What to do around Spino Secco

We have 3 restaurants within walking distance of Spino Secco. In the summer we suggest you make a reservation. We are always happy to help you with reservations. Most restaurants do not open for dinner until after 7pm. Pizzeria All’Isola Felice is directly across the street from Spino Secco. It is open in lower season Thursday-Sunday 7pm to 10pm/ Tuesday – Sunday in high season. The pizza is homemade, baked in a wood oven and excellent, even Marietta's dog, Billie loves it! It is a very popular spot. Tel: (+39) 0187439418. El Caracol is year-round open on every day but Tuesdays 7pm-11pm. Family driven restaurant. On walking distance up a driveway to the left of the pizzeria. It has a nice outdoor terrace with a fabulous view overlooking Mulazzo. They offer Spanish & Italian food. They are famous for their paella, loved for their local Lunigiani food and seafood dishes. Tel: (+39) 0187439707 Enoteca “La Luna Brilla”, is a wine bar that also has a limited dinner menu. You must make a reservation at least the day before to eat there. They serve the best pasta carbonara in the region. In the high season it is open Thursday-Sunday 9am-1am. Lower season is open only on the weekends. Tel: (+39) 3401459190 Restaurants a little bit farther away Locanda Antico Mulino, Piazza S Giovanni 1, Villafranca. About 15 minutes from Spino Secco. Open for lunch at 11:30, Dinner at 7:15. Closed on Tuesday. Phone: 339 6391937. Traditional food from our region. Wonderful dishes with truffles when in season, delicious desserts. Ca’ di Rosso (Loc. Busatica, direction Pozzo) has a very nice terrace and the best Panigacci we tasted. Panigacci are a sturdy kind of bread, baked on clay platters on fire. You eat them directly and hot with toppings like cheese, meat or grilled vegetables. It’s a speciality from our Lunigiana region and when here, you should try hem. Make a reservation! In the summer they are open during the week and weekends, te rest of the year only in the weekends. On Sunday you can also lunch there. Agriturismocadirossi.it / 349 5912249 Taverna all’Oca Bianca, within the old town of Pontremoli, is one of our favorite restaurants. They serve the best dishes with fresh tartufo (truffle), and we also love their deserts (dolce). Waitress Julia speaks English. They are open from 12:30 for lunch and after 19:30 for dinner. Make a reservation! 0187 833219. Osteria da Bussé 1930, also within the old town of Pontremoli, is also a favorite. This restaurant has the best Testaroli di Pesto we tasted. Testaroli are a kind of spongy pasta that is prepared te way the Etruscans did it (before the Roman Empire existed). We like the honesty and freshness of the food in Da Bussé and we love the beautiful atmosphere inside. Book a table and call: 340 7465839. Convivium (VentiVenti) in the lovely borgo of Filetto (direction Bagnone) we like too. The food is inspired by typical Lunigiana dishes, but they give them their own twist. And all is fresh and seasonal. The restaurant has a nice terrace that is located on the medieval Piazza dell’Immacolata inside the historic walled village. Recommended! Book via the site: conviviumventiventi.it Beach Area Restaurants Ristorante Lorens is a casual seafood restaurant located right at the beach in Marina di Massa. With a nice terrace on the beach. Nice and friendly family runs the place. All we ordered we liked, especially the lightly fried fish and vegetables. Book a table online: ristoranteLorens.it Trattoria Pipino is a pasta and seafood restaurant at the beach of Marinella di Sarzano. Famous for its mussels. They have a big terrace outside. Busy with locals. Real Italian atmosphere so therefor we like it. Book a table by calling: 0187 64348 Trattoria Tre Stelle in exclusive beach town Forte dei Marmi is a fancy restaurant we recommend. In the center near the Prada, Louis Vuitton and other exclusive shops. The place is a bit of a splurge, but you won’t be disappointed. Fabulous wine list, elegant seafood and pasta dishes. 0584 80220 Cicillo a Mare, located in the seaside port of Lerici. By far one of the most spectacular settings on the sea! Cicillo a Mare is perched on the south side of the Castle. Park in Lerici and walk through the tunnel under the castle on the hill. The food gets mixed reviews but the views are breathtaking! Ciccilloamare.it; 0187 968191

Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manorolo and Riomaggiore are the 5 beautiful villages of National Parc Cinque Terre. Go during the week, because it will be crowded. Especially during the summer months. Parking near the villages is limited so taking a train or ferry is a better option. Parking is possible at La Spezia train station (40 km. from Spino Secco). From there you can take a 7-minute trainride to Riomaggiore. You could also drive to Pontremoli (10 km. from us) and take a train from there. At Cinque Terre you can hike from village to village or travel to the next one by boat or train.

You can walk down to the waterfall in our village then turn right. You will find a path on your right-hand side (before fenced in area). Follow it down to the ancient bridge over the river. Pretty walk. It’s a bit challenging to walk back up. But good exercise. You can also hike up behind restaurant El Caracol. Behind it is a dirt road that goes up to the top of the mountain. After 2 km. there is a little cabin. Behind that a chair you can sit in and look out at Spino Secco and the village of Mulazzo. There are many more beautiful hiking paths and biking routes in the area. We walked and biked around a lot ourselves and stored all these tested routes on our Wikiloc-account ‘Spino Secco Hiking & Biking’. We suggest that if you want to hike around here, you download the Wikiloc app and start following us. Stretti di Giaredo If it’s really hot, a trip to The Straits of Giaredo is a splendid idea. It’s a canyon, a 20- minute drive away. You can explore the canyon by walking in and out of the water and swimming. The nature and surrounding multi-colored rocks are overwhelming. Beware that the water is freezing cold, even when the temperatures are above 30 degrees Celsius. We have some wetsuits available at Spino Secco, but you could also consider a guided tour with Segeric.it. They also provide wetsuits. Parking is at the small village Cavezzana Gordana. Follow the path by foot around 20 minutes to the start of the canyon. Have a lovely swim!

There is a bakery, butcher, gelato shop, pharmacy & a grocery store in the nearby town Arpiola, 2 km from Mulazzo/Spino Secco. The grocery shop is called La Bottega di Emma (via della Liberazione 1). Opening hours are: 7:45am-1pm and 4:30-7:30pm. Sundays: 9am-12pm. There are larger grocery stores in Pontremoli and Villafranca. At 7km, Conad in Villafranca is closest. Opening hours: 8am-8pm. Sundays: 8am-1pm; 4-8pm.

Pontremoli Medieval town, 9 km from Spino Secco. Visit the market on Saturday and Wednesday morning. We recommend drinking a Bianco Oro aperitivo at Bar Luciano and then have lunch or dinner at Taverna All’Oca Bianca or Trattoria da Busse, both are very good. Lerici We love to visit Lerici. It’s only a 45-minute drive away and has all the charm of a Cinque Terre village without the massive number of tourists. It certainly will be busy in July and August, so when you want to go, go early in the morning. The medieval coastal town has a harbor, old city center, bigger beaches and small ones between the rocks. With the lush hills of the Montemarcello Magra-Vara Regional Natural Park around and the vista on the Bay of Poets, you have always a great view. When its not too hot, you can take a nice hike, for instance along the coastline from San Lorenzo to Lerici or a round trip between Lerici, La Serra and Tellaro. The boulevard offers many restaurants that serve fresh fish. Our favorite is Cicillo a Mare, just under the castle (Ciccilloamare.it) Lucca Visit the town of Lucca (1 hour drive, park outside the city wall). There is fabulous antique market the third Sunday of each month. You can walk on the walls around the old center. Inside you’ll find shopping streets, picturesque squares and outdoor cafes. Forte dei Marmi Luxurious beach resort village with top designer shops and classy beach clubs. There is also a public beach. Note: also, here all shops are closed between 1 and 4! We had lunch at Trattoria Tra Stelle and loved it! A 45-minute drive Carrara Marble Tour For around € 12.00 per person, you can take a 50/60-minute tour to the quarry of the famous Carrara marble at the spectacular basin of the Apuan Alps. You will discover the fine marbles of Carrara and the history that goes back to the Roman Empire. The marble kitchen counter in our communal fondo (Dante’s Den) comes from Carrara. The same place where Michelangelo found his raw material for his statues. You’ll passing through the steep quarry streets, made famous all over the world also as a film location. Among the most recent the breathtaking pursuit in the opening of 007 Quantum of Solace. There are many operators of tours, for instance carraramarbletour.it. Pisa A little bit over an hour drive away you’ll find Pisa. The center is small and cosy. Not to miss is the leaning tower. Maybe you only want the picture, but a tour will learn you more about the history. Pietrasanta A little under an hour away. Lovely medieval village full of artistic and exclusive boutiques, beautiful architecture, bars and restaurants. Filetto 15 Minutes drive. Medieval walled borgo near Villafranca. Nice square to drink an Aperol spritz. You must park outside the archway leading into the village. Eat dinner at restaurant Convivium. Make a reservation (conviviumventiventi.it)

Marina di Massa: closest to home In an almost straight line, it takes you about a half hour on the highway to reach the nearest Mediterranean beaches of Marina di Massa. There you’ll find both public and private beach clubs on a sandy stretch of about 9 kilometers down to the area called Cinquale. Parking is limited so we highly recommend you leave early (8am). You park along the road across from the beach and pay around 2 euros per hour. At the beach clubs you usually pay for a daily pass and beach chairs/parasols. The public beaches – around 10 in total - are free of charge. Partaccia is one of the largest and Bau beach is one of the smallest free beaches (and the only place that also allows dogs). La Baia Blu: beach club in a perfect bay La Baia Blu beach belongs to the town of Lerici but is find next to the beach town San Terenzo, between Punta Santa Teresa and Parco Falconara. Go there early in the morning because parking is a challenge (and not free of charge). The beach is equipped with an array of facilities, restrooms, showers, lounging areas, and restaurants. Baia Blu prices tend to be higher as it is in a lovely bay. A small part is a public beach, but most of the bay is taken by the private club La Baia Blu. Here you have to pay an entrance fee of €7 and around €15 per bed in high season. You must reserve ahead (via ‘prenota’ page at their website – www.labaiablu.it). Versilia: the flagship beaches of Italia If you love the beach life, take a trip a bit further south, to the Versilia coast. Located in the province of Lucca, this long stretch of sandy beaches and sea have the Apuan Alps in its background. You can spend your time on the beach or walk the splendid boulevards of Viareggio and Forte dei Marmi, enjoying boutique shopping, fresh fish dishes in the restaurants and the nightlife there after. Versilia is the place for discos and clubs such as La Capannina, the Seven Apples and Twiga. Compared to Marina di Massa, the Versilia beaches are more exclusive (and also more expensive). Levante: the sixth village of Cinque Terre Levanto is located just above Cinque Terre and is therefore also called the sixth village. There’s a train that brings you in five minutes to Cinque Terre’s Monterosso. But Levanto itself is also great fun! A small center with some shops, cafes and restaurants, cozy streets full of colored buildings and a wide beach with beach clubs on both the left and right. You can rent a bed at a beach club or visit the free beach. The prices of the beach clubs vary, so look further if you think it is too expensive. At Bagni Blue Marlin (recommended!) you pay around €25 for two beach beds, but Bagni ValleSanta will charge around €40 for the same. Looking for a quieter place? Then walk further, past the harbor. There you will find a piece of free beach.