Your Abruzzi specialist - Stylish accommodation in Italy, region Abruzzi

The Sea

The 130 km-long Arbuzzi coastline can be divided into two sections. While the coastline is flat and sandy in the north, it's a little more rough in the south. The southern coastline is characterised by cliffs and rocks punctuated by small and large sandy beaches. Most of the Adriatic beaches fall gently into the water and are ideal for families with children and for swimmers looking for calmer waters. In high season (from the end of July until the beginning of September, peaking around the 15th of August), these beaches are full because of their popularity among Italians. But in May, June, the beginning of July, September and October, these beaches are ideal for a quiet and relaxing beach holiday.

Indeed, we were there ourselves at the end of September where we took a great picture of the empty Pineto beach, after having climbed the Monte Camicia (2570 m) the day before.

From Alba Adriatica to Ortona you will find long white sandy beaches and pebble beaches, behind which rise hills with mulberry trees, strawberry trees and broom. The Gran Sasso Massif and the Monti della Laga rise in the background.

Between Martinsicuro and Silvi in the Teramo province, there is an area known as "the seven sisters". This term is used to describe 7 beach resorts. Alba Adriatica, Giulianova, Roseto degli Abruzzi, Pineto and Silvi are all very nice. At these beaches you will find everything you are likely to need. The smell of liquorice is particularly intense in the Pineto area. Here you will find a beach with a small pine forest. Having being shaped by the wind into their characteristic parasol shape, these trees provide welcome shade. Silvi is a well know seaside resort. And the sea is not the only attraction: from "Silvi alta", the part of the town that is located on a 250 m-high hill, you can enjoy views over large parts of the central Adriatic and can even see the Yugoslav coast on a clear day.

You will find excellent facilities in the Pescara province, along with leisure activities, night clubs and discos. There is also a modern yacht harbour in Pescara, which organizes events such as sailing competitions during the summer months. There are several beach resorts with good facilities along the 15 km stretch of coast between Montesilvano, Pescara and Francavilla. Pescara is also a well-known venue for national and international beach volleyball tournaments.
It should be pointed out, however, that several coastal stretches in the north have fallen victim to bad planning decisions and mass tourism and that by bunching the traffic systems including the rail network into a north-south direction, the routes come unromantically close to the coast. On the other hand, this does make access to the beaches and other comfortable attractions such as the cappuccino bars easy. But rest assured, there's always a romantic spot waiting for those prepared to look.

From Ortona to Vasto and on to San Salvo, the coast becomes quite different: The bays cut further into the land. Shingle beaches and rocks interchange with small sandy beaches. You will find small dunes in several locations (such as in Lido di Casalbordino). While some are covered with typical Mediterranean scrub, in other places they appear to stretch out into the sea and form small sheltered bays. But perhaps the nicest stretch of the Abruzzi coast is to be found in the south: between Lido di Casalbordino and Punta Aderci. The deep-blue waters of this section offer a wealth of aquatic flora and fauna. This area is a nature reserve.

You will find the famous Trabocchi coast - UNESCO Cultural Heritage of the World Site - between Ortona and San Salvo. Here you can discover the unique remains of an almost long-gone fishing era, the Trabocchi, peculiar wooden lake dwellings and fishing nets. Professor De Ritis described them as follows: "The Trabocchi represent an attempt by people to leave the earth in order to immerse themselves in a new fluid dimension and to acquire a taste of adventure from the sea... The person who discovered them is not yet a seaman; but he is also no longer a farmer or a shepherd. The 'Trabocchi' represent the transition of two cultures: that of the farmer and that of the seaman."