Santa Margherita Ligure:
The Understated Alternative to Portofino

There is a particular kind of traveller who arrives at Santa Margherita Ligure and immediately understands it. Not the one who came for a photograph and will be back on the ferry in ninety minutes — but the one who books three nights, walks the back streets on the first morning, and quietly extends the stay.

Santa Margherita rewards that instinct. Positioned a short stretch of coastline from Portofino, and connected to it by a twenty-minute ferry or a dramatic clifftop walk, it offers something its more famous neighbour cannot: the texture of a real town. There are working bakeries here, a covered market open six mornings a week, families who have lived on the same street for four generations, and a harbour that mixes fishing boats with superyachts without the latter overwhelming the former.

The Town Itself

The waterfront promenade — the Lungomare Rainusso — is where mornings begin. The pastel facades that line it are genuine, not restored for effect, and the light they catch at seven in the morning, when the boats are just beginning to move, is the light that has made this stretch of Liguria famous. Walk past the ferry terminal and continue south along the Via Pagana toward Portofino; within ten minutes the road narrows, the crowds thin, and the sea appears directly below.

The town centre is compact enough to explore on foot in an hour, but dense enough to repay a much slower pace. The Piazza Martiri della Libertà is the social centre — a long, arcaded square flanked by cafés and focaccerie where the ritual of the late-morning espresso is observed with proper seriousness. Just behind it, the Corte neighbourhood occupies a tangle of narrow streets that most visitors never find. The porticos run in amber and terracotta; in the morning light they look like something painted rather than built.

The church of Santa Margherita d'Antiochia anchors the western edge of the harbour. Inside, the walls are covered in ex-votos — small silver plaques and painted panels left by fishermen and sailors who survived storms and attributed their survival to the town's patron. It is a room full of private histories, and worth ten minutes of quiet attention.

Where to Eat and Drink

Trattoria da Pezzi has been feeding the town since 1964. The dining room is not scenic — it is tucked into a side street, decorated in the unassuming way of a place that has never needed to try harder than the food. The menu is handwritten daily and centres on whatever arrived at market that morning: trofie al pesto, stuffed vegetables, ciuppin (the Ligurian fisherman's stew), and the kind of baked fish that needs nothing added. Book ahead or arrive early at lunch.

Osteria Numero 7 operates quietly just off the main strip. It is family-run, seats perhaps twenty, and changes its menu with the fishing and the seasons. The fried anchovies, when available, are as good as anything on the coast. The atmosphere draws Italian families and local retirees rather than tourists — which is the clearest possible endorsement.

For a more positioned meal, Capo Nord sits on the coastal path between Santa Margherita and Portofino, with tables arranged directly above the water. The seafood is excellent and the prices reflect the location; the service is genuinely warm. Reserve the window seats and arrive before sunset.

Focaccia requires a separate address. The bakery in the Corte neighbourhood — behind the port, under the red and yellow porticos — produces a Focaccia al Formaggio that rivals anything in Recco. It is best eaten warm, standing up, on the way somewhere else.

Getting Oriented

Santa Margherita sits on the Tigullio Gulf, 35 kilometres east of Genoa. The train station connects directly to Genoa (30 minutes), and ferries run seasonally to Portofino, Camogli, and San Fruttuoso from the pier at the southern end of the promenade. The town itself is flat enough to walk throughout; the hills immediately behind require more commitment but reward it with views across the entire gulf.

For those arriving by sea, the harbour accommodates vessels up to approximately 20 metres at the municipal marina; larger yachts typically anchor at Rapallo or use the Portofino mooring fields. Private water taxis run on demand between Santa Margherita and the surrounding coves.

A Note on Timing

May and early June bring the town to life before the August crowds arrive. The market is full, the restaurants are not yet stretched, and the coastal walk to Portofino is manageable in the late afternoon without the midsummer heat. September is arguably better still — the sea remains warm, the daytrippers have gone home, and Santa Margherita returns to something closer to itself.

It is, in the end, a town that does not need to be discovered. It has always been here, doing what it does with a quiet confidence that the more famous place nearby occasionally lacks.

* The coastal walk to Portofino from Santa Margherita takes approximately 50–70 minutes depending on pace. The path is well-marked but includes uneven terrain and some elevation; appropriate footwear is recommended.