The Marche: Senigallia, the 'velvet beach'

 Hello, my friends, welcome to My Own Italy to discover Italy with my personal touch!
Our travel today is to Marche and I'll introduce you Senigallia, in the province of Ancona.
Senigallia is located in The Marche coast, famous for its long and golden sand, lapped by crystal clear water, with its lively and fashionable promenade all the day: Senigallia is a truly unique and wonderful place!

 Senigallia doesn' t need to focus on only one item to be remembered and to attract droves of tourists.

  Inserted in the beautiful setting of the Marche, it is in an area surrounded by hills sloping down to the sea: harmonics and sinuous forms, cliffs and caves that are interspersed with unforgettable beaches, hills that recall the history, tradition, art.

The historic center of the city follows the Roman urban setting. In fact, Senigallia was founded on a hill south of the river Misa.

 In fifteenth century Senigallia became rule of the Malatesta, and in particular of Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta, who became interested in the city to the point of being considered the "re-founder". Sigismondo decided to rebuild the city walls and defensive bastions too, partly following the route of the old walls demolished, and created a fortified city with a rectangular shape, incorporating new defenses in the fort. Later it became the nucleus of the famous Rocca Roverasca.

Who knows Senigallia knows that its charm can't be reduced to a single aspect.
Besides the beauty of its coastline, its beaches and its warm clear sea, you can't forget the splendor of the squares and monuments, the wealth of museums, combined with a unique vocation for hospitality, where there is also the 'excellence of good food. That's why the accommodation offer of the city is large and varied, and able to accommodate millions of tourists every year. It's not difficult, in fact, find great hotels in Senigallia on the sea or in the center as a base to visit the monuments and fortresses.

 Among the unlimited attractions to visit, I suggest a walk to the Forum Annonario, harmonious circular neo-classical brick, designed in 1834.  The Forum features a porch that welcomes you with its twenty-four Doric columns, the newspaper and photogenic fish and fruit and vegetables market.
 In the center of the square you can admire the  "triccole" with their colorful tasty garden products; in the shade of the arcade, sheltered from the sun's rays that reach it only at sunset, discover the fish market. Currently the premises of the attic have been beautifully restored and used as the headquarters of the Municipal Library and Archives.

 The "Rotonda a Mare" is visually striking and spectacular. It is a structure created for hydrotherapy and recreational purposes, overlooking the beach of Senigallia. Launched July 18, 1933, soon established itself as a qualified place of worldliness and musical entertainment. On 7 July 1935 the Prince Umberto of Savoy came to Senigallia to inaugurate the Colonia Marina Maria Pia of Savoy, and to visit the Rotonda a Mare. In the years following the Second World War, the "Rotonda" was closed and destined to a military warehouse.

 But it was the '50s and '60s the witnesses to the golden age of the "Rotonda of Senigallia" true temple of worldliness and place in which they performed first-magnitude stars of Italian pop music. In the late 80s the Rotonda experienced a phase of gradual decline that regime closed down being unfit for use. It reopened in 2006 and today it is home to exhibitions and conferences in summer.

Carlotta Tenneriello

 So, in Senigallia the holiday should be tasted slowly, with your family or with your friends, being enveloped by its soft colors, such as during a walk through the forest by the sea towards the sunset.
For me it was really a fabulous vacation!
Leisure me: this is my tourism!