Why traveling to Le Marche for a week? If the point of your upcoming holidays is to enjoy a few days of complete relaxation, visiting some museumsspending days at the beach and having a shopping spree, well, the south of Le Marche is the perfect destination for you!
Because of its position between the Adriatic Sea and the Apennine mountains, Le Marche can be defined as a natural open-air museum. It has two national and four regional parks, which are the setting of villages and cities of art scattered throughout Le Marche territory.
But that’s not all. If you are particularly attracted to itinerant holidays, Le Marche is one of the most suited places to this type of travel, thanks to its comfortable transport connections and proximity among the most interesting sights to visit.
Your destination changes every day or even by the hour when getting around the south of Le Marche. There is plenty of cultural treasures to discover, local food and wines to taste, beaches and promenades perfect to relax and keep fit.
Your journey to discover the south of Le Marche can start from Senigallia, a town located in the province of Ancona. Start from Foro Annonario, a square surrounded by arcades overlooking the river Misa, then walk along Piazza Manni and reach the imposing Rocca Roveresca, once used for defensive purposes and today home to temporary exhibitions and events. Right in front of this huge structure there’s Piazza del Duca, where stand two palaces - Palazzo del Duca and Palazzetto Baviera.
Proceeding towards the sea you get to the street Corso 2 Giugno with its many inviting shops, so you can stop here and have some shopping before leaving the city.
In addition to a rich cultural heritage, Senigallia also offers its tourists a bit of sun. With its velvet beach and its panoramic Rotonda overlooking the sea, the city is confirmed as one of the most popular destinations among young people.
The seafront is ideal for a bike ride or a walk, you can also visit the port and take amazing pictures or simply stop watching the quiet daily life of the fishermen on the pier.
Heading a few kilometres out from the historic centre and from the Riviera to continue your journey to the south of Le Marche, you’ll come across many wineries where you can taste the renowned local wine and enjoy the breathtaking view. The next recommended destination located about 20 kilometres from Senigallia is Corinaldo, a small medieval town surrounded by one of the most beautiful 15th-century city wall in the region.
Corinaldo is one of the most charming villages in Italy, with its medieval hill streets and typical country landscape of Le Marche.
Continuing the journey in the south of Le Marche you can stop in Cupramontana, an important area for the production of Verdicchio and in Staffolo, an interesting village where you can visit the church of San Francesco and the Museum of Wine art. Next destination is Jesi, a small city rich in history and food and wine traditions.
Driving towards the coast, you easily reach the Conero Riviera and the city of Ancona, the capital of Le Marche region known for its port and for the beautiful Cathedral of San Ciriaco.
The historic centre of Ancona has countless impressive buildings and architectural structures such as the theatre Teatro delle Muse, Porto Antico, the arc of Trajan, the arc of Clementino and the recently-built fountain Fontana dei Due Soli.
But the real attraction in the coastal area of Ancona is the town of Portonovo, a bay within the Conero Park offering a unique panoramic view over the coast of Le Marche.
Travelling along the coast you get to the two most popular and visited seaside resorts of Le Marche region, Sirolo and Numana: great destinations both for families with children and for young people looking for memorable scuba diving and party nights.
With the sea behind you, looking towards the hinterland you’ll notice the Cathedral of Santa Casa di Loreto, a sanctuary perched in the hills and a destination for spiritual pilgrimages of the faithful from all over the world.
Music lovers have to stop at Castelfidardo, the capital of accordion. If you rather prefer a trip in close contact with nature, opt for a visit to the Frasassi caves, a set of natural tunnels that will take your breath away.
You can continue your itinerant journey to Porto Recanati, an ancient fishing village of the 15th century. Here you can alternate sightseeing and tasting of the typical local food with the sea in the background.
The city of Recanati is worth a visit. It’s the birthplace of the great poet Giacomo Leopardi and every street has a name taken from his poems.
Going towards the coast, there’s the city of Civitanova Marche, famous for the production of fine shoes and then Porto Potenza Picena, a town known for its beaches and nightlife. Finally there is Montelupone, a village with typical medieval connotations such as the ancient walls, the watchtowers, the gates and the defensive systems still perfectly intact.
Another interesting historic centre is the one in Tolentino. If you have some extra time you can also stop in Pioraco, a small medieval village, in Matelica, a city famous for its octagonal fountain and San Severino Marche, which still retains a Romanesque core with the town Cathedral and the Renaissance square Piazza del Popolo with its historic buildings. Don’t miss the art gallery and the church of San Lorenzo.
After a day full of art and culture, you can relax in the National Park of the Sibillini Mountains, may be in the garden of the Cistercian Abbey of Santa Maria di Chiaravalle of Fiastra, dating back to 1142.
And what about a walk or a bike ride around the Lake Fiastra to end your day? This natural area is perfect for relaxation and sports, great for spending time with family or friends.
Once you reach Porto Sant'Elpidio, you can finally give in to your shopping spree in the many outlets and shops. In a very short time you can find yourself in Sant'Elpidio a Mare, which has an interesting historic centre and art gallery.
Going more south, you get to Falerone, a necessary stop to taste good local wine. In addition, in Piane di Falerone you can visit the Regional Archaeological Park with the remains of the ancient Roman city of Falerio Picenus housing traces of the aqueduct, some villas and the splendid theatre where comedies and events take place during the summer.
Another destination is Porto San Giorgio, a renowned seaside resort with a sandy beach dotted with century-old palm trees and Art Nouveau villas.
To end your day in a beautiful setting, there is nothing better than the city of Fermo. After a bit of history with a visit to the Roman cisterns, relax with a good coffee and enjoy the hill view from the square Piazzale del Girfalco, it’s worth it!
If your holiday is lacking in some sports activities, just spend a few hours at the lake of San Ruffino where you can practice almost every kind of sport, from canoeing, to horse riding to sailing courses.
If all this physical exercise makes you hungry, just drive a few kilometres towards Campofilone, the hometown of an ancient culinary tradition: the handmade Maccheroncini di Campofilone. It’s a sort of thin square-shaped spaghetti served with local sauce.
Now you have reached the southernmost part of Le Marche, in the area commonly known as Piceno.
This is probably the most characteristic area of the entire Region, with ancient villages rising in the rolling hills and long beaches of fine sand.
Welcome to Ascoli Piceno, the city of a hundred towers and roofs of red tiles. It’s rich in art and centuries-old history. Starting from the square Piazza del Popolo, you can admire the palace Palazzo dei Capitani and the fascinating church Chiesa di San Francesco. The smell from the various shops in the square literally invites you to take a seat and taste the various types of Ascolana olives, one of the culinary treasures of Le Marche region famous all over the world.
Then you can move towards Offida, famous for the ancient tradition of bobbin lace and characterised by ancient walls and the imposing 14th-century tower of the Town Hall.
Rising on a panoramic hill, the Abbey of Santa Maria della Rocca is an impressive Romanesque-Gothic structure where you can admire truly impressive frescoes.
In Le Marche there is no need to travel many kilometres before heading from the greenest hills to the warmest beaches. In no time at all, you can reach San Benedetto del Tronto, one of the most fashionable seaside resorts of the Riviera delle Palme. Here, you can relax in the large sandy beach or in the beautiful shaded promenade lined with palms and oleanders.
The southern area of Le Marche is a perfect blend of charm and magic atmospheres all year long, in every city or village you visit, on every beach or bay.
Le Marche sits at the top of the world ranking for quality of life and health of the environment. Moreover it is one of the most beloved and versatile places in Italy. The landscape in Le Marche attracts tourists, who spend entire days walking through medieval streets, riding along the lake banks or seafront, climbing the rugged peaks of the Apennines.
Le Marche not only offers a great variety of landscapes and natural patterns that are unique in Italy, but also a wide choice of typical dishes and food products to rival the rest of the Peninsula.
The Adriatic Sea hosts a precious selection of seafood: pannocchie, sea slugs, marzoline, octopus, scampi, sole and turbot can be purchased early in the morning at the fish market near the piers where fishing boats dock.
In Le Marche region, pasta is the undisputed core of cooking traditions with its two main variants: homemade egg pasta and manufactured durum wheat pasta.
Moreover, the richness of the territory facilitates the flowering of many fruit trees, such as peach and apricot trees, fig and sour cherry trees, which allow the production of genuine jams and marmalades.
All the tastes related to Le Marche region, like the many olive oils or the great variety of wines and vinegars, come from these wonderful landscapes which overlook snowy peaks on one side and long warm and popular beaches on the other.
Le Marche has attracted a great number of visitors over the years. Despite the passage of time, this region manages to keep alive an almost mystical climate, which preserves the past and lives again it in the present, always with an eye to future and innovations.
The mixed culture of Le Marche is reflected in the landscapes, traditions and typical dishes. There is no appropriate method to visit Le Marche but most of all, it is not even necessary. Just experience a bit of everything, without following a scheduled plan but getting lost amongst the wide beaches, narrow streets or hill winding roads.