The capital of Liguria – birthplace of pesto and Christopher Columbus, and the original driving force behind Italian football – deserves to be considerably better known than it is. Perhaps it’s this ancient port’s earthy atmosphere that puts the tourists off, or maybe it’s just that in Italy they are spoilt for choice. Whatever the reason, visitors are missing out on somewhere special. Genoa, once the equal and arch-rival of Venice, has a medieval old town to rival any in Europe.
[Genoa guide]