Located in the easternmost part of Genoa, Nervi is a charming and elegant seaside village, a few kilometres from the city centre.

 

The village sits on a cliff overlooking the sea and, squeezed between the spacious parks and the rocks, winds a charming and romantic promenade, named after Anita Garibaldi: two kilometres of terrace overlooking the sea which makes it impossible not to fall in love with Genoa's spectacular sunsets.

 

At the beginning of the path you can enjoy a suggestive view of the characteristic “Porticciolo” di Nervi and the Promontorio di Portofino and, on a clear day, you can glimpse the outline of Corsica. 

 

In addition to the characteristic little port and seafront promenade, the area allows you to enjoy Genoa's most elegant green spaces: the splendid Nervi Parks. This large green area, accessible both from the promenade and from the centre, covers an area of 92,000 square metres between the Via Aurelia and the sea.  The area is home to more tha one hundred varieties of tree, including palms and cedars, and five monumental trees of great interest. Another outstanding feature of the parks is the Rose Garden (designed by  Luigi Viacava). Restored in 2012 and divided into areas grouping antique, modern and competition roses, the garden boasts over 200 varieties of extraordinarily colourful plants. The best period in which to enjoy its beauty to the full is undoubtedly spring.

 

The parks also house museums of modern and contemporary art in a number of historic villas, which are now owned by the municipality and will soon be open to the public again. Villas Gropallo, Saluzzo Serra, Grimaldi Fassio and Luxoro, thanks to the presence of their marvellous gardens, offer suggestive corners to be discovered.

 

A walk along the green paths of the parks leads to the Capolungo cliffs and an extraordinary view of the Golfo di Paradiso and the Portofino promontory.  Behind Nervi stands the hill of Sant'Ilario, at the foot of which is the old railway station, closed in 1959, it is mentioned in the song "Bocca di Rosa" by Fabrizio De André.  

 

The heights close to the sea guarantee a particularly pleasant climate in all seasons, but which finds is best during spring. In  the past this characteristic made it a popular holiday destination for wealthy tourists, many from North & Eastern Europe and Russia, who came here to spend the winter in the colder periods or as a “cure” for tuberculosis, thanks to the sea air.  And already at the turn of the 17th-18th-19th centuries, the Genoese nobility and the bourgeoisie had also chosen Nervi as a residential area, building magnificent villas. A testimony to the Belle Époque is Viale delle Palme with its Art Nouveau buildings.

 

Nervi also hosts important cultural events, such as Euroflora - the most spectacular Italian floral exhibition - and the International Festival of Ballet and Music, which has now returned to take up its historically prestigious role: it was started in 1955 and was among the most important events in post-war Italy.