A Very Subjective List of the Best Beach Towns Near Rome

Issue #89

One of my editors recently asked me to write a list of the best beach towns in Italy—an impossible task—though of course I accepted the assignment. But I have to say, it put me into a bit of a tizzy. First of all, how can anyone purport to select the best beach towns in Italy unless they’ve visited every beach town in the country? 

And even then, what criteria does one use to select the best? For some, the best beach might be the one with the ritziest beach club. For others, it might be the most remote, secluded beach where they can relax far away from the crowds. Some people (like me) prefer sandy beaches where they can gradually wade into the water, while others prefer rocky beaches where they don’t have to feel the sand between their toes.

What I’m saying is this: There can never be a truly authoritative list of the best beaches in Italy, nor the best beaches near Rome. What I can tell you is that after living in Rome for nearly five years and trying to visit as many of the beaches in Lazio as possible, these are the ones I would return to again and again. 

Santa Marinella

I have a soft spot for this town even though, objectively speaking, there’s nothing that pushes it over the top as a must-visit beach town. I just think it’s nicer and cleaner than some of the other beach towns that are closer to Rome, like Ostia and Fregene. Personally, I have grown fond of the architecture, which is a mish mash of Liberty, Art Deco, and post-war styles. 

The crescent of sandy beach can get quite crowded on summer weekends, but I like posting up at one of the beach clubs in the morning and walking over to Bianca for a leisurely lunch. Marco and I had our wedding lunch there and we always order the same things: the crudo platter to start, then lobster linguine, and finally a refreshing lemon sorbetto. 

Santa Severa

The next town over from Santa Marinella is Santa Severa, which I actually think has a better beach. It’s a bit larger, so it feels like there’s more room to spread out, but its main defining feature is the 14th-century castle. Whereas Santa Marinella’s beach is almost entirely taken up by beach clubs, Santa Severa also has a section of spiaggia libera (free beach) right next to the castle and people sometimes bring their dogs there (dogs aren’t allowed at most beach clubs).

In Santa Severa, I like to get a lounge chair and umbrella at L’Isola del Pescatore and have a leisurely lunch there. The restaurant is the kind of casual place with tables and chairs painted blue and white that you’d expect to find in the Greek islands. I think this summer I need to try some other beach clubs though, so if you have any suggestions, let me know.

Sabaudia

If instead of driving north from Rome, you drive south toward Naples, Sabaudia is the first beach town you’ll come to on the Pontine Coast. Many of the beaches on the Pontine Coast (including the beach in Sabaudia) are Blue Flag Beaches, a designation awarded to beaches around the world for their cleanliness and sustainability. Developed in the 1930s under Mussolini, Sabaudia’s center is filled with the Rationalist architecture that was popular during the Fascist era. It’s known as being one of the preferred hangouts of wealthy Romans. 

Marco and I spent a weekend here last summer and decided to go all in on the experience at Saporetti, the town’s swankiest beach club. Of course, I use the adjective swanky with a pinch of salt here because it’s not a showy place. The restaurant looks like a sort of glorified mid-century beach shack (my kind of place) and serves seaside classics like spaghetti con le vongole and fritto misto.