Chiàvari: Palazzo Rocca, Churches and Coastal Forest

Chiàvari can be discovered on several levels: through museums and sacred art, medieval buildings and the special tradition of Chiavari chairs, as well as through coastal forests and hills. This gives you a diverse destination where cultural and historical impressions and outdoor activities can be balanced according to your own interests.

Palazzo Rocca and the Archaeology of Chiavari

Palazzo Rocca houses the Galleria Civica and the Museo Archeologico; after being transferred to the municipality, the palace was converted into a museum. The Galleria Civica houses paintings by Genoese and Flemish artists from the 17th century. The Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Chiavari is located in the former stables of the 18th-century Palazzo Rocca in the historic centre of Chiavari. It preserves a cremation burial site dating from the 7th century BC. It comprises 126 box-shaped graves with urns and numerous grave goods.

Churches, Frescoes and Medieval Traces

The Chiesa di San Giovanni Battista preserves works by Bernardino Fasolo, Gian Battista Carlone, Domenico Piola, Orazio De Ferrari, Domenico Fiasella and Giuseppe Galeotti, as well as a wooden crucifix by Antonio M. Maragliano. The church stands on the ruins of a chapel that, according to tradition, was founded around 1182 by Bardo Fieschi, archpriest of Lavagna. The Palazzo “dei portici neri” was built in the 13th century directly below the castle and near Chiavari’s medieval walls. On the Via Aurelia, the Santuario di Nostra Signora delle Grazie stands on a cliff that drops steeply to the sea. Its frescoes by Teramo Piaggio and Luca Cambiaso were created between 1539 and 1550.

Chiavari Chairs and Special Collections

The tradition of Chiavari chairs dates back to 1807, when Marchese Stefano Rivarola brought Parisian chairs to Chiavari and asked local craftsmen to imitate them. The Chiavari chair was designed to be extremely lightweight yet durable; its slender, rounded line follows the natural curve of the wood. The Diocesan Museum of Sacred Art preserves paintings, sculptures, silver objects and textiles from churches still in use and former religious institutions. The Physics Cabinet section of the “Sanguineti – Leonardini” Museum of Natural Sciences comprises around 300 instruments from the late 19th to the early 20th century.

Coastal Forest, Hills and Cycling Routes

The pSIC Pineta–Lecceta di Chiavari comprises a coastal area with holm oak forests as well as forests of maritime, umbrella and Aleppo pines. Chiavari has mountain biking and cycling routes through the hills. These landscape features reveal another side of the destination: alongside churches, palaces and collections, exercise and nature can shape the rhythm of your stay.

Orientation for Your Trip

The Chiavari motorway exit is on the A12. If you are looking for a hotel in Chiàvari, first determine your personal focus: museums and sacred art, architectural history, or coastal forest and hills. This allows you to align the location of your stay with your own daily plans, without presupposing specific hotel locations or amenities.

Further places for planning your trip: Bargone, Statale, San Lorenzo della Costa, Lorsica, Cogorno, Testana, Recco, Fascia

To the higher-level travel overview: Genoa.