Marche · Pesaro e Urbino
Pesaro
The Adriatic port at the mouth of the Foglia, founded as Roman Pisaurum in 184 BC and given to the world by Rossini in 1792.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Pesaro is on our list
It holds Bandiera Blu, Città dell'Olio and Città della Ceramica.
Subscribe and you get Pesaro's letter the day it comes out.
Visiting
- Best time
- May–Sep
- By car
- 41 min from Rimini
- By train
- Station in the comune
- Population
- 95,266
- J11°
- F13°
- M14°
- A17°
- M22°
- J28°
- J30°
- A30°
- S26°
- O21°
- N15°
- D12°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. The sea is warmest in August at 29° and coldest in January at 9°. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Going to the sea? How to find the free beaches in Italy.
Why come
Pesaro sits at the mouth of the Foglia river on the Adriatic, founded as the Roman colony of Pisaurum in 184 BC on the Via Flaminia and held in turn by Malatesta, Sforza and Della Rovere lords through the Renaissance. The city was Italian Capital of Culture in 2024. The centro storico is bookended by two poles: the Rocca Costanza holds one end, a fortress built to defend the town, while the beach runs southeast from the port along the other, the source of the city's working summer economy rather than its history.
Inland and above, on the Monte San Bartolo hills, the Della Rovere and Sforza built their summer villa away from the density of the port town below, a separation of ruling residence from civic center that still marks the geography. The Palazzo Mosca, in the center, gathers what the town has made and collected: paintings, a modern audio amphitheater, and the maiolica that gave Pesaro its recognition as a city of ceramics. Together the fortress, the villa, the beach and the palazzo describe a town shaped by defense, hillside retreat, coastal work and civic collection, each occupying a different piece of ground rather than competing for the same one.
How to get there
From Rimini (RMI), about 55 min by car.
Ancona (AOI) is about 59 min away.
By car from the center of Ancona 1 h 11 min or Bologna 1 h 49 min.
There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.
Coming from Bologna?
Coming by train into Rimini? Pesaro is about 39 min away by road.
Every town within reach of Rimini airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Rocca Costanza
Renaissance fortress commissioned by Costanzo Sforza in 1474, four round corner towers and a moat, anchoring the eastern edge of the centro storico.
Musei Civici di Palazzo Mosca
Civic museum in the former Mosca residence, holding paintings, the Pesaro maiolica collection and the Sonosfera audio amphitheater by David Monacchi.
Teatro Rossini
Opera house rebuilt in 1818 on the site of the 1637 Teatro del Sole, filled for two weeks each August when the Rossini Opera Festival takes over, alongside the Vitrifrigo Arena, for the run of performances.
Villa Imperiale
Sforza summer residence on the Monte San Bartolo hills above town, expanded in the 1530s by the Della Rovere with frescoes by Dosso Dossi and Bronzino.
Spiaggia di Ponente e Levante
The beach runs southeast from the port, flat and continuous, the stretch of coast that structures how the city spends its summer.
From the guides
Where to eat and stay
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.
Lo ScudieroRistorante
Two Gambero Rosso forks (80/100) for Lo Scudiero, along with a place in L'Espresso's Top 300 and a spot in the Michelin Guide.
NostranoRistorante
Nostrano carries one Michelin star, two Gambero Rosso forks (85/100), plus a place in L'Espresso's Top 300.
MarinoRistorante
Marino holds two Gambero Rosso forks (80/100) and a spot in the Michelin Guide.
5 more places the guides name in Pesaro
SalicorniaTrattoria
Salicornia has one Gambero Rosso prawn and a Slow Food snail.
GibasRistorante
Gibas has a spot in the Michelin Guide to its name.
OperaTrattoria
One Gambero Rosso prawn, at Opera.
Rossini BistrotBistrot
Rossini Bistrot has two Gambero Rosso tables to its name.
Grand Hotel VittoriaHotel
Grand Hotel Vittoria has a place on Italy's historic-locali register 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?
Pesaro is a city.
- A city of 95,266 people, and a provincial capital: the services are here, not a drive away.
- A station of its own, so the rest of Italy is a train ride away.
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 95,266, down 0.7% since 2015
- Train station in the comune
- A national health service hospital in the comune · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €2,150 to €3,500 per m² to buy, €6.50 to €12.00 per m² a month to rent
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 80% of homes
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 2, medium hazard
- Rimini airport (RMI), 55 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital Ancona, 1 h 11 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
8% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Romania, Ukraine and Moldova, against 9% across Italy. 148 of them come from English-speaking countries or western and northern Europe, mostly Germany, the United Kingdom and France. There are 265 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 15% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Pesaro e Urbino province ranks 31st 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 Rimini, 34 km away. The nearest IB school is International School of Rimini, 32 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 at the 2025 rate, 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, with nothing due on income under €9,000. 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 Marche spends about €2,480 a month, €620 of it on food, against about €2,170 across Italy. A family of three pays about €643 a year for water, on the Marche average.
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. 14% of residents live in a zone the national maps rate medium for floods. Under 1% 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
ROSSINI
Gioachino Rossini was born here in 1792; the Rossini Opera Festival each August and UNESCO's 2017 Creative City of Music designation both rest on his legacy.
BLUE FLAG BEACHES
Seven kilometers of fine sand along the Adriatic, awarded Bandiera Blu and the working spine of Pesaro's summer economy.
PESARO MAIOLICA
The city's ceramic tradition, recognized as Città della Ceramica, with a permanent collection across the rooms of Palazzo Mosca.
Common questions
- What is Pesaro known for?
- Pesaro is the Adriatic port at the mouth of the Foglia, founded as Roman Pisaurum in 184 BC and given to the world by Rossini in 1792.
- Where is Pesaro?
- Pesaro is a comune in the province of Pesaro e Urbino, in Marche, at 11 meters above sea level.
- What is the nearest airport to Pesaro?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Rimini (RMI), about 55 min by car.
- Can you get to Pesaro without a car?
- Yes. There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive by train.
- How long is the drive from Ancona to Pesaro?
- About 1 h 11 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Pesaro?
- Best in May–Sep. July is the warmest month, averaging 30 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 10 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Pesaro?
- Senigallia, Ravenna and Trieste.
- How many people live in Pesaro?
- 95,266 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Pesaro a good place to live?
- Pesaro is a city of 95,266 people, the kind of place Part 3 of our Where to Move in Italy series is about. There is a national health service hospital in the comune. Full fibre reaches 80% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 11 m
- Population: 95,266
- Surface area: 126.77 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 Pesaro appears in
- The best coastal towns you can reach by train in MarcheMarchecoastalby train6 towns · smallest 13,066 residents
- The best towns with a serious restaurant in the province of Pesaro e UrbinoPesaro e Urbino provinceserious restaurant6 towns · smallest 4,162 residents
- The best olive oil towns in MarcheMarcheolive oil8 towns · smallest 2,503 residents
- The 9 best beach towns in MarcheMarcheclean beach9 towns · smallest 3,762 residents
- The 9 best towns inside a nature park in MarcheMarcheinside a park9 towns · smallest 1,648 residents
- The best coastal towns within two hours of BolognaNear Bolognacoastalwithin 2 hours10 towns · smallest 4,856 residents · closest 62 min away
Featured on
Pesaro appears on this themed pick from our Collections:
Similar
Towns like Pesaro
What all six share with Pesaro: on the Adriatic coast · over 10,000 people · near sea level · have a railway station in the comune
The letter
Pesaro is on our list. Its letter is still to come.
We are writing about all 1,000 of these towns, one at a time, in a free letter: the photo, what is worth eating, and when to turn up. That is our mission. Sign up and you will be there when Pesaro comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Turin.
The nearest town we have written up is Gubbio, 68 km away. Read its letter →
Paid plans, the moving year and the books are on the membership page.