Rimini - on the east coast of Italy

Rimini wasn’t on our original plans for Italy, but a few people recommended it as a seaside destination, so we thought it might be worth a visit as a seaside city.  It ended up quite different to what we anticipated, but certainly worth seeing.  It has very little in common with Australian coastal cities or towns. It is a very old city, and has a significant history - both ancient and modern.

 

We booked a hotel not far from the beach - one of over 1000 hotels in Rimini!! There are also over a thousand restaurants and pubs. It is known as one of the most popular seaside cities in Europe (very touristy) and is a well known destination thanks to its 15km beach!!

The entire length of the beach is filled with what we assume are leased sections, with a series of huts or restaurants which rent out spots on their stretch of the beach, including sunlounges and umbrellas. Some are very elaborate, others less so.

Most have a playground area, nearest the street, near the change-rooms and toilets. Closer to the beach is reserved for the rented zones.

I loved the fact that you could rent out paddleboats, even with slippery dips! The next morning on my walk I realised that these areas are set up afresh each day, with the waterside sections raked each morning, and the sunlounges and umbrellas set up - a big job for those involved!

Sections of the beach are also heavily occupied with games of beach volleyball (taken very seriously) or another unknown game - a bit like racquet ball.

Whilst we were in town there was also a festival of some sort, and young children played basketball or tennis on the cordoned off sections of road, near the boat entrance while many others strolled around taking advantage of the gorgeous weather (on our first afternoon in town).

Lots of music emanated from another area near the famous Grand Hotel - the first established in Rimini in the 1800s I believe. Apparently somebody famous was inside, as people were trying to scale the walls to catch a glimpse.  (My lack of Italian meant I had no idea who was drawing all the attention). It was nonetheless quite exciting!

 

Stalls were set up selling local produce and relaxation areas (mostly empty) were also all along the promenade and into the park.

Our second day in town was cold and overcast, and we both spent much of the day inside after my early morning 13km walk along the seemingly never ending beach - looking out at the Adriatic Sea.

We chose a late breakfast that also served as lunch, as it was offered until 12 noon, then spent some time up on the top deck, as no-one else was there.

 

Dinner was at a local restaurant - Rossopomodoro and the food was delicious and the ambiance just right. Some icy cold complimentary limoncello was the perfect end to the evening.