Paying for it (Diano Marina)

Member Name: David A. Brett

Product:	Diano Marina
Date:	18/08/03 (880 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Scenes, weather, beach

Disadvantages: disabled access

Diano Marina is a seaside town nestling on the Italian Riviera in North West Italy.

We chose to visit Diano Marina in July, which upon hindsight may not have been the wisest time as the temperatures got quite hot. Our tour guide recommended September/October for visiting or earlier in the year such as April/May. However, we were here and we were going to make the most of it ? regardless of the hotness or coldness of the weather.

As someone who doesn?t do flying too good, we opted to visit the resort by coach/TGV. All went okay and we were soon getting off the train in Nice for our two hour trip by coach to Diano Marina.

The journey between Nice and Diano Marina is nothing if not spectacular. It truly is the most awe inspiring views I have ever seen (but then I am not a seasoned traveller). The motorway (auto strata) on which you travel to Diano Marina is several hundred feet high and despite my fear of heights, I just couldn?t get enough of the mountainous coastal scenes.

Diano Marina itself is a relatively small town with a well kept beach, several shops, and plenty of places to eat and drink.

I was quite inspired walking along the street in the town by the orange trees that line either side of the road. The Italians simply let them fall from the tree and go rotten in the streets.


Beach:

Finding the beach is easy, and even we couldn?t get lost. However there is a busy road to cross and the Italians have no respect for the pedestrian crossings available ? so cross at your peril. The beach is as I said very well kept, but there is a premium for this ? you have to pay to go on the beach. It cost my family of five ?29 or nearly £20 for a morning on the beach. This does include the ?loan? of: sun beds, use of toilets and changing rooms, showers etc. The beach also has a small café on, to fulfil your needs without you having to leave the beach to satisfy them. However, for a family of five it can wor

k expensive to visit the beach more than a few times. It is also recommended that you ?pre-book? your spot on the beach. One day we went they said they had no beds available together, though eventually managed to find us some. You can pre-book your whole week if you so wish, so if sun bathing is your thing ? then booking for a week is a good idea.

Shopping:

Like any other high street Diano Marina is thriving with many shops. Some offering souvenirs while others offer clothes, others food and drinks and some pharmacies.

Diano Marina also has its fair share of places to eat and drink, most of the café?s take up some pavement space. They sell all the usual things you expect pizzas, wine, coke etc. Another café style shop is the ice cream parlours. Now Italian ice cream is really something else, and worth a visit to Italy for itself. As far as I am aware the proper ice cream parlours sell only ice cream, and despite our little language problems in the one we went in ? we still enjoyed the delights of the Italian ice cream.

Out and about:

The thing with Diano Marina is it?s not too far to travel to see some of the Rivera?s other beauties. For example a quick train journey can take you to Cannes to see the film festival hall, and the hand prints of the stars in the pavement. Or see where the rich and famous like to hang out. Alternatively check out Nice, with its huge market and gorgeous beach with the most azure colour seas ever you?ll see. (Maybe that?s why it?s called ?Cote de Azure?). Another village we visited was set high in the mountains (forgotten the name), but it was cobbly and medieval and totally adorable. The principality of Monaco is worth visiting too, you can even look around the royal palace, which is worth a visit though it?s nothing ultra special. And as I was in a wheelchair I had to sign a declaration that I wouldn?t hold the principality responsible if I had an accident. Which kind of baffled me; bec
ause
no non-disabled person had to sign it-do they think non disabled people don?t have accidents? Maybe I should have explained to them how I got in the wheelchair in the first place. (Menton (I think) is a place where you can go whale watching by boat)

There are many other places of interest to visit and I suggest you do these by yourself, as organised tours rarely if ever give you enough time to have a good look around, although they can provide you with some good background knowledge.

Language:

I practised for months before we went to Italy and still only managed to master a few words. Though what I did know was enough to get me through. I found that nearly all Italian people knew some English and many were quite fluent. However, they do tend to like you to try talking their language, which is fair enough as you are visiting their land.

People:

Everyone I spoke to before I went to Italy told me how friendly the people were. And in my opinion I can vouch for that, however as I was in a wheelchair I did get a fair few stares, which actually made me feel paranoid in the end. Apart from the hotel staff (see upcoming review) the people were very welcoming.

Eating and Drinking:

There are numerous places to eat and drink, and although we were advised the tap water is safe we still opted for bottled water, which on average cost around ?1.5 (about 97p). Wine is cheap (you can pick up 6 bottle for ?15 (around £10). Pizza is freely available and nothing like the English frozen pizzas we have at home. There are also places that sell chips, burgers, stews and more.

Disabled access:

To say Diano marina is a place to visit is an under statement, the scenery is spectacular, the food delightful, and he weather hot. However, the trouble is it isn?t very wheelchair friendly. There are a few lowered kerbs, and few shops which are accessible. The beach has two steps to go down to get on to. So if
you are to
tally reliant upon a wheelchair then this may not be the place to visit, which is a shame as it is wonderful. That said if you can walk short distances it is worth the visit. As for my diabetes, it was remarkably well controlled out there. I was having two ice creams daily and my sugars were still coming in low. Diano Marina itself is actually quite a flat place to visit, with the Alps in the distance, so no hills to push up.

Overall:

I thoroughly enjoyed my stay in Italy and would have no hesitation in going back. However, to enjoy it to it?s full you really need to be able bodied, though disabled people can enjoy most of it.


Thanks for reading - Dave

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