Backed by the marble mountains of the Apuan Alps, Marina di Carrara is a coastal village between La Spezia and Pisa. It is so-called for its role as an exportation port for Carrara marble, which is sourced from the inland city of Carrara.
Rent a sunlounger and beach umbrella for a day on the sands of Marina di Carrara, which is the northernmost beach in Tuscany. It stretches north-west of the Porto di Carrara, where you can watch as Carrara marble is craned onto awaiting ships. Extending into the Ligurian Sea is the breezy Rotonda del Pontile.
Marina di Carrara makes a good base for visiting one of the area’s active marble quarries to discover how the Romans built their villas using this natural stone. On a guided tour, hear how Michelangelo and Antonio Canova would travel to Carrara to handpick pieces of marble to use in their sculptural works.
Getting there
Marina di Carrara is around 30 minutes’ drive from La Spezia and 40 minutes from Pisa International Airport, which has flights to destinations across Europe and North Africa. Regular buses connect to Marina di Carrara while trains serve the nearby station of Carrara-Avenza.