RAVENNA
Ravenna is a city of art and culture, of mosaics, and ancient city which 1,500 years ago was capital three times: of the western Roman Empire, of Theodoric King of the Goths, of the Byzantine Empire in Europe.
The magnificence of that period has left Ravenna with a great heritage of MONUMENTS, religious buildings decorated with mosaics which have been declared patrimony of humanity by UNESCO.
The art of mosaics was not born in Ravenna but it did find its greatest level of expression here where Christian iconology was born, a mixture of symbolism and realism, of Roman and Byzantine influence. Here a Latin hexameter on the walls of the Archbishop's chapel reads: Aut lux hic nata est aut capta hic libera regnat… in other words 'Or light born here or imprisoned here, reigns free'.
The beauty of the mosaics and harmony of the architecture are not the only features. In Ravenna you can stroll among bell-towers and monastic cloisters, the frescoes in Giotto style of Santa Chiara to the baroque apse of Sant’Apollinare Nuovo.
Ravenna is roman, gothic, byzantine and also medieval, venetian and finally modern and contemporary, civilised and hospitable, full of events and shows of international prestige Ravenna is a city of art near the coast: there are 9 seaside resorts along 35 kilometres of coast which offer a great variety of possibilities. The resorts of Ravenna blend into the beaches, pinewoods and marshes and offer the tourist and visitor an environment characterised by the hospitality of the hotels, campsites, houses and apartments, on wide beaches of fine sand, in pinewoods which were praised by Dante and Byron in their verses.
The organisation beach services is efficient and dynamic on the beaches of Ravenna where you can choose from a holiday of sun and relaxation, or sports and fitness activities on the beach; you can sample the food of a romantic restaurant by the sea, or ethnic cuisine or the traditional cooking of Romagna then go on to dance entertainment and the fun of 'happy hour'. In the resorts of Ravenna you can satisfy your passion for the sea thanks to the new tourist ports.
Tourism in Ravenna is not only art or sea: for nature lovers nothing can be more exciting than a visit to the Punte Alberete reserve and a visit to the silent marshes of the Po Delta where specimens of vegetation grow and where rare species of fauna live.