Genoa on foot: the route from the Waterfront to Boccadasse along the sea.
- immobiliarepep
- Dec 28, 2025
- 4 min read
GENOA ON FOOT
Genoa is a city you discover by walking.
There is no shortage of walking routes: from the Expo area to the Nervi Promenade, from the Righi paths to the more linear coastal stretches. Everyone has a different character, a rhythm of their own.
But there is one detail that really changes the experience:
stay at a point from which you can leave the house and already be on the route.
The Waterfront in Genoa is this.
A new area, still partly in transformation, but already capable of creating a rare continuity between city, sea and movement. The works are visible, yes, but they tell a clear direction: an urban front designed to be crossed, experienced, inhabited.
This is where one of the simplest and most rewarding routes starts for those looking for what to see in Genoa on foot:
from the Waterfront eastwards, along Corso Italia, up to Boccadasse.
WATERFRONT: THE STARTING POINT
In front of Genoa's Waterfront, the pass immediately finds a natural measure.
The moored boats, the docks, the large ships that enter and exit the port tell the story of a living, operational city, never immobile.
We don't rush off here.
You observe, you orient yourself, you take the right time.
It's a starting point that doesn't demand haste, but rather attention.
This stretch stems from a contemporary vision of the city by Renzo Piano, which aims to restore Genoa's direct relationship with the water: an architecture that accompanies movement without imposing direction.
WALKING, RUNNING, PEDALING
From here on, the path is linear.
It is suitable for walkers, runners, and cyclists, thanks to the long cycle path that accompanies the coast without interrupting it.
The rhythm comes by itself:
a few steps to find the gait, a light music in the ears, and the body settles down.
The gaze does not seek arrival.
It follows the sea line, the coastline that stretches, up to the distant profile of the promontory of Portofino.
This is what makes the route from the Waterfront to Boccadasse one of the most popular for those who want to experience Genoa on foot, by the sea.
CORSO ITALIA AND THE MEMORY OF THE CITY
Arriving on Corso Italia, the pass finds continuity.
Here Genoa shows an important part of its recent history: that of the beach resorts, the city summers, the habits that have been repeated for generations.
The Lido di Genova, San Nazaro and the structures overlooking the sea are not attractions to visit, but fragments of urban memory. Just walking past it tells how central this stretch of coast has been –and continues to be– in city life.
Beauty remains in the background.
It doesn't distract.
Accompany.
THE URBAN BREAK: ARENA ALBARO VILLAGE
Halfway, when the sea keeps calling but the legs ask for respite, the route passes by Arena Albaro Village.
It is a space that Genoa uses to get back into balance: sports, swimming pools, padel, families, daily life.
Here is Arena House.
It doesn't have a sea view, but it offers something equally rare and precious: the authentic rhythm of Genoa.
Early in the morning the runners pass quickly, in the afternoon the children laugh in the courtyards, and the streets come alive with restaurants, bars and clubs where the city really lives.
You are not far from the sea, but you are immersed in the city, capable of feeling its breath, movements and daily stories. Every step reminds you that Genoa is not just to be seen, but to be experienced.
ARRIVAL IN BOCCADASSE
And then it happens, without announcements.
The pace slows down on its own.
Boccadasse doesn't ask for attention: he gets it.
The houses tighten, the colors warm, the sea changes tone. It is not a place built for visitors, but a village that continued to live while everything around it changed.
In front of the church, a sign says:
“I was fine and to feel better I'm here.”
It's a simple sentence.
And it's hard not to recognize yourself.
WHY START FROM THE WATERFRONT
Staying at the Waterfront in Genoa means this:
being able to experience the city without unnecessary travel, without organizing anything.
Our apartments – Waterfront Acquario House and Waterfront Porto Antico House –
they are both located in this area,
where the new city meets the sea.
It's a position that allows you to go out in comfortable shoes, a playlist in your ears, and let Genoa do the rest.
MANU'S ADVICE: THE AFTER.
The route ends in Boccadasse.
But not the day.
When the body asks for slowing down, there's a perfect way to close the loop:
the Empire Spa, inside Arena Albaro Village.
Hot water, silence, lengthening time.
After movement, stillness.
That's where the walk becomes memory.
MUSIC, SEA, MEMORY
Boccadasse and the sea of Genoa have also been told in music.
Gino Paoli, Ornella Vanoni, intense loves like this short sea.
And then Fabrizio De André, who sang Genoa without softening it: ports, sailors, true humanity.
There is no need to quote verses.
Just listen to the water coming back between the boats.
It is a natural soundtrack, which changes with light.
THE END
Genoa is not crossed all together.
You walk, one section at a time.
From the Waterfront, along Corso Italia, to Boccadasse.
A simple, linear, authentic path.
And every time, Genoa leaves something extra.
Crediti fotografici: foto originali di Manuela Scarcella e Marco Scarcella, foto dal web dal sito di Arena Albaro Village.
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