Tuscany · Grosseto
Castiglione della Pescaia
A Maremma seaside town under an Aragonese castle, with the Vetulonia necropolis behind it, the Diaccia Botrona wetland beside it, and Italo Calvino buried on the hill.
129 km / 80 mi
Nearest hub (Livorno)
7,121
Population
May–Sep
Best time to visit
Recognised as
Why come
Castiglione della Pescaia sits at sea level on the Maremma coast, north of Grosseto, with a medieval upper town rising on the promontory above the harbor. The site was Roman Salebrone, before that Etruscan and Umbrian, settled because of the lake behind it that the Romans called Portus Traianus. The lake silted up; what remains is the Diaccia Botrona wetland reserve, a Ramsar site since 1991, with the eighteenth-century Casa Rossa Ximenes at its center, built between 1765 and 1768 by Jesuit engineer Leonardo Ximenes during the Lorraine drainage works. The Rocca above the town began as a tenth-century watchtower; Alfonso of Aragon enlarged it into a fortress in the fifteenth century; Cosimo I de' Medici and the Lorraine made further modifications. Vetulonia, one of the major Etruscan cities, with its necropolis among the best known in the world, lies in the hills behind. Italo Calvino spent summers in the Roccamare pine forest north of town. He is buried in the municipal cemetery overlooking the harbor.
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Known for
Rocca Aragonese
Castle on the promontory above the harbor, 10th-century watchtower core enlarged by Alfonso of Aragon in the 15th century, modified by Cosimo I and the Lorraine.
Riserva Naturale Diaccia Botrona
Ramsar wetland reserve southeast of town, the last remnant of ancient Lake Prile, with bird-watching hides, pink flamingos and white herons in season.
Casa Rossa Ximenes
Hydraulic structure built 1765-1768 by Jesuit engineer Leonardo Ximenes for the Lorraine drainage; now multimedia museum of the Diaccia Botrona reserve.
Vetulonia
Etruscan archaeological area in the hills east of town, with one of the best-known necropolises in the ancient Mediterranean, rediscovered by Falchi in the 1890s.
Punta Ala
Pine-fronted beach resort 15 km north on the promontory of the same name, with high-end marina, golf course and Roccamare pine forest.
Tomba di Italo Calvino
Municipal cemetery on the hill behind the harbor where Calvino is buried; visitors leave a pen at the grave.
When to visit
Best months · May–Sep
- J
- F
- M
- A
- M
- J
- J
- A
- S
- O
- N
- D
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
May and June bring warm sea and quiet beaches, before the high-summer crowds arrive from Rome and Florence. June through September holds the Bandiera Blu and the Diaccia Botrona stays accessible in the cooler hours. July and August push the coast above thirty; Punta Ala and the harbor fill, and the Rocca above the old town becomes a sunset destination. September is the year's easy month, with warm water and thinning crowds. October through April most beach businesses close. The wetland reserve runs its best birding from October through March, when northern migrants stop in the Diaccia Botrona, and the Etruscan necropolis at Vetulonia is empty.
How to get there
From Livorno, Castiglione della Pescaia is roughly 129 km by road. Allow about 111–155 minutes depending on traffic and route choice (autostrada vs scenic).
Drive time to the nearest gateway airports
- Florence / Pisa2h 6m
- Rome3h 22m
- Bologna3h 39m
Elevation 4 m
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