Palmaria Island - the Italian, budget friendly, island

When you think about a dreamy Italian island, for sure Isola Palmaria does not come to mind. @lezra and I want to share with you why we loved this place and why it is the perfect destination for young visitors with old boring souls like us. If you choose to come to this off-the-grid island, you choose a bit of hiking, nice views, very few people, some history, and a nice swim in the Tyrrhenian sea.

In these crazy hot times, a picnic under the trees and a swim in the sea after a hike sounds like heaven, does it not? If you are looking to let go of some of the accumulated stress, this quiet place could be just what you want right now.

With a 1.89 square kilometer area and a maximum elevation of 190.6 m above sea level, Isola Palmaria is the biggest island in both Liguria and the La Spezia archipelago.
It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site along with Porto Venere, the Cinque Terre, and the neighboring islands Tino and Tinetto!

So, along with our previous post on Lerici, this is an excellent alternate destination to Cinque Terre because it is suitable for all budgets and is less well known (so.. less touristy). @lezra and I took a Ferry from Lerici to Isola Palmaria that cost us 9 per person after we had some delicious focaccia with porchetta and pesto to kick off the day.

The view from the Ferry is great in itself. If it is not too hot you can choose a seat on the top of the boat and have a 360° view of everything around you. You won't be disappointed.

Once we arrived at the island, we chose one of the many trails to hike and discover some beautiful sites. Palmaria Island is a stunning green wonderland, perfect for those who appreciate peace and quiet, away from the crowds of visitors found at popular touristy attractions.

Typically, there are three reasons for wishing to travel to Palmaria Island. The first is to visit the sea and enjoy the water and picture-perfect views. Which is a good reason in itself.

The other is for a more challenging excursion (but nothing impossible). With a reasonable level of physical effort and a little bit of goodwill, you can easily make the entire tour of the island on foot, visiting all the points of interest (with the obvious exception of those that require a boat) and perhaps taking a quick swim in the sea. Which we did, of course!

In any case, there are very few roads on the island, and the paths are much more winding, weaving through the woods and occasional spots of cultivated land (mostly olive groves), occasionally even reaching the tops of cliffs and reefs from which one can observe the waves crashing against the rocky walls and rocks below.

During the trekking we also run into an old abandoned car.

We ran into a lot of birds on our hike. I have no idea about birds, but these were wild and mean. We stopped for a picnic close to a nest and had to move as we could see they were getting protective and were coming for us. Attacked by a bird is not how I picture dying, so @lezra and I ran away like the brave people that we are and looked for other picnics locations.

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There are many beautiful ones. You will not be disappointed.

The story of this island is not pure wonder though. This island’s history is the third reason why people choose to visit it. This island was a military fortress built by prisoners at the time. When walking through the many trails, you will still see the remains of once strong military structures like the Umberto I Batteria Fortificata, which the Regia Marina built at the end of the 19th century.

The Regia Marina constructed a variety of military fortifications during the end of the 19th century to address the demand for a thorough defense of the Gulf of La Spezia. In order to accomplish this, specifically built artillery platforms were positioned at the ends of the dyke with the express mission of transferring fire to the matching batteries that were situated on the mainland.
The Umberto I Batteria was among the land batteries, which may be classified as high or low batteries depending on the target to be shot. It was constructed between 1887 and 1889 based on a design by Lieutenant Colonel Ferdinando Spegazzini, Director of Fortifications of the Regia Marina. The tower was constructed in a remarkably short period of time, in part due to the extensive use of forced labor, primarily prisoners transported daily from S. Bartolomeo in La Spezia to Palmaria Island. The passage connecting the island's fortifications is still referred to as the "way of the prisoners" in honor of their labor.
The building meekly follows the land's contours, hiding itself almost entirely in a niche so that it is fully hidden from view from the sea and ships. The difficulty of attacking even from land, with just two sides presenting potential attack points, must be added to all of this.

We weren't able to take pictures of the Batteria since it was really difficult to find a spot which was far enough from it to take a nice shot (and also because most of it is covered by green plants)

Final note for the wise.
When buying the ferry tickets we were not sure what route to take back in case we wanted to stop elsewhere. So we bought a one way ticket, asking the ticket office about the possibility of buying a return ticket on the island. He said yes at the time, but this is not true! There are not available ticket offices on site, and not all boats sell a ticket once you board. Better be safe than sorry and buy a two way ticket right away. You can easily make Isola Palmaria a daytrip.

Because of the return ferry situation, on the way back we had no time to stop at Porto Venere and only could see this amazing Doria Castle from the boat.

This beautiful Doria Castle towers behind the village. It was established in the year 1160 approximately and has been rebuilt several times between the 15th and the 17th century.
The castle is pentagonal in shape, with the southern bastion projecting out toward the sea. It is one of the most impressive pieces of military architecture to bear witness to the supremacy of the Republic of Genoa.