The city of Rapallo is famous above all for its history, which stretches from the pre-medieval period to the modern one with a series of events of undoubtedly relevant importance. If you are planning to visit Rapallo , in this guide I will tell you what I think are the things to see and do, the hotels to stay in and the restaurants where you can taste the delicious Ligurian cuisine.
The historical center of the city of Rapallo has its roots in the medieval layout : it is denoted by the numerous passages under the porticoes , the frescoes on the portals, and the pedestrian alleys. Everything remains the same, architecture and history have been engraved in the stones of the city with exuberant mastery: the peculiarity of Rapallo is that you might not even notice it. If you visit the old town in the company of friends and relatives, you will get lost in the many shopping stores without realizing the beautiful interpenetration β artistic and architectural β between ancient and modern.
An example of this alternation between history and the present are the characteristic aedicules of the Madonna of Montallegro : these are small frescoes in the niches of the portals and facades of the houses, still present today on the walls of modern houses. The central square , Garibaldi, has recently been restored and is full of decorations on the facades of the buildings.
Surrounded by thirteenth-century arcades and narrow streets winding around the main ancient warehouses of the area, you will be impressed above all by the excellent preservation of the architecture of the buildings.
Around Piazza Garibaldi you can admire Via Mazzini and Via Magenta, where you will be exalted by the slate construction of some 15th- and 16th-century portals, which can be counted in all respects in the artistic heritage of the city, especially thanks to the frescoes and bas-reliefs that surround them. In Via Magenta stands the bas-relief of the Annunciation, which will keep you looking upwards for a few minutes with its vivid colors.
