Liguria · Imperia
Seborga
A hilltop village at 517 meters above Bordighera that calls itself a principality, 284 residents, its own coins and stamps since 1963.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Seborga is on our list
It holds Borghi più belli d'Italia and Bandiera Arancione.
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Visiting
- Best time
- Apr–Oct
- By car
- 2 h from Genoa
- Population
- 284
- J10°
- F12°
- M13°
- A15°
- M19°
- J23°
- J26°
- A27°
- S23°
- O19°
- N14°
- D11°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Seborga sits at 517 meters in the hills above Bordighera, 35 kilometers from Monaco. In 954 the counts of Ventimiglia ceded the territory to the Cistercian abbey of Lérins; in 1079 Gregory VII granted the abbots prince-abbot status and the right to mint coins. The Principality of Seborga ran as a Cistercian state until 1729, when it was sold to Vittorio Amedeo II of Savoy.
In 1963 Giorgio Carbone, head of the local flower-growers' cooperative, argued the sale had never been properly registered, declared the commune independent, and was elected prince. The 200 registered voters now elect a sovereign every seven years. Princess Nina Menegatto took the title in 2019.
Seborga prints its own stamps and mints a currency called the luigino. Italy does not recognize any of it, but the town does carry a Bandiera Arancione and a Borghi più belli badge, and on a clear day the view stretches from the Esterel coast to Cap Ferrat.
How to get there
From Genoa (GOA), about 1 h 55 min by car.
Turin (TRN) is about 3 h 11 min away.
By car from the center of Milan 3 h 18 min.
Every town within reach of Genoa airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Chiesa di San Martino
Seventeenth-century parish church, single nave, the seat of the former Cistercian abbey transformed after the principality lost ecclesiastical status.
Palazzo dei Monaci
Former Cistercian abbots' residence on the main piazza, now used as the principality's symbolic government building.
Zecca di Seborga
Old mint that produced the principality's coins from the eleventh century, restored as a small museum on Via Verdi.
Belvedere di Seborga
Terrace at the upper edge of the village with sightlines across the Côte d'Azur to Monaco and Cap Ferrat on clear days.
Chiesa di San Bernardo
Small Romanesque chapel on the western edge of the village, dedicated to the Cistercian patron and used for principality ceremonies.
Living here
Could you live here?
Seborga is at the end of the road.
- A village of 284. The nearest town of 5,000 people, Vallecrosia, is 18 min away: past our 15-minute rule, which makes this the end of the road.
- Sanremo, a city of 53,059, is 37 min by car. Inside our 30 to 60 minutes: close for the services, far enough to keep its own life.
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 284, down 13.1% since 2015 (Italy's emptying towns)
- Nearest city Sanremo, 37 min drive
- Nearest national health service hospital Sanremo, 6 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €1,650 to €2,400 per m² to buy, €8.10 to €9.40 per m² a month to rent
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- In-between
- Pharmacy: none mapped
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Full fibre reaches 62% of homes
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 3, low hazard
- Genoa airport (GOA), 1 h 55 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital Genoa, 2 h drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
12% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from France, Russia and Morocco, against 9% across Italy. 16 of them come from English-speaking countries or western and northern Europe, mostly France. There are 350 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 64% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Imperia province ranks 80th of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.
Health and schools
The nearest emergency room is in Bordighera, 4 km as the crow flies. The nearest major one is in Pietra Ligure, 58 km away. The nearest IB school is Deledda International School, 118 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.
Climate and risk
It is in climate zone E, on a scale from A, the warmest, to F, the coldest, and heating may run from October 15 to April 15, up to 14 hours a day, unless the mayor changes it. The national maps show no residents in a high or medium flood zone. 7% 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
PRINCIPALITY
Self-declared independent state since 1963, 200 voters, an elected prince every seven years, recognized by no government.
LUIGINO
Local currency minted by Seborga, pegged to the US dollar at six luigini, accepted in some village shops as a souvenir.
CISTERCIAN STATE
Ruled by Lérins prince-abbots from 1079 until 1729, an independent monastic principality inside the wider Ligurian patchwork.
Common questions
- What is Seborga known for?
- Seborga is a hilltop village at 517 meters above Bordighera that calls itself a principality, 284 residents, its own coins and stamps since 1963.
- Where is Seborga?
- Seborga is a comune in the province of Imperia, in Liguria.
- What is the nearest airport to Seborga?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Genoa (GOA), about 1 h 55 min by car.
- How long is the drive from Milan to Seborga?
- About 3 h 18 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Seborga?
- Best in Apr–Oct. August is the warmest month, averaging 27 degrees, and June the wettest, with about 14 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Seborga?
- Castelvecchio di Rocca Barbena, Perinaldo and Montesegale.
- How many people live in Seborga?
- 284 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Seborga a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Seborga is at the end of the road: the nearest town of 5,000 people, Vallecrosia, is 18 min away. The nearest city, Sanremo, is 37 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Sanremo, 6 km as the crow flies. Full fibre reaches 62% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Recognized as
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 517 m
- Population: 284
- Surface area: 4.87 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 Seborga appears in
- The best hill towns in the province of ImperiaImperia provincehill town6 towns · smallest 284 residents
- The prettiest small villages in the province of ImperiaImperia provinceprettiest villagessmall9 towns · smallest 284 residents
- The 10 smallest villages in LiguriaLiguriasmall10 towns · smallest 126 residents
Similar
Towns like Seborga
What all six share with Seborga: inland, away from the coast · under 1,000 people · hill towns
The letter
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