6 family-friendly beach towns in Italy you and your kids will love

Our favorite family-friendly beach towns in Italy, with sandy beaches, beautiful and walkable centers, family services, restaurants and day trip options for the whole family

Are you dreaming of finding a coastal town where you can immerse yourself in Italian life, walk to restaurants, enjoy beautiful views, access tours and day trips, AND it is kid-friendly? Then, this post is for you!

I have two kids and, in summer, I love spending time with them in beach towns where we can slow down, reconnect and have fun.

Over the course of the years, we have tried and experienced many coastal towns in Italy, and while I am yet to find one we didn’t love, there is no doubt that some places are easier than others when it comes to pleasing little kids, especially.

Italy has over 7,000Km (4,300 miles) of coast, most of which very well developed to welcome visitors from near and far.

But as I am sure you have noticed from all the photos of the Italian coastline, a lot of the most scenic areas tend to focus on rocky shores, cliffs, and boat trips – all things that are incredibly appealing, but not necessarily what family with little ones look for.

Thankfully, Italy also has plenty of family-friendly beach towns where you can enjoy the best of Italian small-town life with kids in tow, and we have favorites to share!

Based on our own experience, today I give a super-selected, super-curated list of coastal towns in Italy that I believe hit all the right spots for families traveling with kids and visiting Italy from abroad.

What I looked at for this selection of the most family-friendly coastal towns in Italy is:

• Beautiful – I don’t believe we need to compromise on the landscape because we have young kids!
• Safe (of course!)
• With Italian tourism as well as overseas one, for a more local feel
• Easily reachable by plane/ train / ferry and does not require complicated transport arrangements.
• With a child-friendly beach: shallow waters, no strong currents (but always check sea conditions on the day), sand, ease of access from the town etc
• A walkable center with restaurants, shops and services. Not too many steps or excessively hard-to-manage terrain for toddlers
• A location that allows for day trips, so you can still fit it in sightseeing

I hope you love these destinations as much as we do!

Need to know: beach and swimming time in Italy is usually between June and September. Outside of this timeframe, you can still potentially enjoy a sunny day on the beach but are likely to find water too cold to swim. I feel this is important to know to set kids’ expectations, the Italian see is a lot colder than many expect.

My top 6 family-friendly coastal towns in Italy: chart

Town	Best for	What’s nearby	Nearest airport
Sestri Levante, Liguria	Beach town life, day trips by train and ferry	Cinque Terre, Portofino	Milan, Genoa, Pisa
Forio d’Ischia	Island life	Naples, Procida, Amalfi Coast	Naples
Cefalu, Sicily	Historic beach town feel	Palermo, Madonie Park	Palermo
Monopoli, Puglia	Historic beach town feel	Polignano al Mare, Alberobello, Trani, Martina Franca, Fasano Zoo	Bari
Tropea, Calabria	Historic beach town feel	Aeolian islands (Sicily), Maratea	Lamezia Terme
San Teodoro, Sardinia	Access to beaches	Tavolara island, beaches	Olbia

Good to know! Italian beach towns get exceptionally busy in summer, when locals and foreigners have their summer vacation. This is particularly true for easy-to-reach towns and towns with many services and lively centers, like those in this list. To limit the exposure to crowds, the best time to enjoy Itain beach towns is June and September.

Sestri Levante, Liguria

Sestri Levante is a delightful beach town in northern Italy and one of my favorites for staying with kids (I actually dream of a summer home here, I love it so much!).

The town is near and well connected to very well-known destinations such as Portofino and Cinque Terre, and shares some elements with them, such as the presence of rainbow-colored houses, crystal clear waters, and the region’s delicious food (pesto, focaccia!).

However, unlike its rocky neighbors, Sestri is flat and super well-equipped with kids!

Here you have a large flat walkable area, good beaches including a sandy one, playgrounds, kids games, and all the services you may need: shops, restaurants, accommodation, etc.

It is also well served by trains, so you don’t need a car here. Day trip options such as Portofino, Cinque Terre, Gevona and more are within easy reach by train or ferry.

The town is a popular summer destination but it is operational all year round; so you get the best vacation place plus the services of a real, living, and breathing local town.

We adore it and highly recommend it for a quintessential Italian coastal town vacation with kids!

You can find here >>>> our guide to Sestri Levante with kids

Why we love it:

• Sandy beach
• Shallow waters great for little kids
• Delightful town with colorful houses, shops, restaurants, playgrounds etc
• Option of day trips to Portofino, Cinque Terre, Genoa
• Car not needed. You can reach Sestri and explore the area by train. See schedule on the official railway provider trenitalia.com

Find here >>> our guide to Sestri Levante with kids

Alternative beautiful coastal towns nearby: In the same area, we also recommend Chiavari, Santa Margherita Ligure, Levanto and Monterosso al Mare.

Forio d’Ischia, Campania

Forio is one of the main towns on the island of Ischia and is an absolute delight with kids!

The island of Ischia is in front of Sorrento and the Amalfi coast and shares a lot of the charm, atmosphere, and beauty of that area with colorful houses, crystal clear blue waters, amazing food, and lemons.

However, Forio also has a beautiful sandy beach, a flat walkable center and playgrounds, which are rare finds on the mainland in front!

Forio is also famous for thermal baths and has exceptional thermal spas with lusious gardens and sea views that will make your jaw drop.

While small kids cannot enter the pools, the gardens and the standard pools are open to all ages and parents can easily take turns in the hotter baths.

Forio is connected to Naples by direct hydrofoil and can be explored on foot. You can also easily explore the rest of the islands by bus and taxi.

What we love about it:

• Sandy beach
• Safe waters for kids
• Lively, walkable historical center with shops, restaurants etc
• Kisd playground
• Thermal baths nearby
• No need for car. You can reach Forio from Naples by hydrofoil. Find the schedule on alilauro.it

Find here >>> our guide to Forio with kids

Other towns we love in the area for sandy beaches: Gaeta, Sperlonga

Cefalu, Sicily

Cefalu is a gorgeous, historic and family-friendly town on the northern coast of Sicily.

Very well known to Italian tourism for decades, Cefualu’ has risen to wordlwide fame thanks to a recent TV series, and has quickly captured the hearts of overseas visitors too.

This notoriety means we are very much not in ‘hidden gem’ territory; however, the merits of Cefalu’ are so many, it is still a favorite when it comes to kid-friendly coastal escapes in Italy!

The town is perfect for families who want an immersion in culture: the whole center is historical, and even just sitting in a piazza drinking coffee while the kids run around is a cultural experience!

The lovely beach and shallow waters and great for kids, and the small fishing port gives the town a delightful fishing village vibe and great seafood.

Cefualu’ is, however, also well equipped for tourism, so you’ll also find here good hotels and infrastructures for a comfortable stay.

Why we love it for kids:

• Sandy family-friendly beach
• Shallow waters
• Beautiful, historic center, reasonably stroller-friendly
• Good facilities for swimming/boating, including some resort-style hotels
• No car is needed (but it is recommended if you wish to explore the area), you can reach Cefalu by train. Find the schedule on the official Italian railway provider trenitalia.com

Other coastal towns we love for kids in the same area: San Vito Lo Capo, Castellammare del Golfo. Find here >>> our essential guide to Sicily with kids

Monopoli, Puglia

If you follow this blog, you may know that I am a little bit obsessed with Monopoli: I find it adorable, super pleasant, welcoming and just perfect for kids!

Monopoili’s historical center is small but perfectly formed, with light-colored homes, whitewashed exteriors, an imposing castle and car-free, walkable streets with restaurants and shops, developing around a small fishing port.

In the center of town, you have playgrounds and sports pitches popular with local kids and there are plenty of beautiful sandy beaches nearby.

The one in the center is small and free but, as you head south, you have large expanses of sandy shores.

If you have a car, you can easily reach many beautiful coves as well as most of the best small towns Puglia has to offer, such as the cliffs of Polignano, the trulli of Alberobello, Fasano Zoo, Castellana Caves…. if you have a car, many additional beaches are reachable with a short drive.

Why we love it:

• Pretty, historic, walkable city center
• Good selection of restaurants with outstanding food
• Welcoming, easy-going, family-friendly atmosphere
• Sandy beaches
• No car needed (but recommended to explore the area). You can reach Monopoli by train. Find the schedule on the official Italian railway provider trenitalia.com

Plenty of day trip options by car especially.

You can find here >>> our guide to Monopoli

Tropea, Calabria

Tropes is a little different from other towns on this list as it has a big flight of steps between the city center and the beach.

However, it has a flat and stroller-friendly town center, it is super walkable, it has many shops and restaurants and outstanding sandy beaches and clear waters.

So, while not entirely toddler proof to get to the beach, it is not a place where you’ll be watching your step every minute!

Tropea is very well known to Italian tourism and gets some foreign visitors, mostly from Europe. So, you still find here the more typical Italian holiday town feel both in style and prices.

We took and amazing boat trip here and it was only 35 euro per person: an absolute steal if you compare it with better known areas!

We love Tropea because:

• the town center is historic, pretty and child friendly (they can tot around the many car free areas)
• It has tons of restaurant options despite being a very small town
• it is in a stunning position
• It has light colored sandy beaches and crustal cleat waters
• It is reachable by train from Rome and Naples. The airport of Lamezia Terme has national international flights to several European destinations.
• You can take boat trips and day trips to the Aeolian Islands and evening trips to Stromboli (it’s may’s a long day with kids but also a fun one!)

You can find here >>> our guide to Tropea with kids

San Teodoro, Sardinia

If outstanding sandy beaches are your top priority, then should look into Sardinia in general and the town of San Taorodoro in particular.

Sardinia is well known for having the best beaches in Italy and those in San Teodoro area are a big reason for this fame.

La Cinta beach is spectacular! But also Isuledda, Lu Impostu, Cala Brandinchi… All the beaches in San Teodoro area have crystal clear waters, kid-friendly powdery sandy beaches and immense spaces, plus the option of taking boat tours to Tavolara island or, further north, even La Maddalena.

If you want sea, sand and sun, this is the place! It is very easy to see why this is THE place of choice for many Italian families looking dor a sea and su vacation!

In terms of town charm, San Teodoro is a typical resort town with a pleasant, walkable center, restaurants, tour kiosks, kids’ playgrounds, and all the amenities you expect from a well-developed holiday destination.

In the evening, it has a lively and family-friendly atmosphere that makes dinner out and late strolls great also for kids: think outdoor restaurants, stalls, etc.

Why you’ll love it:

• Outstanding sandy beaches
• Playgrounds and kid-friendly area
• Walkable town center with restaurants and lively evenings
• Option for a boat trip to Tavolara island from San Teodoro.
• No need for a car once in town. Local buses serve some of the beaches in summer. However, I do recommend it to explore the rest of Sardinia, local beaches and to reach Palau / Santa Teresa for a day trip to La Maddalena island.

Other kid-friendly towns in north Sardinia: Alghero, Palau, Orosei. For an overview of the best places in Sardinia, red here >>>> our essential guide to Sardinia with kids.

My top 5 family-friendly coastal towns in Italy for a summer vacation: pin this!