Albisola Marina and Superiore (5 km east) — neighbouring twin towns famous for their ceramics. The Museo Manlio Trucco shows the local Renaissance majolica tradition, and there are still working ceramic studios you can visit.
Varazze (5 km east) — a livelier resort with a long pebble beach, a Romanesque church (Sant'Ambrogio) and a pleasant cycle path along the seafront on the line of the old railway.
Genoa (35 km east, 30 minutes by train) — the regional capital. UNESCO-listed Palazzi dei Rolli, the old port redesigned by Renzo Piano, the aquarium, and the great medieval centre. An easy day, returning to Celle for dinner.
Savona (8 km west) — an under-rated port city with a 16th-century fortress (Priamàr) and a baroque cathedral. Less polished than Genoa but interesting for the sense of a working Mediterranean port.
Sacro Monte di Varallo and the entroterra (1 hour inland) — the wooded valleys behind the coast offer cool relief from summer heat, with chestnut groves and small medieval villages such as Sassello, known for its amaretti.