Elba Island
Things to Do on Elba Island
What we actually recommend to our guests — from coves a few steps from the homes to ridge trails, from a shipwreck you can snorkel to the sunset on the west coast.
Elba is only small on the map: within an hour's drive you go from the sandy beach to the 1,019 metres of Monte Capanne, from granite villages to iron mines, from Aleatico vineyards to wrecks just below the surface. From Marina di Campo, at the centre of the south coast, everything is within reach.
This isn't a guidebook list: it's what we tell guests when they write "what shall we do tomorrow?". Some things are on foot from the house, others are worth the whole day. When in doubt, write to us — Giovanni plans the day around the weather and the wind.
A few steps from the Gems
Without taking the car
The things you do with a towel over your shoulder, starting from Marina di Campo.
Marina di Campo beach
1–5 minutes on foot from the homes
1.3 km of fine sand, the longest on Elba, in front of the village. Free stretches and bathing clubs, shallow water for children, and the village right behind for gelato after your swim.
Galenzana on foot
≈ 15 minutes on foot · trail no. 39
From the square you drop down to the quietest sand-and-pebble cove on the gulf, with a farmhouse restaurant behind the pines. The trail continues on towards the Capo Poro lighthouse.
Crêpes at Tiziana's and Ghibli gelato
in the village, Marina di Campo
The two sweet stops we recommend first: the crêpes at Tiziana's and the gelato at Ghibli. They're our village favourites — ask us for opening times.
Up high
Hikes and villages
When the August heat crowds the beach, inland Elba — shady ridges, granite and chestnut woods — is the best escape.
Capo Poro and Le Calanche
≈ 30 min on foot from Galenzana · half a day
The headland south of Marina di Campo: the trail climbs to the lighthouse through broom and scrub, with the emplacements of a Second World War battery still visible on the ridge. Open views over the gulf.
San Piero and Sant'Ilario
≈ 15 min by car · granite villages
Two medieval villages on the slopes of Monte Capanne, all granite lanes. In San Piero a Pisan fortress encloses the Romanesque church of San Niccolò; the trail between the two crosses the old granite quarries with views over the gulf.
Madonna del Monte
≈ 40 min by car + trail · above Marciana
The island's most famous sanctuary, at 627 m on Monte Giove among centuries-old chestnuts. Napoleon stayed here in the summer of 1814 and met Countess Maria Walewska. A panorama over half the archipelago.
Grande Traversata Elbana (GTE)
the ridge · spring and autumn · short sections in summer too
The trail that runs the whole spine of the island, from Cavo to Patresi or Pomonte (about 50–58 km, CAI grade E). The full crossing is a spring–autumn undertaking; in summer you do a section early in the morning, high up and in the shade, to escape the heat.
Mountain biking and trails
the whole island · e-bike rentals
Elba is one continuous network of marked trails between sea and ridge: on foot or by mountain bike, from the single-tracks of Monte Capanne to the mining roads of the east, down to Capoliveri where international MTB races are held. E-bikes for rent in the village too.
The Terranera lake
≈ 40 min by car · near Porto Azzurro
An emerald-green lake of mining origin a step from the sea, in an almost lunar landscape: an old iron-mine shaft filled with water. Five minutes on foot from Terranera beach.
Below and above the surface
In the water
Snorkelling, natural pools and diving: Elba is one of the finest sea destinations in the Mediterranean, and the best spots are all close by.
Snorkelling at the Fetovaia rocks
≈ 15 min by car · south-west coast
The headland closing Fetovaia bay, between smooth granite and seagrass, is one of the best mask-and-snorkel stretches on this coast. Clear water and fish close to shore.
The Seccheto pools
≈ 12 min by car · south-west coast
Among Seccheto's granite slabs the water forms natural, smooth-edged basins: the "pools" where you soak away from the crowd. Pair it with a dive off the rocks.
The Pomonte wreck (Elviscot)
≈ 25 min by car + a swim · depth ~12 m
A merchant ship that sank in 1972 beside the Ogliera rock, ~150 m off Pomonte beach. It lies at just 12 metres: one of the few wrecks in Italy you can see with mask and fins alone, as well as with tanks.
Lo Scoglietto & Scoglio della Triglia
diving from Portoferraio · all levels
Lo Scoglietto, a lighthouse islet off Portoferraio, has been a biological reserve since 1971: no fishing, and so groupers, morays and gorgonians. Nearby is the Scoglio della Triglia, with the little Madonna placed by fishermen in 1970.
Diving at Barbarossa
near Porto Azzurro · with a dive centre
Barbarossa bay, on the east coast, is one of the bases the island's dive centres set out from. The right way to go deeper than snorkelling reaches — go with a guided centre.
Sant'Andrea and the lunar rocks
≈ 40 min by car · north-west coast
Sand set among smooth granite rocks, crystal-clear water and the famous polished cliffs: one of the island's best-loved snorkelling spots and, at sundown, one of the most beautiful of all.
Windsurf, sailing and wakeboard
Gulf of Marina di Campo and the coast
The open gulf and steady winds make Marina di Campo a good spot for windsurf, kite and sailing; on calm days the water-sports centres run wakeboard and towed sports. Schools and rentals line the village and the beach: ask us and we'll point you the right way.
To the west
Sunsets
The west coast of Elba faces the sun as it drops into the open sea. Our two favourites.
Pomonte and Chiessi
≈ 30–35 min by car · west coast
Two fishing villages facing west, where the sun falls straight into the sea with no islands in the way. A glass, the rocks still warm, and the sky catching fire: the end to a day we recommend most.
Sant'Andrea at sunset
≈ 40 min by car · north-west coast
The same Sant'Andrea you snorkel, at golden hour, is our favourite for the last swim of the day: granite turning amber and water becoming a mirror.
Taste
Food and wine
Elba drinks and eats well. One address for wine, alongside the crêpes and gelato in the village.
Wine at Acquabona
between Portoferraio and Porto Azzurro · tastings from ~€25
A historic winery (early-1700s farmhouse, wine since the 1950s) between the two gulfs: 15 hectares of Aleatico, Ansonica, Sangiovese. It was one of the estates that revived Aleatico dell'Elba DOCG, the island's sweet passito. Vineyard and cellar visits with a tasting.
Publius, in Poggio
≈ 35 min by car · Poggio di Marciana
Since 1970 the Fontana family has cooked Elban tradition on a terrace with the sea below and the chestnut woods above. The guest book speaks for itself — from Rod Stewart to King Juan Carlos of Spain and Queen Rania of Jordan. Book for sunset.
The watchmaking heart of Marina di Campo
Locman
Few people know it: one of Italy's most recognisable watch brands was born here, in Marina di Campo. Locman was founded in 1986 — the name joins the founders' surnames, Locci and Mantovani — and to this day it is based and made in the village, a few steps from the sea.
In 1988 came the brand's first fully handcrafted watch, with parts in gold and heather root, the precious wood of Elba's Mediterranean scrub. In 2006 Locman opened SIO, the Italian School of Watchmaking, in the village: a craft of high precision, kept alive on an island.
A walk to the Locman boutique in Marina di Campo is the finest way to discover this story — Italian watchmaking that chose to stay away from it all.
Frequently asked questions
What can you do on Elba without a car?
From Marina di Campo much is on foot: the beach (1–5 minutes from the homes), the Galenzana cove on trail no. 39, the village with its crêpes and gelato. Capo Poro is a walk. For the rest of the island a car helps, but we'll tell you what to reach by bus or by sea.
What's the one thing to do on Elba with a single day off the beach?
If you love the sea, snorkelling the Pomonte wreck (Elviscot) at 12 metres is a rare experience. If you prefer land, the granite villages of San Piero and Sant'Ilario with the climb towards Monte Capanne. Write to us and we'll choose by the weather.
Can you snorkel and dive near Marina di Campo?
Yes: the Fetovaia rocks and Seccheto pools are 12–15 minutes away, the Pomonte wreck ~25. For scuba, Lo Scoglietto off Portoferraio (a reserve since 1971) and Barbarossa bay are the reference points, always with a dive centre.
What can you do on Elba in the August heat?
Go up high: a stretch of the Grande Traversata Elbana early in the morning, the chestnuts of Madonna del Monte, the shady lanes of San Piero. The ridge is always cooler than the coast. And save the sunset at Pomonte or Chiessi to close the day.
Where's the best sunset on Elba Island?
On the west coast, where the sun falls into the open sea: Pomonte and Chiessi for the fishing villages, Sant'Andrea for granite that catches fire. From our homes it's a good half-hour away.
The perfect base to explore Elba
Three homes in Marina di Campo, at the centre of the south coast: the beach on foot and the whole island within reach. Write to us and Giovanni will reply in person.
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