Tellaro is a fishing village of 430 inhabitants on the Gulf of La Spezia (the Golfo dei Poeti) in eastern Liguria, 6km south of Lerici. The village is built on a rocky promontory that drops directly into the sea, there is no beach, only rocks and water, and the houses are stacked in the characteristic Ligurian manner: tall, narrow, painted in warm colors, interconnected by a single lane that winds from the tiny piazza to the church on the tip of the promontory. It has been listed among Italy's most beautiful villages (I Borghi più belli d'Italia). D.H. Lawrence lived at nearby Lerici in 1913-14 and wrote about the coast. The German writer Hermann Hesse described the area. The "Gulf of Poets" designation comes from this literary density. Tellaro is the most complete and most intimate of all the villages on this stretch of coast.
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The Village and the Octopus Legend
The famous legend of Tellaro: in the 16th century, the village was sleeping when a Saracen pirate raid was approaching. An octopus, living in the sea below the church, rose from the water and rang the church bell with its tentacles, waking the village in time to defend itself. The story is celebrated in the church of San Giorgio (on the cliff's edge, 18th century, with a painting depicting the miraculous octopus) and in the village's identity as a place that the sea itself protects. Whether or not you believe the story, the church on the cliff tip, with the sea visible on three sides from its exterior terrace, is one of the finest small churchyard settings in Liguria.
Visiting Tellaro
The lane through Tellaro takes about 15 minutes to walk from entrance to church. There is no car access to the village center, park at the small lot on the approach road (free, limited spaces) and walk in. The village has two or three restaurants, a bar, and a small alimentari (small grocery shop). The swimming is from the rocks below the church and from the small coves accessible on foot along the coast north and south. The water quality is exceptional, the Gulf of La Spezia benefits from the same clean Ligurian currents as the Cinque Terre, with less pressure from visitors on this section of coast.
Questions About Tellaro
How do I get to Tellaro?
By car from La Spezia: 20km south on the SP370, approximately 25 minutes. From Lerici (the nearest town, 6km): taxi or the local bus P (summer service). From the Cinque Terre: La Spezia by train (10-30 min depending on starting point), then bus or taxi to Tellaro. No train service directly to Tellaro. The road approach from Lerici along the cliff coast is spectacular.
Is Tellaro worth a special trip?
For those already on the Ligurian coast (La Spezia, Lerici, Cinque Terre): yes, absolutely, a half-day detour for the village and swimming. As a standalone destination requiring long travel: combine it with La Spezia (Naval Museum with a unique collection of torpedo boats and submarines), Lerici (castle, small beach, good restaurants), and the Cinque Terre for a complete Gulf of Poets itinerary.
What is the best season for Tellaro?
June and September: warm, swimmable, manageable crowds. July-August: the village fills, parking becomes impossible, the restaurants need booking, the rocks get crowded. October for the extraordinary light on the painted houses and empty rocks. Tellaro in a warm October morning, swimming alone from the rocks below the church with the village above, this is the experience that people who know it return for every year.
Curiosità su Tellaro
Il termine Golfo dei Poeti fu coniato nel 1919 dallo scrittore italiano Sem Benelli, non da Byron, Shelley, o Lawrence come molti credono. La storia degli scrittori worldente presenti sulla sponda orientale del Golfo della Spezia è comunque ricca: Percy Bysshe Shelley affittò una villa a San Terenzo (adiacente a Lerici) nell'estate del 1822 e morì in un naufragio al largo di Tellaro il 8 luglio 1822, durante una burrasca al ritorno da Livorno. Il suo corpo fu recuperato sulla spiaggia di Viareggio. Byron si trovava a Livorno quando apprese la notizia. D.H. Lawrence visse a Lerici nel 1913-14 scrivendo parte di Sons and Lovers e la quasi totalità di The Rainbow. La concentrazione di presenze letterarie britanniche in questo angolo della Liguria orientale nel XIX-XX secolo è il prodotto della combinazione di paesaggio straordinario, affitti economici (rispetto alla Costa Azzurra) e relativa facilità di accesso da Genova. Vedi anche: Liguria · Cinque Terre · Lerici.
