Parco delle Mura & Forte Begato
Most visitors never look up from the harbour long enough to notice that Genoa is ringed by a 17th-century wall system stretching 20 km across forested hilltops — and that you can walk it. The Parco delle Mura offers panoramic trails, wildflower meadows, and the eerie silence of abandoned Napoleonic forts just 30 minutes from the city centre.
The Walls and Forts
The Mura Nuove were built between 1626 and 1632 to protect the Republic of Genoa and remain one of the best-preserved examples of 17th-century military architecture in the Mediterranean. The ridge trail connects a series of forts — Forte Begato, Forte Sperone, and Forte Diamante — each offering different perspectives over the city and the sea.
Forte Diamante, at 671 m, is the highest and most dramatic. Its stone bastions frame a view that takes in the entire Gulf of Genoa, the Apennine ridge behind, and on exceptional days the Alps to the north. The fort itself is partially restored and occasionally open for guided visits.
Hiking Practicalities
The most accessible starting point is at Righi, reached by the Funicolare Zecca-Righi from Largo della Zecca in the city centre. From Righi it is a well-marked 3 km walk west along the ridge to Forte Begato, with the option to continue to Forte Sperone and Forte Diamante for a full-day 12 km circuit.
The terrain is mixed forest and open scrubland, with some rocky sections near the forts. Wear trail shoes rather than sandals, bring water, and pack a picnic — there are no food facilities on the ridge. Spring (April–May) is the finest time, when the hillsides are covered in broom and wild orchids.
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