houses reflected in crystal-clear waters. The name is no accident: here the sea is truly calmer, sheltered from the northwest winds that often stir the Ligurian coast.
To the west instead stretches the Bay of Fairy Tales, named in 1953 precisely in homage to Andersen. Wider and more exposed to the winds, with its beaches and seafront promenade that invites contemplation of the sunset. Two sides of the same coin, two different ways of experiencing the Ligurian sea.
“Here, where the sea gently kisses the land, I have found the peace I have always sought”
— Hans Christian Andersen, from letters from Sestri Levante (1833)
The old town climbs the hillside that divides the two bays, a maze of narrow streets that preserve intact the charm of the fishing village. Via del Molo, Via Nazionale, Via Portobello: every street tells centuries of life tied to the sea, among noble palaces and fishermen’s houses, historic shops and small restaurants where the scent of pesto mingles with that of freshly baked focaccia.
Following the traces of the Danish storyteller
In 1833 a young Danish writer arrives in Sestri Levante in search of inspiration. Hans Christian Andersen is twenty-eight years old with a suitcase full of dreams. He finds lodging in a boarding house overlooking the Bay of Silence and stays there for three weeks that will forever mark his perception of Mediterranean beauty.
“Nature here is so gentle it seems painted by an artist in love”, he writes to his family. Those weeks in Sestri will fuel many of his future fairy tales: the blue of the sea, the colors of the houses, the particular light filtering through the alleyways will enter his stories as magical elements.
Today a plaque on Via Portobello commemorates his stay, but the true memory of the writer lives in the city’s street names. The Bay of Fairy Tales has borne his name since 1953, while every May the Andersen Festival celebrates the link between the city and the great storyteller with performances, exhibitions and children’s workshops.
The Libreria Italiana on Via Nazionale houses a section dedicated to Andersen’s fairy tales translated into all languages, while the small Civic Museum preserves documents and memories of his time in Sestri. But perhaps the most beautiful monument to the writer is the city itself: Sestri Levante continues to be that magical place where reality and fantasy meet naturally.
The old town and its secrets
The ancient heart of Sestri Levante hides behind the tourist facade of the seafront. All you need to do is take one of the small streets that climb from the Bay of Silence to discover a world of unexpected perspectives, noble palaces and artisan shops that resist the passage of time and globalization.
Image generated with AI (Google Gemini)
Palazzo Durazzo-Pallavicini dominates the promontory with its austere structure, surrounded by a park that offers breathtaking views over the two bays. The Basilica di Santa Maria di Nazareth, with its Baroque facade, houses an interior rich in polychromatic marble and artworks that tell the maritime devotion of Sestri’s residents.
But it is in the secondary alleyways that Sestri Levante reveals its most authentic character. The Libreria del Mare on via Penisola offers a carefully curated selection of travel books and maritime literature, while the historic Pasticceria Balzola still produces the traditional baci di Sestri, hazelnut sweets that have become the city’s gastronomic symbol.
“U mâ l’è ‘n gran libru apertu” (The sea is a great open book)
— Ligurian proverb
How to reach Sestri Levante
Starting from the genovabb.it residences in the historic center or Brignole area, reaching Sestri Levante is surprisingly simple. The regional train departs hourly from Genova Brignole station and arrives at the destination in approximately fifty-five minutes, passing through some of the most beautiful coastal landscapes of the Riviera di Levante.
For those who prefer to drive, the A12 motorway leads to Sestri Levante in about fifty minutes, exit Sestri Levante. Be aware, however: on summer weekends and during holidays traffic can slow down considerably, especially in the section between Rapallo and Chiavari. The most convenient parking is on via Eraldo Fico, a ten-minute walk from the center.
During the summer season, from May to September, a maritime connection from Genova Porto Antico is also available, managed by Consorzio Liguria Via Mare. The journey takes approximately two hours but offers a unique perspective on the coast and is in itself an unforgettable experience.
A perfect day in Sestri Levante
The ideal morning begins with the arrival of the 9:20 train from Genova Brignole. A short five-minute walk from the station leads to the heart of Baia del Silenzio, where it’s worth stopping at Bar Portobello for a cappuccino with a sea view while the city slowly awakens.
Photo by Peter Thomas on Unsplash
The first stop is a climb to the promontory to enjoy the panoramic views from the terraces of Palazzo Durazzo-Pallavicini. The park is open free of charge and offers extraordinary photo opportunities. From here you can descend towards the historic center, exploring the narrow streets and stopping at the Basilica of Santa Maria di Nazareth.
Lunch deserves a stop at one of the trattorias overlooking Baia del Silenzio: trenette al pesto is a must, accompanied by Vermentino from Cinque Terre. The afternoon can be dedicated to the sea — Baia del Silenzio is perfect for those seeking tranquility, while Baia delle Favole offers more services and activities.
Before heading back, a stroll along the seafront promenade of Baia delle Favole at sunset offers emotions that are hard to forget. The 6:30 PM train returns you to Genoa in time for a relaxing dinner in the welcoming atmosphere of Genoa’s historic center.
Sestri’s hidden treasure
There is a detail that escapes most visitors but is worth the trip to Sestri Levante by itself. On the promontory separating the two bays, hidden among Mediterranean vegetation, stands the Cappelletta di Sant’Antonio, a small 17th-century oratory accessible only on foot via a path starting from via Portobello.
The chapel itself is tiny, almost spartan, but what makes it special is the view it offers: the only spot from which you can admire both of Sestri Levante’s bays at the same time. This is where Andersen would come to write his letters to his family, sitting on a stone that still bears his name carved into it today.
At sunset, when golden light illuminates the colorful houses and the sea shimmers with violet reflections, you understand why the Danish writer called this place “the point where earth meets paradise”. Ten minutes of walking that offer one of the most moving panoramas on the Ligurian Riviera.
The return and the promise of new discoveries
The evening train that brings you back to Genoa crosses the same landscapes as the morning, but with different eyes. Sestri Levante has left its mark: in the salty scents that linger on your clothes, in the photos that don’t do justice to the beauty experienced, in the desire to return that already takes root.
Returning in the evening to genovabb.it residences after such an intense day is like closing a beautiful book: the story is over, but its echo continues to resonate. Genoa welcomes you back with its urban majesty, but now you know that less than an hour away awaits a world of enchanted bays and fairy tales that come to life.
If Sestri Levante has touched your heart the way it touched Andersen more than a century ago, our residences are the perfect starting point to discover all the hidden treasures of the Riviera di Levante. Because the beauty of staying in Genoa is precisely this: every day a new adventure can begin.
