12 Best Beaches in Italy to Visit in 2025

Few beaches in Europe can compete with Isola Bella in terms of looks. This dreamy stretch under Sicilian Taormina is tear-jerkingly beautiful. Looking as if a Renaissance landscape painting came to life, the beach is divided in two by a tombolo and a small rocky island that drowns in vegetation. Two mighty cliffs shelter it and the stunning mountains are towering over. How can you miss a chance to bathe in such beauty? The beach is connected to the upper town by bus. Alternatively, you can take the demanding (but incredibly scenic) stairs to the city center.

Highlight: Cinematographers also took notice: Isola Bella appeared in Season 2 of HBO’s “White Lotus.”

When the part of the Tyrrhenian Sea shore is called the Coast of Gods (or Costa degli Dei), you know you’re in for a treat. Tropea is where you go for one of the most sublime beaches in Italy. The water here is sapphire blue. With white sands and stunning old architecture, this Calabrian town is an unforgettable beach destination. Head to A Linguata stretch for a wide sandy surface flanked by the big Scoglio di Santa Maria dell’Isola rock with a picturesque chalk-colored grotta. The beach is also one of the best beaches in Europe for families and is a popular snorkeling spot.

Highlight: It’s steps away from Spiaggia della Rotonda, another iconic Tropea stretch directly under the cliff-set Old Town.

Bagnara Calabra isn’t a town that most tourists think about when looking for Italian beaches. But that’s exactly why you should give it a try. Here, you’ve got an authentic Italian beach experience with almost no tourists. The medieval ruins of Ruggero Tower overlook a long, wide beach made of small pebbles. The town is set where the green mountains meet the blue Thyrrenean Sea. The scenery is part Madeira, part Amalfi Coast, but you have fewer tourists and better accessibility.

Highlight: While here, you can’t leave without trying the local specialty: the freshly caught swordfish served in many trattorias across the town.

While you won’t be the only one enjoying the poetic beauty of Atrani Beach, this town has Amalfi’s most stunning stretch. It might well be the most beautiful town beach in Italy. Keep in mind that Atrani’s shore is tiny: only 426 feet. Behind is the pretty Old Town with labyrinthine streets and hidden stairs that rise above it. Combined with the photogenic aqueduct-like windy road, the scenery is very photogenic. During winter, it’s a moody spot to appreciate the grandeur of Amalfitan panoramas. When it gets warm, the umbrellas and sunbeds quickly fill up the sandy stretch giving it a classic jet-setter appearance. Whenever you come, it’s magical.

Highlight: This beach is so photogenic that Netflix decided to film a large part of their show “Ripley” here.

Another Sicilian gem on the list, Mazzarò is where you go for a luxurious beach experience in Taormina commune. Pebbly and immediately deep, it has the same breathtaking scenery of Isola Bella nearby. However, the upscale resorts surround the stretch giving it an exclusive status and seaside town allure. The beach is steps away from Taormina funicular so the perched Old Town is never far. Keep in mind that, like in many ultra-popular Italian beach towns, most of the beach is privately owned.

Highlight: A boat trip to Grotta Azzurra (or luminescent sea cave) is the most popular activity in Mazzarò.

Some beaches in Italy are one-of-a-kind. Scialara Beach in Vieste is that place. Here, you’ll swim next to the tall limestone monolith called Pizzomunno that rises from Adriatic waters in its white glory. Stretching for more than 2 miles, the beach comes with a superb view of the whitewashed historic town of Vieste set on the cliff. During the summer months, colorful umbrellas dot the golden sands of Scialara, as the beach is divided into private lidos offering rentals. For a calmer yet similarly rewarding beach experience, visit Spiaggia di San Lorenzo located on the other side of Vieste town.

Highlight: When hunger strikes, there are several restaurants and bars with an excellent choice of seafood dishes with a view.

Sicily and Sardinia may be Italy’s most famous islands, but the country is home to many smaller islands that can rival even Greece in their allure. Among them is Levanzo, the tiniest of the under-the-radar Aegadian Islands off Sicily’s west coast. Easily accessible by ferry from Trapani, this island is a paradise for beach lovers. Think unreal shades of blue, crystal-clear waters and the wild, untamed beauty of the Mediterranean—something increasingly rare to find. You won’t find imported sands or glamorous beach clubs here; it’s all rocky and pure joy.

Highlight: Set close to Levanzo’s eponymous village capital, Cala Freddo is a rocky stretch considered to be the best place to bathe on the island.

Many imagine Sardinia as a paradise for white sand beaches and it is exactly that. Also, the island is home to one of the most stunning Italian coves: Cala Mariolu. This hidden spot on Baunei Coast in Orosei Gulf has a heaven-on-earth kind of appearance and Thai-like cliffs that meet the turquoise sea. Reaching it may be a bit challenging—it’s either by boat or by a steep trek—but Cala Mariolu is worth the effort. Come with swimming shoes as the surface is pebbly. And don’t miss a chance to snorkel here.

Highlight: There’s just something marvelous about swimming in blue waters next to the gargantuan limestone walls as the dramatic Sardinian coastline unfolds in the distance.

The most unusual place to plunge in Italy, Scala dei Turchi (or Stairway of Turks) is a phantasmagoric white-colored cliff in southern Sicily. While you can sunbathe and swim here, it’s not really a beach in a conventional sense. Named so because of the Arab and Turkish marauders that used to take shelter in this bay in ancient times, this is a gigantic geological formation comprised of claylike marl (same as the Cliffs of Dover in England). You can’t climb the cliffs anymore, but it might change in the future. There’s a small sandy stretch for swimming with a view of the Scala dei Turchi. With or without the possibility to climb the white cliffs, Scala Dei Turchi remains one of Italy’s most stunning coastal sights.

Highlight: To experience the site in its full glory, rent a boat or go on a SUP tour.

La Pelosa is the epitome of Sardinia’s untamed beauty. The Carribean-like white sands meet the shallow waters. Ruins of the Aragonese watchtower gaze at the expansive landscapes of Isola Piana. The water is transparent, warm and welcoming. Arguably the best and most beautiful beach in Sardinia, La Pelosa is also among the most visited so it gets crowded in high season. The use of special straw mats is required as local sands are part of a fragile ecosystem. Another scenic beach in the area is Pelosetta with a rocky surface and the best view of watchtower ruins.

Highlight: The open geographical position brings maestral winds making La Pelosa the ultimate playground for windsurfers.

Puglia has a fair share of spectacular beaches, but Faraglioni (or “Sea Stacks”) di Sant’Andrea may be the region’s most stunning bathing spot. It’s an area near the village of Sant’Andrea where dramatic limestone “towers” emerge from blue waters and form intimate coves and whimsical arches. Nature sculpted these rocks with the power of wind and erosion. It’s not a beach in a general sense as you’ve got a steep stairway descent into the water and flatter rocks that serve as the place to put your towel. Come early to reserve your spot, bring swimming shoes and enjoy one of the most enchanting coastal landscapes in Italy.

Highlight: Swimming surrounded by the tall stacks is a memorable moment and you’ve got superb snorkeling opportunities.

Baia del Silenzio (or Bay of Silence) is among the most romantic beaches in Italy. Located in the Ligurian historic resort town of Sestri Levante, it’s a narrow sandy strip next to the colorful houses of the Old Town. With gentle green slopes, a castle on a hill and pastel-painted buildings, there’s something fairytale-like about this bay. The town also has a connection to fairytales as the world-famous writer Hans Christian Andersen used to live here.

Highlight: Walk on the opposite side of the Old Town to find Baia delle Favole (or Bay of Fairy Tales), a larger sandy beach named to honor the author. It provides more space and a fantastic vista of the Ligurian Coast.