Page 106 - Lonely Planet Europe’s Best Trips (Travel Guide)

hawk seasonal delicacies
and vintages.
TRIP HIGHLIGHT
On Thursday it’s worth RGLINSKY/GETTY IMAGES ©
3 Finale Ligure driving 9km up the coast
Finale Ligure comprises to picturesque Noli for
several seaside districts. the weekly outdoor mar-
The marina is narrow ket on Corso d’Italia.
and charming, spreading 54 p107
along the sandy shore
between two small rivers, The Drive » Once again take
the Porra and the Sciusa. the high road away from the
East of the Sciusa is coast and follow the A10 for a
Finale Ligure Pia, where further 35km to Alassio. Near
Albenga you’ll cross the river
you’ll find Alimentari Centa and the broad valley
Magnone (Via Moletti 17), where dozens of hothouses dot
which stocks excellent the landscape.
extra virgin olive oils
from local growers. TRIP HIGHLIGHT
ITALY 7 ITALIAN RIvIERA
Nearby the Benedic-
tine abbey houses the 4 Alassio
Azienda Agricola Apiario Less than 100km from
Benedettino (Via Santuario the French border, Alas-
59; h9am-12.30pm Mon-Sat), sio’s popularity among
where you can buy honey, the 18th- and 19th-
grappa and organic century jet set has left it
beauty products. with an elegant colonial
At the other end of character. Its pastel-hued
town, Finalborgo is the villas range around a
old medieval centre. broad, sandy beach, in 1787 and Edward
Each year in March, which stretches all the Elgar composed In the
Finalborgo’s cloisters way to Laigueglia (4km
are home to the Salone to the south). American South inspired by his
stay in 1904. Il Muretto,
dell’Agroalimentare Lig- president Thomas Jef- a ceramic-covered wall,
ure, where local farmers ferson holidayed here records the names of 550
celebrities who’ve passed
through.
SAN GIORGIO Follow the local lead
and promenade along
Cult restaurant San Giorgio (%0183 40 01 75; www. Via XX Settembre or the
ristorantesangiorgio.net; Via A Volta 19, Cervo; meals €40-60; unspoilt waterfront. Take
h12.30-2pm & 7.30-10pm Wed-Mon, closed Jan) has been coffee at Antico Caffè
quietly wowing gourmets with its authentic Ligurian Pasticceria Balzola (www.
cooking since the 1950s when mother-and-son balzola1902.com; Piazza
team Caterina and Alessandro opened the doors of Matteotti 26; h9am-midnight
their home in the borgo (medieval town) of Cervo Tue-Sun) and enjoy gelato
Alta. Dine out on the bougainvillea-draped terrace in on the beach beneath a
summer, or in intimate dining rooms cluttered with stripy umbrella.
family silverware and antiques in winter. Below the
restaurant, in an old oil mill, is the less formal wine 4 p107
bar and deli San Giorgino.

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