Liguria · Genova
Lavagna
The Tigullio town that gave its name to slate, and its counts to a line of popes.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Lavagna is on our list
It holds Bandiera Blu, Spighe Verdi and Città dell'Olio.
The nearest town with a letter is Chiavari, No. 25, 14 min by car.
Subscribe and you get Lavagna's letter the day it comes out.
Visiting
- Best time
- Apr–Oct
- By car
- 44 min from Genoa
- By train
- Station in the comune
- Population
- 12,367
- J12°
- F13°
- M15°
- A17°
- M21°
- J25°
- J28°
- A29°
- S25°
- O20°
- N16°
- D13°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. The sea is warmest in August at 28° and coldest in February at 14°. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Going to the sea? How to find the free beaches in Italy.
Why come
Lavagna sits at sea level on the eastern Tigullio, thirty-five kilometers southeast of Genova. The slate quarried from the San Giacomo mountains behind the town roofed the Genovese palazzi and lined the schoolrooms of half of Italy, which is why the Italian word for chalkboard is also lavagna. Around the year 1000 the Counts of Lavagna held this territory, and the family that descended from them, the Fieschi, rose from it to produce two popes.
The frazione of San Salvatore sits above the main town, holding the basilica that one of those popes ordered built in bands of white marble and slate. Down at sea level, the old center folds around the staircase and square where, on 14 August, the town reenacts a thirteenth-century wedding with the Torta dei Fieschi, a giant cake carried out to the crowd. The beach holds Bandiera Blu at the opposite edge of town, near the port. A town built on a stone that traveled far beyond it, and on a family that did the same.
How to get there
From Genoa (GOA), about 54 min by car.
Pisa (PSA) is about 1 h 49 min away.
By car from the center of Pisa 1 h 40 min or Parma 2 h 9 min.
There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.
Coming from Genoa, Pisa or Milan?
Coming by train into Genova Piazza Principe? Lavagna is about 51 min away by road.
Every town within reach of Genoa airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Basilica di Santo Stefano
Parish church rebuilt over a sixth-century foundation, crowning the main square at the top of a wide staircase where the annual cake pageant begins its procession.
Basilica di San Salvatore dei Fieschi
Thirteenth-century basilica in the frazione of San Salvatore, ordered by Pope Innocent IV in 1244, façade in alternating bands of white marble and local slate.
Spiaggia di Lavagna
Long Bandiera Blu beach on the Tigullio, with one of the largest tourist ports in northern Italy at the western end.
Piazza Marconi
Main square at the foot of the Basilica di Santo Stefano staircase, the stage for the 14 August Torta dei Fieschi each year.
Cave di Ardesia
Working slate quarries in the hills behind the town, the source of the dark stone that gave Lavagna its name and roofed the palaces of Genova.
From the guides
Where to eat
Not our picks, but places the guides put their name to: a Michelin star, a Gambero Rosso fork, a Slow Food snail, a Michelin Key for the hotels. Worth a table, a counter, or a night when you pass through.
RaieüTrattoria
Raieü carries a Michelin Bib Gourmand, two Gambero Rosso prawns, plus a Slow Food snail.
AriaRistorante
Aria carries two Gambero Rosso forks (80/100), plus a spot in the Michelin Guide.
Impronta d'AcquaRistorante
Impronta d'Acqua holds one Michelin star and two Gambero Rosso forks (83/100).
1 more place the guides name in Lavagna
Radical FarmhouseAgriturismo
Radical Farmhouse has a Gambero Rosso listing to its name.
Before you sit down: how to order at a restaurant, how to spot a tourist trap, what aperitivo is and how the Italian bar works.
Living here
Could you live here?
Lavagna meets all 3 of our rules for a small town.
- 12,367 people, inside our sweet spot of 5,000 to 20,000: a real town, still one community.
- Genova, a city of 564,080, is 44 min by car. Inside our 30 to 60 minutes: close for the services, far enough to keep its own life.
- A station of its own. Trains are the overlooked way to get around Italy: no parking, straight into the center.
The rules come from our series Where to Move in Italy, written from the places we have lived: Part 1, The End of the Road · Part 2, The Small Town · Part 3, The City · Part 4, The Postcard · Part 5, The Other Half. The towns we would pick are in Part 6, The Best Towns.
- Population 12,367, down 2.4% since 2015
- Nearest city Genoa, 44 min drive
- Train station in the comune
- A national health service hospital in the comune · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €2,300 to €3,400 per m² to buy, €6.50 to €9.60 per m² a month to rent
Weighing a move here? See the moving year.
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- A local hub
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Full fibre reaches 46% of homes
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 3, low hazard
- Genoa airport (GOA), 54 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital Genoa, 44 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
8% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Albania, Romania and Ecuador, against 9% across Italy. 43 of them come from English-speaking countries or western and northern Europe, mostly France, Germany and the United Kingdom. There are 310 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 46% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Genoa province ranks 43rd of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.
Health and schools
There is an emergency room in the comune. The nearest major one is in Genoa, 39 km away. The nearest children's emergency room is in Genoa, 39 km away. The nearest IB school is The International School in Genoa, 29 km as the crow flies.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
A home that is not your main one pays 1.06% a year in property tax, charged on the cadastral value rather than the price. A main home pays none unless it is in a luxury category. The town adds 0.8% to your income tax. 7% pensioner tax: this town is not in a qualifying area.
Information, not tax advice. Confirm with a professional.
What it costs
The average household in Liguria spends about €2,230 a month, €490 of it on food, against about €2,170 across Italy. A family of three pays about €552 a year for water, on the Liguria average. In Genoa, the provincial capital, in September 2026, an espresso cost €1.28, a meal in a pizzeria €11.86 and a man's haircut €17.37.
Climate and risk
It is in climate zone D, on a scale from A, the warmest, to F, the coldest, and heating may run from November 1 to April 15, up to 12 hours a day, unless the mayor changes it. 57% of residents live in a zone the national maps rate high for floods, 59% in a high or medium one. 2% live in a zone rated high or very high for landslides.
These shares cover the whole comune, not any one street. Check an address on IdroGEO.
Moving from abroad? Which visa you need. Sources: ISTAT, the Ministry of Health, ISPRA, the Finance Ministry, the Ministry of Enterprise, Poste Italiane, the comuni, the IB, International Schools Database, Il Sole 24 Ore, Cittadinanzattiva.
Known for
ARDESIA / SLATE
The dark slate of the San Giacomo mountains, source of the Italian word lavagna for chalkboard and roofing material across Genova.
I FIESCHI
Powerful Genovese family descended from the Counts of Lavagna, producing Pope Innocent IV in 1243 and Pope Adrian V in 1276.
TORTA DEI FIESCHI
Each 14 August, reenactment of the 1230 wedding of Count Opizzo Fiesco with a giant cake distributed in Piazza Marconi.
Common questions
- What is Lavagna known for?
- Lavagna is the Tigullio town that gave its name to slate, and its counts to a line of popes.
- Where is Lavagna?
- Lavagna is a comune in the province of Genova, in Liguria, at 6 meters above sea level.
- What is the nearest airport to Lavagna?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Genoa (GOA), about 54 min by car.
- Can you get to Lavagna without a car?
- Yes. There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive by train.
- How long is the drive from Pisa to Lavagna?
- About 1 h 40 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Lavagna?
- Best in Apr–Oct. August is the warmest month, averaging 29 degrees, and December the wettest, with about 15 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Lavagna?
- Loano, Chiavari and Varazze.
- How many people live in Lavagna?
- 12,367 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Lavagna a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Lavagna is a small town that meets all 3 of our rules. The nearest city, Genova, is 44 min away by car. There is a national health service hospital in the comune. Full fibre reaches 46% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Recognized as
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 6 m
- Population: 12,367
- Surface area: 13.88 km²
These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.
The ranked lists
Lists Lavagna appears in
- The 6 best olive oil towns within 90 minutes of GenoaNear Genoaolive oilwithin 90 min6 towns · smallest 1,067 residents · closest 32 min away
- The best hidden towns that eat well in the province of GenovaGenova provinceeats wellhidden6 towns · smallest 2,796 residents
- The best beach towns in the province of GenovaGenova provinceclean beach7 towns · smallest 2,486 residents
- The best hidden coastal towns in the province of GenovaGenova provincecoastalhidden7 towns · smallest 2,486 residents
- The best olive oil towns you can reach by train in LiguriaLiguriaolive oilby train7 towns · smallest 5,050 residents
- The best towns with a serious restaurant in the province of GenovaGenova provinceserious restaurant7 towns · smallest 351 residents
Featured on
Lavagna appears on this themed pick from our Collections:
Near here, with a letter
- Written about. No. 25.
Chiavari
Province: Genova
The Tigullio capital between Portofino and the Cinque Terre, a 27,000-person Genoese trading town built around a thirteenth-century grid of porticoed streets.
14 min by car
- Written about. No. 26.
Portofino
Province: Genova
Three hundred and fifty-one residents, the smallest municipal territory in the metropolitan area, and the harbor every superyacht in the Mediterranean wants to anchor in.
11 km away
- Written about. No. 28.
Sestri Levante
Province: Genova
The Tigullio town of two bays, split by a peninsula where a river once silted an island to the shore.
21 min by car
Our guide
Lavagna is in our Riviera di Levante guide
Riviera di Levante: the towns, when to go, how to get there
The Riviera di Levante guide came out of the letter. Letters from the towns we visit. Free.
Read the guide: The coast in the shadow of five villages. 19 towns, the drive and train times, the months, where to eat and sleep.
Paid plans, the moving year and the books are on the membership page.