Lerici sits on the eastern shore of the Gulf of La Spezia — the "Gulf of Poets" named by playwright Sam Benelli because Shelley, Byron, D.H. Lawrence, and Virginia Woolf all lived or wrote here. Percy Bysshe Shelley drowned in 1822 when his boat sank returning from Livorno to Lerici (his body washed up on the beach at Viareggio and was cremated on the shore by Byron and Trelawny). The castle (Castello di Lerici, 12th-13th century, Pisan then Genoese) dominates the harbor with a round tower and a chapel inside. South of Lerici, the tiny coves of Fiascherino and Tellaro — sheltered, clear-water, pine-shaded — are among the most beautiful small beaches on the Ligurian coast. Liguria →
Plan my Gulf of Poets trip →Castello di Lerici: A massive Pisan-Genoese castle on the harbor headland — now houses the Museo Geopaleontologico (dinosaur footprints found locally). The terrace views across the Gulf to Portovenere are gorgeous. €5. The harbor and old town: Colored houses around a natural harbor, lanes climbing to the castle, and the passeggiata along Lungomare Biaggini. San Terenzo (2km north): A smaller village with a castle — the Villa Magni, where Shelley lived his last months, faces the beach. Fiascherino (3km south): Two small coves (Fiascherino and Eco del Mare) with clear water, pine-shaded rocky shores, and natural platforms for swimming. D.H. Lawrence lived here in 1913-14. Tellaro (5km south): A fishing village of extreme beauty — one of the Borghi più belli d'Italia — clinging to the rocks above the water.
Getting there: Bus from La Spezia (20min, frequent). Ferry from Portovenere (30min, seasonal). By car: 10min from La Spezia. Stay: €65-120/night (cheaper than Cinque Terre for better beaches). Eat: Il Frantoio (€25-40, seafood, old town), Bontà Nascoste (€20-30, pesto everything). Combine with: Portovenere (ferry 30min), Cinque Terre (La Spezia train hub 10min), Tellaro (5km — don't miss it).