How about a trip to Italy’s Adriatic coast? Here’s our guide to the best places to stay in Pescara!
An important seaside resort on Italy’s east coast, Pescara, located on the shores of the Adriatic Sea, is the largest town in Abruzzo (population 121,325). Located 210 kilometers from Rome and 250 kilometers from Naples, Pescara is a little-known destination for the general public, but one whose tourism development is booming. The town has been occupied since antiquity, notably since the Roman Empire, and was marked by Norman conquests in the 12th century and those of Charles V in the 16th century. It became a French military stronghold during the Napoleonic Wars in the 19th century. After a relative decline, Pescara is now an important regional metropolis on the Adriatic coast. Accommodation in Pescara is well worth a visit, as you’ll be right at the heart of the city’s nightlife, and will be able to visit many places and monuments of interest.
Between Gabriele D’Annunzio’s birthplace, the Paolo Barrasso Naturalist and Archaeological Museum, the Museum of Contemporary Artists of Abruzzo, the Museum of Peasant Traditions and Arts, beaches and nature reserves – the Gran Sasso e Monti della Laga National Park – there’s plenty to do. Here’s our selection of places to stay in Pescara.
Pescara center
Photo credit: Wikimedia – trolvag
The city center – centro citta – is often the best place to stay: you’re in a central area, at the heart of social activity, in an ideal position to take in the sights – museums, art galleries, historic buildings – while shopping or going out – restaurants, cafés, bars, concert halls – all within a stone’s throw of your accommodation.
In downtown Pescara, don’t miss the Ponte del mare – bridge over the sea -, and visit the casa natale di Gabriele D’Annunzio, the birthplace of the popular poet Gabriele D’Annunzio, a museum dedicated to his life and works. The Abruzzo People’s Museum – museo delle genti d’Abruzzo – is a must-see, featuring exhibitions on ceramics and olive oil, emblematic of the region’s economic activity. On the waterfront – lungomare G. Matteotti – you’ll find the Vittoria Colonna Museum of Modern Art (1490-1547), where you can admire works by Miro and Picasso. Along the same waterfront, there are numerous bars and restaurants where you can sample the delights of Italian cuisine.
The Pescara area
Photo credit: Flickr – lorenzaccio*
If you’re looking for a dip in the warm waters of the Adriatic Sea, there are beaches in the immediate vicinity of Pescara. The beaches of Montesilvano, Torre di Cerrano and Silvi Marina, for example, but also to the south towards Francavilla al Mare, where you’ll find public baths and a long stretch of sand, hotels and campsites where you can stay at Ghiomera, Lido Riccio, all the way to the municipality of Ortona. If you’ve got your own car, you can take the road up to the mountains for some great hiking.
There are several nature reserves and mountain ranges where you can stretch your legs and get some height: the Piana Grande della Majelletta reserve, the Feudo Ugni nature reserve, the Fara San Martino Palombaro nature reserve, the Lama Bianca di Sant’Eufemia a Majella nature reserve, or the gigantic Gran Sasso e Monti della Laga National Park, with its highest point at 2,912 meters, in the Apennines (Corno Grande). Accommodation in Pescara on Montesilvano is a good compromise between mountains and beach.