What is Savona known for?

Sixtus IV and his nephew Julius II, both born to the Savona Della Rovere; Sixtus commissioned both Sistine Chapels. 1542 fortress built on the medieval city, prison of Pope Pius VII under Napoleon and of Mazzini while he drafted Giovine Italia. Savona and Albisola pottery tradition running back six centuries, preserved at the Museo della Ceramica with over a thousand works.

Savona is a comune in the province of Savona, Liguria region of Italy, about 58 kilometers from Genova.

Liguria · Savona

Savona

A working port city with two Della Rovere popes, a Sistine Chapel that came before the Roman one, and a fortress on the old town.

58 km / 36 mi

Nearest hub (Genova)

58,194

Population

Apr–Oct

Best time to visit

Recognised as

Why come

Savona is the seat of its province, 40 kilometers west of Genova, the largest port on the Riviera di Ponente. Ligurian tribes held the site before Rome took it around 180 BC after the Punic Wars, during which Savona had sided with Carthage. The Lombards sacked it in 641. The Della Rovere family produced two popes from Savona: Sixtus IV, who ordered the Roman Sistine Chapel, and his nephew Julius II. Sixtus IV also commissioned the smaller Sistine Chapel here in 1481 as a funeral chapel for his parents at the Franciscan convent. In 1542 the Republic of Genoa built the Priamar fortress on the medieval town center, destroying the old cathedral, bishop's palace and Dominican convent to clear ground for the bastions. Pope Pius VII, kidnapped by Napoleon, was held in the fortress from 1809 to 1812. Giuseppe Mazzini was imprisoned there in 1830-31 while drafting the manifesto of Giovine Italia. The Museo della Ceramica preserves six centuries of Savona and Albisola pottery.

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Gallery

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Known for

Fortezza del Priamar
Sixteenth-century fortress built by the Republic of Genoa in 1542 on the medieval city core, prison of Pius VII and Mazzini in the nineteenth century.
Cappella Sistina
Funeral chapel commissioned by Pope Sixtus IV in 1481 for his parents, predating the Roman Sistine Chapel he ordered three years later.
Cattedrale di Nostra Signora Assunta
Sixteenth-century cathedral with the Della Rovere polyptych remnants, beside the Cappella Sistina and the Bishop's Palace.
Museo della Ceramica
Ceramic museum in the centro storico, six centuries of Savona and Albisola pottery, over a thousand works from Renaissance to twentieth century.
Pinacoteca Civica
Civic picture gallery in Palazzo Gavotti, including the cusp of the Della Rovere Polyptych alongside Ligurian school paintings.
Torre Leon Pancaldo
Medieval harbor tower named after the Savona navigator who sailed with Magellan, the symbol of the modern port.

When to visit

Best months · Apr–Oct

Best
Hot or crowded
Quiet
Mostly closed

April through June and September into October are the best months in Savona. The Priamar's outdoor spaces fill with concerts and the Cappella Sistina stays cool. July and August are warm and crowded, with cruise traffic peaking and the centro storico emptying in the early afternoon. November through March, the port keeps working: 58,000 residents make Savona a year-round city, the museums maintain regular hours, and the cathedral and Sistine Chapel are at their quietest. Winter storms can shut the seafront. The ceramic shops in Albisola, ten kilometers east, are open through the year.