Italy boasts over 4,700 miles of coastline, stretching across the Mediterranean, Adriatic, Ionian, and Tyrrhenian seas. The country is also home to the global icons – Venice, Portofino, the Amalfi Coast – as well as dozens of little known fishing villages where people have been living by the sea for generations.
The food served up in these humble seaside communities is incredible, and many of the dishes you’ll taste are prepared according to recipes that have been handed down by grandmothers for generations. Here’s a list of fishing villages in Italy where you can enjoy fresh fish and a real coastal experience that has not been affected by mass tourism.
Marzamemi
This Arab-style fishing village is located on the southeastern coast of Sicily and has a lovely square surrounded by aging mud-colored buildings with stone surfaces ranging from being slightly worn to quite worn. The few family-run restaurants in Marzamemi obtain their daily fish from the handful of local fishermen and serve it up in the historic tonnara, that ancient structure for processing tuna that has seen many centuries come and go.
The specialty here is bottarga, or cured fish roe, otherwise known as “Mediterranean caviar,” served simply with olive oil and lemon on top of pasta, with handmade noodles prepared that morning.
Carloforte
This village on San Pietro Island, off the southwestern coast of Sardinia, has a peculiar cultural identity with Genoese origins and a dialect that is not understood by anyone else in Italy. The only event that supports the local economy is the mattanza, the traditional bluefin tuna catch that starts in spring and during which fishermen’s voices can be heard on the water.
You will find restaurants that serve excellent tuna prepared in twenty different ways, ranging from delicate carpaccio to intensely flavored stews that showcase the fish’s richness.
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Cetara
This working fishing village is located between the more famous towns of the Amalfi Coast yet is rarely visited by tour buses, and it is famous for anchovies and the prized colatura di alici. This intense amber-colored fish sauce is the modern descendant of ancient Roman garum and is made by families who would never think to put on airs about their product.
The use of colatura, local olive oil, and pasta is the perfect example of how Italians know how to take simple ingredients and make astonishingly good food with no fanfare.
Boccadasse
This colorful fishing hamlet tucked into a tiny cove at the end of Genoa’s elegant Corso Italia feels like stepping into someone else’s dream – or maybe a postcard from another era entirely. The cluster of pastel-painted houses creates a protective embrace around the small pebbly beach where fishing boats still launch daily despite modernization elsewhere.
Nearby trattorias serve Ligurian specialties like fresh anchovies marinated in lemon and that traditional ciuppin fish stew, absolutely brimming with whatever the sea offered up that morning.
Portopalo di Capo Passero
Sitting at Sicily’s southernmost point – where Europe nearly kisses Africa – this sun-bleached village operates at a pace dictated by the sea and seasons rather than tourist demands or smartphone notifications. The dual harbors shelter a substantial fishing fleet that supplies remarkably fresh seafood to local eateries where nothing’s fancy but everything’s delicious.
You’ll find simple preparations like pasta con le sarde alongside sea urchin spaghetti that showcase the Mediterranean’s bounty through minimal intervention and maximum respect.
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Gallipoli
Despite sharing its name with the famous Turkish peninsula, this ancient fortified town on Puglia’s Ionian coast remains stubbornly, gloriously Italian to its core. The old town occupies a limestone island connected to the mainland by a 16th-century bridge that has withstood centuries of salt spray.
Fishermen sell their morning catch directly from weathered wooden boats in the harbor, supplying nearby restaurants with red shrimp, cuttlefish, and whatever else came up in the nets for classic Puglian seafood dishes served mere hours after leaving the water.
Chioggia
Often called “Little Venice,” though locals might roll their eyes at the comparison, this working fishing town south of its famous neighbor retains genuine character without the crushing crowds. The central canal teems with colorful fishing boats painted in bright primary colors, while the daily fish market bustles with theatrical activity as restaurant owners select what will become the day’s specials.
You’ll find traditional dishes like risotto di gò alongside sarde in saor that reflect the deep, unbreakable connection between the lagoon’s bounty and local cooking traditions.
Camogli
This former fishing village on the Italian Riviera nestles dramatically between steep mountains and the Ligurian Sea, creating one of those views that stays burned in your memory forever. The tall, narrow houses painted in warm Ligurian colors were built as practical landmarks visible from miles offshore so returning fishermen could find their way home.
The village celebrates its maritime heritage each May with the Sagra del Pesce – cooking enormous quantities of fresh fish in what might actually be the world’s largest frying pan while locals and visitors alike feast happily by the sea.
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Porticello
This unpretentious fishing harbor on Sicily’s northern coast near Palermo supplies much of the capital’s seafood – yet somehow remains relatively unknown to travelers clutching guidebooks. The surrounding waters yield an incredible variety of fish and shellfish that appear on local tables in preparations like pasta con le sarde a mare with wild fennel but ironically no sardines.
They’re metaphorically “still in the sea” which perfectly captures Sicilian humor. The village’s waterfront restaurants offer remarkable value compared to tourist-focused destinations just miles away.
Marettimo
The most remote of Sicily’s Egadi Islands, Marettimo features a whitewashed village of just 700 year-round residents, where fishing isn’t just an occupation but the very rhythm of daily life. With limited road access and strict environmental protections, thankfully keeping development minimal, the surrounding waters teem with marine life that hasn’t been overfished.
Island restaurants serve remarkably fresh catches like the prized dentice, often prepared alla matalotta, simmered with tomatoes, capers, and olives in that rustic fisherman’s stew that’s sustained generations.
Tellaro
This tiny rose-colored village clinging to Liguria’s eastern coastline near the Cinque Terre lives in the shadow of its famous neighbors but offers equally stunning views with far fewer selfie sticks. Local legend claims a giant octopus once saved the village from a pirate attack by ringing the church bells as a warning, which tells you something about how deeply sea creatures figure in local imagination.
The village remains devoted to fishing traditions despite tourism pressures, with seafood restaurants serving regional specialties like muscoli ripieni and testaroli pasta with pesto and local shellfish that tastes like the essence of the Mediterranean.
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Polignano a Mare
Perched dramatically atop limestone cliffs on Puglia’s Adriatic coast, this picturesque village combines stunning natural beauty with serious culinary credentials that food writers keep discovering. The clear waters below the town yield exceptional sea urchins, octopus, and various fish that appear on local tables with minimal fuss yet maximum flavor.
Local restaurants range from humble family establishments to Michelin-starred destinations, though they’re all united by an absolute devotion to the freshest possible ingredients pulled from the sea that morning.
Santa Maria La Scala
This tiny fishing village, tucked into a rocky cove on Sicily’s eastern coast, sits at the foot of a steep cliff face below the town of Acireale, hidden from most tourist routes. The protected harbor shelters traditional wooden fishing boats that still supply the waterfront restaurants with daily catches unloaded right before diners’ eyes.
The village specializes in seafood antipasti featuring tiny marinated fish, tender octopus, and local specialties like pasta with sardines and wild fennel that showcase Sicily’s Arab-influenced culinary heritage in every aromatic bite.
Trabocchi Coast
This stretch of Abruzzo’s coastline takes its name from the traditional wooden fishing platforms (trabocchi) that extend into the Adriatic like giant wooden spiders created by some maritime imagination. Many of these unique structures have been converted into tiny restaurants serving hyper-local seafood literally feet from where it was caught, creating dining experiences impossible to replicate elsewhere.
The traditional brodetto vastese fish stew contains seven different types of fish representing the seven villages of the coast, exemplifying the region’s straightforward yet deeply flavorful approach to seafood based on absolute freshness.
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Lerici
This colorful maritime town in Liguria’s Bay of Poets offers a perfect blend of authentic fishing culture and elegant seaside charm without pretension. The imposing medieval castle watches over the harbor where fishing boats still bring in daily catches of anchovies, sea bass, and shellfish that haven’t traveled further than a hundred yards before reaching your plate.
Town restaurants serve classic Ligurian seafood dishes like stuffed mussels, salt cod with pine nuts and olives, and trofie pasta with pesto and local seafood that captures the essence of this remarkable coastline.
From Net to Table
Ancient culinary traditions are kept alive by Italy’s hidden fishing villages, giving guests a chance to taste a part of the Mediterranean handed down through the generations. These communities are intimately connected with the sea in a way that goes beyond the shallow tourist season or the temporary popularity of food trends. With their simple yet elegant approach to seafood, which relies on the quality of the ingredients rather than elaborate seasoning, these villages offer a genuine and intriguing vision of Italian cuisine.
If you are planning your next Italian trip, it is worth diverting from the usual to explore these coastal gems where ‘fish of the day’ is actually that, and the fisherman’s link with the cook and diner remains unbroken.
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