3 Nights In Genoa, Italy - Where To Stay, Eat, Drink And More

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Genoa is a popular travel destination for Italians and Europeans. To be honest coming here after Florence we thought we could be possibly disappointed, but in fact, Genoa impressed us even more. This city has unique charisma and is full of hidden treasures – history, architecture, art that sometimes you don’t even expect to discover.

Genoa is known as the departure point for cruise ships in the Mediterranean, as well as the birthplace of Columbus and Paganini. But in fact, this is a quest city, where the elevator is a public transport, palaces are hidden among the houses, and in the basilicas are luxurious gildings and paintings of the Renaissance. To solve Genoa, you need to go through several levels – look at the city from the height of observation points, from the maze of medieval streets and from the water. We stayed 3 nights here – and it was enough time not only to discover Genoa’s main attractions but also to travel a little bit around – to Rapallo and Portofino (will write about it in the future posts).

We have hired the car, and situation with parking in Genoa was slightly better than in Florence. As in many other cities in Italy, the traffic inside the old part of the city is prohibited or restricted, so we had to search for a free parking nearby and when it was not possible we used the port parking (daily rate is around 30 Euros).

We were surprised but Genoa even has a metro. It has only eight stations, that connect the city center, railway stations and residential areas. However, if you don’t have a car, we recommend you to take a public bus, which is easier to use.

On our first night we stayed in a very charming place called Valery Guest House.

The area where Valery is situated is probably one of the most fascinating of the whole city.

The Bed & Breakfast is located in Palazzo Montanaro (formerly Serra-Samengo) and is bound by the Superintendence for Architectural Heritage. It was built on the area that was once the convent of San Francesco di Castelletto, demolished the first 800, and retains part of the cloister and the Chapter House, now a restoration workshop. Since July 13, 2006 is included, along with the whole system Rolli, among the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The hallway is decorated in traditional for Genoa black and white striped pattern.

You need to get to the upper floor where you will find yourself in one of the most charming apartments. The name Valery is the tribute to French poet Paul Valéry, who lived in the same building for some time.

We were given this romantic double bedroom with a canopy bed, and adjacent “luggage room” which also had tea and coffee fascilities.

The kitchen and living room are “common zones”, both of them are decorated in a cozy traditional style. The owner, Elena was a very welcoming host – she explained us all the facilities of the guest house, as well as gave us some great hints on where to go for dinner and drinks.

The living room is tastefully furnished and it looks very warm and inviting, at the same time relaxed and carefree.

The apartment also has a beautiful terrace with gorgeous views over the city. On a warm sunny day it is great to have breakfast here or enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning.

In that sense we were really lucky, as despite we were traveling in January, the weather was fantastic.

We felt like one night was really not enough to fully enjoy this beautiful place, as the rythme of the house and its decor invites you to relax, calm down and set yourself on a vacation mode.

The breakfast in the morning was very tasty, and you can really feel how the owners take care about every little details to make their guests comfortable and welcomed.

On our first evening, following recommendation of Elena we visited local restaurant called Locanda Spinola – amazing place to try out Genoa’s food and wine.

Our next day we started from visiting Old Port – it is a nice promenade area with a floating bridge where you can enjoy spectacular views on Genoa from water. Right next to it you can find one of the biggest Aquarium in Europe with a great variety of different marine animals and fish.

Here in the port you will not miss a huge ship – moored galleon “Neptune”, built specifically for the shooting of Polanski’s film “Pirates” in 1985.

Next to the port you should try famous Genoa’s street food – fried fish and seafood. Quite tasty, I must say!

On the Via Balbi you can find one of the oldest buildings which is the University of Genoa. Don’t forget to raise your head up to see stunning balconies with arches and stucco.

Opposite the university you will find another interesting place – Palazzo Reale (Via Balbi, 10). This is the official residence of the Kings of Savoy since 1824, opened today as a museum. Feel free to go inside to see how the aristocracy lived in the 19th century.

If you love long walks and you have enough time, head to the Zecca-Righi cable car. It connects the city center and the upper border of the city on one of the hills. Be patient as it makes seven stops. Upstairs you will find a park with spectacular views.

I really loved narrow streets of old town, most of the buildings were painted in warm pink or yellow colours, and had typical tiny balconies, often “decorated” with drying clothes. You can spend hours just gazing at them sitting in a nearby cafe.

Next day we changed our accomodation to another hotel, located right in the heart of old town. It is called Palazzo Penco, boutique style bed and breakfast, tastefully decorated and with magnificent views from the windows:

I really loved simplicity and elegance of this place, filled with cute, touching details:

The owner, Alessandro was very kind and welcoming, he also gave us some recommendations on places to visit which we followed upcoming days.

The breakfast was very diverse and tasty – cheese, jam, yogurt, juices, pastry…

Here we tried famous Genoa’s focaccia, which was delicious:

Our room was light, comfortable and spacious, equipped with all necessary things that you might possibly need. Despite the nights these days were quite called, inside the room was always warm and comfy.

Free wifi allowed me to write several articles for the blog, enjoying fantastic views!

The next day we continued exploring the city. One thing that amazed me most is that Genoa was full of hidden treasures – you could find magnificent frescos, ancient buildings, fantastic sculptures in such corners, that you would never expect to find anything.

One of such discoveries was garden next to the University of architecture with the ruins of Santa Maria in Passione, where once was magnificent palace, almost completely destroyed after the World War II.

This day we were eating first in Eately – famous Italian chain of restaurants, where you can try amazing pasta and pizza. While for dinner we went to Osteria de Vico Palla – it is very simple laid back place, in the evening full of people, because they serve delicious local food. Our recommendation is their salad with octopus and black pasta.

After that we headed over to a bar called Les Rouges for cocktails. It is located in incredible building with the ancient frescos on the ceilings that date over 500 years. Their barman was very knowledgable about cocktails and has given us some great suggestions.