Genoa: Columbus, Cubed croissants, Cathedrals and Carnevale – By Andy

At the southernmost part of this piazza is the Stairway of the Unknown Soldier, although also known as the Caravels Staircase due to the fact the flowerbeds separating the two staircases depict the three caravels used by Christopher Columbus in the discovery of America.

Never missing an opportunity to scale a staircase, I head to the top, leaving Zoe waiting patiently at the bottom. The view back across the piazza and of the arch is worth it, one of those moments of awe that I’m seeking.

ComicCon Surprises and Cubed Croissants

We go in search of caffeine, but get somewhat sidetracked by the fact that there’s clearly some kind of ComicCon convention going on in the city on this particular Sunday. As with ComicCons everywhere, attendees paraded in weird and wonderful costumes, bringing their favourite characters to life. We meet a very large green rabbit with glowing red eyes. A bizarre sight in such a historic and grand setting.

We find the rather kitsch cafe Gossip. Adorned in pink flowers and fluffy seat coverings, it’s an instagram influencer’s dream, Little Boof is in his element!

We opt for a cubed croissant with pistachio cream. The cubing is obviously just a gimmick, as is the small dog statue carrying a tray which the croissant is served to us on, but it all makes for an amusing prelude to our explorations.

Strolling Through Genoa’s Elegant Streets

We only have one day to explore Genoa, and in planning our day Zoe has found another travel blogger’s guide on what to see if you just have a day. We don’t follow it religiously, but these helpful guides can sometimes uncover hidden gems as well as the most obvious tourist attractions.

We head from Piazza Vittoria along the Via XX Settembre towards Piazza De Ferrari. Via XX Settembre is lined with art nouveau buildings with long porticos embellished with mosaic floors and decorated ceilings, neo-gothic windows, bay windows and small domes. Like Turin, Genoa appears to have grandeur in spades.

Piazza de Ferrari is no different, with the very impressive bronze fountain at it’s centre the square is at the heart of the city, the main square playing a part in nearly all major city events, as we would find out later.

From Piazza de Ferrari, we made our way up Via Roma, hoping to see a display of colourful umbrellas suspended above the street. However, it seems the installation had long since disappeared. But it does lead us to an impressive roundabout in Piazza Corvetto with a bronze statue of Vittorio Emanuele II on horseback.

The Climb to Belvedere Castelletto: Worth the Effort?

From here we head up, first through a park featuring a waterfall, which we manage to completely circumnavigate and miss in pursuit of a view from the top. Whilst impressive, we’re barely halfway there, for we are on a mission to reach the summit at Belvedere Castelletto. 

There is an option to take a lift to the top, but we are explorers, we take the characteristic brick pedestrian streets (the creuze), which were once the roads that took travellers out of Genoa. As we ascended the roads it was noticeable how the buzz of the city dulls to be overtaken by the relative silence of a quiet neighbourhood at the top. And like Columbus we survived a mutiny halfway up our ascent, teapot stance, a look that could kill—somehow, I managed to coax Zoe up the steep streets to complete our summit.

Averaging 20,000 steps a day, it’s maybe not the best of decisions to climb up, but the panoramic views at the top across the city and of the port are fantastic, and a beer is well earned.

Via Garibaldi: A Street of Aristocratic Grandeur

It’s quite amazing what a beer and a rest can do for weary legs, rather than take the lift down we wander back down the same route that took us to the summit. We are in search of great wonders, the UNESCO listed Via Garibaldi and the Palazzi dei Rolli.

We drop into Via Garibaldi from the East, passing through a narrow street from the eastern end of Galleria Giuseppe Garibaldi, a tunnel under our conquered summit. 

Oh Italy, how you charm us! As we approach Via Garibaldi, the sounds of opera fill the air, as we turn into the majestic street a lone singer serenading passers by, quite magical. The street is awesome in the truest sense, it’s full of awe.

The street is lined with renaissance and baroque palaces of the aristocracy of Genoa. 

The UNESCO world heritage site actually includes 42 palaces of the more than 100 in the city, which Via Garibaldi houses several excellent examples. In many cases the palaces are still privately owned, headquarters of companies and offices, or still inhabited by noble families. Many Palazzi dei Rolli can be visited and are well worth a visit, we dip our head into a couple to witness yet more grandeur and imagine the opulence of previous generations of Genoese aristocracy. 

From opulence to a slice of Genoese everyday life, in the Piazza dei Truogoli di Santa Brigida you find an iron roof covering the “truogoli” where until a few decades ago the women of the neighborhood met to wash clothes and socialize. Today, the wash basins are surrounded by well-renovated and very colorful old houses. During good weather people sit under the roof of the troughs around tables to have lunch or an aperitif, attend public readings, conferences, or open-air films.

Contrasts at the Port: From Palaces to Cruise Ships

The next stop on the list was supposed to be the lighthouse, Lanterna Faro di Genova. But with it being the opposite side of the port and 172 steps to climb to the top with already weary legs, we decided against the up close visit. We figure that at 77 metres tall, the tallest lighthouse in the Med and second largest in Europe, this icon of Genoa will be visible from other viewpoints.

As we descended down to the port, the streets got noticeably busier, tour groups more numerous, street sellers pushier and then we’re confronted with a whopping great modern motorway flyover. Such a contrast to the grand palazzi and piazzas in the historic centre. 

We have reached the modern tourist hub of Genoa, the port has huge capacity for gigantic ships carrying throngs of tourists following a leader with a number and a tall flag projected from their backpack, adorned in MSC clothing. 

We had seen this dichotomy from Belvedere Castelletto, a real tale of two cities, the old meets the new, opulent palazzi exchanged for opulent behemoth cruiseliners, so large they dwarf the palazzi. 

WIth great swathes of tourists, you need attractions. The port is home to the largest aquarium in Europe, a biosphere housing a small rainforest, a replica spanish galleon and a crane inspired viewing platform. Without time to properly explore each of these attractions and fed up of being hounded by the same street sellers time and time again, we move on. 

We somehow managed to explore a route that is most definitely not a well trodden tourist path, we took some of the delights of the working part of the port. It brought back memories of an unintentional ‘scenic’ route we once took in Edinburgh, where a supposed shortcut led us through an industrial park between Leith and Portobello Beach. As I’m chief navigator, I do love showing Zoe the best of the sights!

A Slice of Genoa: Focaccia and San Lorenzo Cathedral

As we emerge from the industrial wasteland of the port, we head back over to the city’s historic streets in order to find the cathedral, Cattedrale di San Lorenzo.

Built around the year 1098 on a previous basilica from the 5th – 6th century and enlarged over the centuries, the cathedral houses the ashes of the city’s patron saint San Giovanni Battista, who arrived in Genoa at the end of the First Crusade.

The cathedral at that time was located outside the ancient nucleus of the city. Thanks to the upgrade from basilica to cathedral status, the area of San Lorenzo became the heart of the city. The churchyard of San Lorenzo offered a stage for political and civil life throughout the middle ages.

After a fire in 1296, the building was partly restored and partly rebuilt in the forms of Gothic architecture: between 1307 and 1312 the majestic facade with black and white bands was completed. 

The interior is, of course, grand. Above the main altar the ceilings are adorned with Byzantine frescoes. Not being religious, the paintings’ stories and meaning are a little lost on us but the colours, the majesty, the sheer human endeavour to decorate the walls with this art, is always inspiring.

On exiting the cathedral Zoe has some inspiring words for me… “Are you hungry?” music to my ears… “I could eat” I say as my stomach jumps for joy with an almighty grumble. We go in search of a focacceria and find a gem. The uninspiring name, Focaccia Bakery E Coffee, belies the quality and popularity of this place. A quick look at the queue and those outside tucking into their delicious slices is a signal from the food gods that we have found our place. Focaccia with mortadella, stracciatella and pesto cream… YES PLEASE! The best focaccia slice of our travels so far! But perhaps to be expected from the home of focaccia and pesto!

A Fortuitous Encounter: Carnival in Genoa

Fully satisfied with our pitstop, we set off again. With most of the sights we had planned to see ticked off, we decide to wind our way back to the station. However, upon reaching Via Roma where it meets Piazza di Ferrari next to a monument to Guiseppe Garibaldi, we sense that something is going on. There’s small groups of people, standing on the street, just standing, waiting, but for what? 

Curious and unwilling to miss out, we joined the waiting crowd, anticipation growing as families in colourful costumes gathered around, sensing that whatever it is must be imminent. Families with small children dressed up for the occasion in outfits ranging from superheroes to boxes of tic tacs also patiently wait, surely the children won’t be asked to wait for too long. After 20 minutes or so and no appearance of whatever it might be, we notice a table become free at a tourist trap cafe/bar, we sprint to capture this empty viewing point.

A glass of wine and coffee in hand, we start to chart the passers by, tourists, locals, fancy dress, dressing fancy, we make anthropological notes of it all. And then, nothing, at least not during our first drink and therefore a second is needed. 

By this time, we know that something is definitely going on, a man appears to be in the middle of the road hands aloft taking a picture down Via Roma, a drumming starts to fill the air. Around the corner appears a float upon which Beauty and the Beast twirl! This is Genoa’s Carnival Parade 2025.

As the carnival slowly passes us, we finish our drinks and join the crowds. The parade is a collaboration with the  Latin communities of Genoa, we see groups in traditional clothing from Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil and more. The soundtrack of the parade is provided by the city bands. Everyone is getting into the spirit, dancing on the sides of the street, waving and just generally enjoying this celebration of a diverse city. This was a very unexpected but welcome twist to our day.

Genoa’s Legacy: A Tale of Two Cities

Like Columbus wasn’t the first to discover America, we are far from being the first to discover Genoa. Zoe arrived with high expectations, having had one of her best teaching experiences with a class of Genoese students. However, the disappointment of the port weighed as we discussed whether we would return. But I think with the fortuitous slice of serendipity we leave Genoa forgetting the overpopulated tourist port and with a fondness in our heart.

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Added factoid

Did you know… Genoa was the birthplace of blue jeans?

The word jeans comes from “Gênes,” the French name for Genoa. This durable fabric ‘bleu de Gênes’ was originally produced in Genoa for sail making around the ancient harbour before becoming the famous denim we know today.

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