Castello di Lerici

Medieval castle on the promontory with a paleontology museum inside

The Castello di Lerici sits on the rocky promontory at the eastern edge of town, dominating the harbour from above. Built in the 13th century and expanded through the 16th, the castle is a layered structure — defensive towers, internal courtyards, and a chapel of Sant'Anastasia whose original mosaics are still partially intact.

Inside, the Museo del Castello di Lerici houses a small but worthwhile paleontology collection, with fossils from the Ligurian coast and surrounding hills. The castle grounds give some of the best views across the Gulf of La Spezia — across to La Spezia's naval shipyards to the west, and to Portovenere and the islands beyond. Admission is charged; check local seasonal hours as the castle sometimes closes in winter.

things to do sight museum
A story
The castle passed back and forth between Genoa and Pisa so many times in the 13th and 14th centuries that local chroniclers stopped trying to track which republic held it. Pisa built the original octagonal tower; Genoa expanded it. The final arbitration came in 1256 when Genoa decisively defeated Pisa at the naval Battle of Meloria — and Lerici, along with most of the Ligurian coast, stayed Genoese for the next two centuries.