Nervi is a former

fishing village A fishing village is a village, usually located near a fishing ground, with an economy based on catching fish and harvesting seafood. The continents and islands around the world have coastlines totalling around 356,000 kilometres (221,000 ...

12 miles (19 km) northwest of

Portofino Portofino (; ) is a ''comune'' located in the Metropolitan City of Genoa on the Italian Riviera. The town is clustered around its small harbour, and is known for the colourfully painted buildings that line the shore. Since the late 19th centur ...

on the Riviera di Levante, now a

seaside resort A seaside resort is a city, resort town, town, village, or hotel that serves as a Resort, vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of an official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requi ...

in Liguria, in northwest Italy. Once an independent ''

comune A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the City status in Italy, titl ...

'', it is now a ''

quartiere A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the title of (). Formed a ...

'' of

Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...

. Nervi is 4 miles (7 km) east of central Genoa. Multiple 16th-century sources describe Nervi as the birthplace of

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

, though his exact origins remain a matter of debate.

Geography

Nervi is a district of Genoa. At the beginning of the century, it is mentioned as being surrounded with groves of olives, oranges and lemons, and beautiful gardened villas. At 25 meters above sea level, Genoa has a moist climate that is less dusty than the

Riviera di Ponente The Italian Riviera or Ligurian Riviera ( ; ) is the narrow coastal strip in Italy which lies between the Ligurian Sea and the mountain chain formed by the Maritime Alps and the Apennines. Longitudinally it extends from the border with Fra ...

, the part of the Italian Riviera west of Genoa, and is especially in favor with those who suffer from lung complaints.

Museums

Nervi is home to four significant museums. The Genoa Gallery of Modern Arts, in the former Villa Saluzzo Serra and the Raccolte Frugone, in the former Villa Grimaldi Fassio have paintings, sculptures, and drawings by Italian and other artists from the 19th and 20th centuries. The collection also includes items related to the cultural history of Genoa and Liguria. The Wolfsoniana is a regional museum of the Wolfsonian-Florida International University of

Florida International University Florida International University (FIU) is a public research university with its main campus in Westchester, Florida, United States. Founded in 1965 by the Florida Legislature, the school opened to students in 1972. FIU is the third-largest univ ...

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. It contains items from the 19th and 20th centuries such as architectural drawings, graphics, posters, sketches and drawings, books and other publications, paintings, sculptures, furniture, and glass, ceramic, wrought iron, and silver objects. The Museo Giannettino Luxoro features collections of clocks and watches from the 18th and 19th centuries, ceramics, furniture, and fine clothing in a restored villa. In July 2020, the Italia Nostra announced it would partake in the historic renovation of Nervi.

Points of interest

Especially popular is the Passeggiata

Anita Garibaldi Anita Garibaldi (, ; born Ana Maria de Jesus; 30 August 1821 – 4 August 1849) was a Brazilian republican revolutionary. She was the wife and comrade-in-arms of Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Garibaldi. Their partnership epitomized the spir ...

, a 2 km walkway along the ocean cliffs. The views make it one of Italy's "most beautiful promenades".Touring Club Of Italy. ''Authentic Italian Riviera''. Milano:Touring Club of Italy, 2008: 33. The Parchi di Nervi is a park of about 22 acres (9 hectares) created from the gardens of the Villa Grimaldi, Villa Gropallo, and Villa Serra. It has typical Mediterranean plant species and many exotic species. The former Villa Luxoro, now a museum, and Villa Gnecco, now a luxury hotel, also abut the Parchi. Nervi is these days a busy and quite up-market residential area that is almost entirely apartments, many of which are older style buildings from the 19th century that have been converted from large middle-class houses. There are many shops vying for business most of which sell good quality items especially the clothing and fashion outlets.

Euroflora

In 2018 Euroflora event was held for the first time at the Nervi parks. The event returned to the Nervi parks in 2022.

Festival Internazionale del Balletto e della Musica

The festival was held from 17 July to 2 August 2020 in the splendid setting of the Nervi Parks.

Notes and references

About Passeggiata di Nervi-Guest accommodation
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