Soggiorna
There is one thing about Sanremo's beaches that does not exist elsewhere on the Ligurian coast: they are all reached from a cycle path. Where the railway ran there is now a flat, traffic-free route, and the beaches hang below it one after another.
It changes how you plan the day. You do not have to pick a beach in the morning and stay there: you take the bike or walk, and go down wherever you can see there is room.
What kind of sea it is
The shore alternates sand and pebbles, and it is worth knowing before you picture white sand: here you pass from sandy stretches to mixed ones within a few hundred metres, and the serviced parts sit alongside the free ones.
Anyone after fine sand and a bottom that shelves gently needs to move fifteen minutes along the coast — and there is a where, below.
Tre Ponti
It is the largest free beach in the Sanremo area, and it has something free beaches usually do not: facilities, with toilets and showers.
That makes it the practical default. For the same reason it is the busiest on August weekends: people who go there for quiet go in the morning.
Capo Pino
The other name that always comes up when people talk about Sanremo's sea, on the opposite side from the centre. It works as the alternative when Tre Ponti is full, and it is the kind of place you find by coming down off the cycle path without having planned it.
Bussana Mare
Bussana is Sanremo's main hamlet and splits into three: Bussana Nuova, Bussana Vecchia — the artists' village, which is another story and has its own guide — and Bussana Mare, the part with the beach, looking onto a bay.
It is to the east, beyond the city, and you get there by bike along the path or by bus.
If you have small children: Arma di Taggia
Worth saying even though it is not Sanremo, because it is the right answer to the right question. Arma di Taggia, a little over fifteen minutes by car, has Blue Flag water with sandy beaches and a shallow bottom: it is where a child who cannot swim can stand in the water without anyone holding a hand.
Sanremo's seabed is not like that, and pretending otherwise would turn a day into supervision rather than a day out.
The cycle path, and why it changes a day at the sea
It is worth knowing what it is, because it is not a lane carved out beside a road. In 2001 the single-track railway that ran along the coast was dismantled and moved inland, and on its route the path of the "Riviera dei Fiori" coastal park was built: 24 kilometres between Ospedaletti and San Lorenzo al Mare, flat because they were rails, with no junctions and no cars. Between Imperia and Ospedaletti, after the 2023 works, 28 are passable.
The practical result is that the beach is not a destination but a stop. You go out with a towel, ride ten minutes, come down wherever there is room, and if you do not like it you go back up and carry on — which on a coast served only by the main road you do not do.
There is also an effect nobody mentions: the path runs above the beaches, so from up there you can see how full they are before going down.
Getting there
- By bike or on foot, along the cycle path: the way this coast is built to be used.
- By bus, on the local Riviera Trasporti lines, which link the centre to the beaches and the neighbouring towns.
- By car, knowing that in high season the problem is not the road but where to leave it.
The detail on trains, motorway and parking is coming in a separate guide, in preparation.
Which to choose
- First time, with facilities: Tre Ponti.
- With children who cannot swim: Arma di Taggia, for the shallow water.
- For quiet: early morning, wherever you come down off the path.
- For a different day: Bussana Mare, then up to Bussana Vecchia mid-afternoon.
Frequently asked questions
Which is the biggest beach at Sanremo?
The free beach at Tre Ponti, the largest in the area, and one of the few free beaches with toilets and showers.
Are Sanremo's beaches sand or pebbles?
They alternate: you pass from sandy stretches to mixed ones within a few hundred metres, with serviced and free parts side by side.
Which is the best beach at Sanremo with children?
For a child who cannot swim, the right choice is not in Sanremo: it is Arma di Taggia, a little over fifteen minutes by car, with sandy beaches and shallow water. In town, Tre Ponti remains the handiest for facilities.
Can you get to the beach at Sanremo without a car?
Yes, and it is the best way: the cycle path built on the old railway runs above the whole shore, and the Riviera Trasporti lines link the centre to the beaches and the neighbouring towns.
What is Bussana Mare?
The seaward part of Bussana, Sanremo's main hamlet, which splits into Bussana Nuova, Bussana Vecchia and Bussana Mare. It looks onto a bay and is reached by bike along the cycle path.