Beaches
Versilia
Marina di Carrara | Forte dei Marmi | Pietrasanta | Camaiore | Viareggio
Distance from the Colletto: 70 km
Time from Colletto with car: 1 h 15 min
The Versilia area is definitely high-end. It is famous for its summer nightlife, and therefore the height of the season is during the summer. Visitors from any other period will not see Versilia at its best and many factories will actually close at the end of September.
Versilia beach is very wide and long – there is practically a kilometer-long beach that goes from Forte dei Marmi in the north to Viareggio in the south. Forte dei Marmi and Lido di Camaiore are the highest areas, where most of the beach is occupied by deck chairs and umbrellas set up by bathing establishments that also offer changing rooms, showers, bars with snacks and pasta. You will not find a free beach or “free beach” along this track. Go to Pietrasanta for one of those. The free beach is practically a part of the beach where you can get with your umbrella, towels, cooler and sit where you want without paying. If this is the type of beach experience you want, then Versilia is not for you: go south to Livorno and Grosseto (keep reading we are getting to those beaches in a minute).
Pisa
Marina di Pisa | Tirrenia | Calambrone
Distance from the Colletto: 80 km
Time from Colletto with car: 1 h 20 min
As you go south, the beaches become shorter and narrower. Many of them start having heaths and stretches of real woods right behind the beach. The beaches of this stretch near Pisa tend to receive strong currents. The Marina di Pisa, however, is particularly suitable for families as the beach is protected from the open sea by large rocky walls that have been piled up to act as barriers that make the beach experience much more pleasant.
Livorno
Antignano | Quercianella | Castiglioncello | Vada di Rosignano Marittimo | Cecina | Marina di Bibbona | Castagneto Carducci | San Vincenzo | Riotorto-Piombino | Marciana Marina-La Fenicia
Distance from the Colletto: 85 km
Time from Colletto with car: 1 h 30 min
This area includes some of the most famous beaches in all of Tuscany. From Antignano to Rosignano the promenade is actually a coral reef, but this does not discourage anyone from spending the day at the beach. Get on really – be sure to bring water shoes or buy some from many vendors – lay out your towel, get some sun, then snorkel, then rest and get some more sun! Repeat as many times as you want. The cities here all offer walkways with bars (cafes), ice cream parlors and restaurants, as well as any beach accessories that you may have forgotten to bring with you. Castiglioncello, Vada and Cecina are some of the easiest to reach by public transport as the cities (and the railway station along the Pisa-Grosseto line) are on the coast or not far away.
Grosseto
Follonica | Castiglione della Pescaia | Marina di Grosseto | Principina di Grosseto | Monte Argentario
Distance from the Colletto: 200 km
Time from Colletto with car: 3 h
This area, also known as Maremma, is the most popular in Tuscany among the Italians for the beaches and many foreigners have recently discovered the area. Many families tend to rent small apartments along the coast during the summer and basically move here for the month of August. You will find both long stretches of sandy beaches and some areas with cliffs, many free beaches and areas colonized with chairs and umbrellas. You can lie down and work on your tan or go exploring the external coral reefs. A short distance south of Marina di Grosseto, the beach of Marina di Alberese is quite popular but perfect for families. This is a long stretch of sandy and free beach with large woods behind the beach. North of Castiglione, Cala Violina is a beautiful beach at the end of a 15-minute walk along a path in the woods. In this area, many of the parking lots are far from the beach and require a short 15-20 minute walk from the beach, all of which are worth it from our “impartial” point of view.