10 Reasons To Love Cesenatico

written by Tiana Kai
Cesenatico Boats

Cesenatico Boats

To be completely honest, I have never heard of Cesenatico. I was first like Cesenati-who? Ah, it’s on the Adriatic Sea in Emilia-Romagna, so there are beaches and a salty breeze.

Alessandra C. contacted me to be a part of a 35 person international blog tour this past May. She worked in hand with Cesenatico BellaVita the consortium of hotels who opened their rooms up to all of us bloggers… and gave us bikes with bells and baskets.

Cesenatico Bella Vita Bloggers
What a hungry bunch of bloggers at our amazing seafood dinner at Hotel Miramare

I happily accepted the invite because it was on the beach and it was a great opportunity to meet new bloggers (I mean look at that bunch!) and to catch up with those I knew on Twitter.

It took me about two weeks to remember how to pronounce Cesenatico. Luckily, I got it down by the time I took the train with Krista of AllaFiorentina from Florence – Bologna – Cesenatico. We had just about 3 hours of chit chat gearing up for an interesting weekend.

10 Reasons why I love Cesenatico

1. Although it rained for part of the time, it was still a gorgeous backdrop for a fun weekend with an endless amount of photo ops!

Cesenatico in the rain

2. The canals are so beautiful and whimsical, filled with all types of colorful boats

Cesenatico in the rain

3. Pretty pretty sunsets!

Cesenatico sunset

4. A private ride on a vintage 1925 boat

Cesenatico vintage boat ride

5. Sardine lunch! They were grilled and so crispy, served with white wine and seafood risotto

Mmmm Sardines in Cesenatico!

6. Biking 3km to 6km a day along the beach and through downtown with fellow bloggers—it’s a sneaky way to exercise while on ‘vacation’

Hotel bike

7. Bagno Marè is a gorgeous sea view spot—I recommend going for sundowners 

Bagno Marè

8. Although we didn’t stay long, Sloppy Joe’s is a nice bar where I would love to get a table, sit down and party with friends—great music and nice staff (also open for meals)

Sloppy Joe's in Cesenatico

9. A really impressive dinner (bucatini pasta, mussels and to die for chocolate cake) with Adam at Hotel Michelangelo where I was their guest for three nights

Mussels with Adam

10. Drinks on the über lux Hotel Excelsior terrace with Adam and Teresa (she loved to rub it in that her hotel was so fab!)

Cheers!

Things I learned about Cesenatico

  • There are other places to see on the east coast besides Rimini
  • It’s close to Cesena and Ravenna, two places I would love to visit
  • This port town was founded in 1302 and currently has 20k residents
  • Cesenatico sits on 7km of coastline
  • Their Maritime Museum is literally on water, plus indoors where we took a private tour
  • In 1848, Garibaldi and 200 men set off from Cesenatico to rescue Venice when it was under siege
  • Cesare Borgia requested that Leonardo da Vinci surveyed the canal
  • The famous bike race “Nove Colli” (Nine Hills) is held here each May
  • Christmas is a beautiful time to visit because of all the lights on the boats and downtown buildings

Although my summers tend to be in Viareggio, I can see why so many families make Cesenatico their summer destination.

It’s safe, friendly and great for those on a budget. The boardwalks are filled with beach clubs and shops. When the sun’s out it’s gorgeous and the seafood is worth the journey. Cheers to that.

Grazie mille Cesenatico Bellavita and to all the amazing bloggers I met by the sea!

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21 comments

Niccolò Brogi June 5, 2013 at 2:02 am

Sardines look good!

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Tiana Kai June 5, 2013 at 2:05 am

They were very good! 😮

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Whitney Richelle June 5, 2013 at 10:25 am

I would love to see the boats with Christmas lights during the holidays! Sounds magical!

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Tiana Kai June 5, 2013 at 12:00 pm

A tour guide showed us some pictures, they were very romantic… she said it was a great way to increase tourism during the cold holidays.

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Francesca Tammarazio Bogatsu June 5, 2013 at 12:05 pm

wow! love the pics…and the sardines of course!!!

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Tiana Kai June 5, 2013 at 1:46 pm

Yes, of course those sardines! 😉 I loved them.

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Tiana Kai June 5, 2013 at 1:47 pm

Ha, I see you use Pleens! 😉 I first saw them at a publishing conference in Milano a few months ago. I’ve used it twice.

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Sara June 5, 2013 at 12:07 pm

Love the post! It was nice to meet you all and a great experience!

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Tiana Kai June 5, 2013 at 1:47 pm

Thank you, you too! Hope to bump into you on one of my travels. 🙂

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Alícia Bea June 5, 2013 at 12:32 pm

Beautiful post Tiana. It was great meeting you! Greetings from Madrid

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Tiana Kai June 5, 2013 at 12:39 pm

Gracias!! 😉

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Alex Roe June 5, 2013 at 4:14 pm

Great pics, Tiana! I liked Cesenatico too – especially the seafood – I saw it, and ate it 😉

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Tiana Kai June 5, 2013 at 4:18 pm

Haha, yes ‘sea food’, that’s my kinda diet!

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Bonnie Marie June 5, 2013 at 7:03 pm

Great boat trip! I loved trying to translate ‘Sloppy Joe’ to the Italian bloggers … ‘a kind of soupy meatball sandwich you eat with your hands so you slop all over yourself’. Bad impression of Americans, LOL!

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Tiana Kai June 5, 2013 at 9:29 pm

Haha, ya exactly! Funny how they named it that, if they only knew that the first impression is not good just by the name alone. Luckily, the inside is nothing like a nasty, messy, heavy sandwich.

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Donato Mangialardo February 11, 2014 at 12:04 am

yes – sardoni scottadito! In my hometown is a total staple. they say it’s our “flagship dish”. infants get that too apparently

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Tiana Kai February 11, 2014 at 1:47 pm

I really loved them. There was a lot of meat on them, surprisingly. Any seafood dish is my favorite!

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