This weekend we decided to try a different beach in Maremma. At the north end of Marina di Grosseto there’s a long stretch of free beach called Fiumara. Turns out that this beach is a kitesurfing heaven, perhaps the best spot in Tuscany.
We opted for the luxury of a stabilimento (bathing establishment), preferring to pay for the beach in order to have parking, bathroom, umbrella and lounge chairs. There is, however, free parking in the woods (if you arrive before 10am and snag a spot) and plenty of free beach around. The strong wind at this beach makes it difficult to make an umbrella stay put, so bring a sun tent or if you’re the type who likes to tan, this is the place for you.
The stabilimento in this area is called Fiumara Beach and is known for its excellent fish restaurant and particularly nice decoration. It is beautiful and the staff is friendly; umbrella costs 25 euros per day. The bar serves take out food while the restaurant has fancier fare. Open also at dinner a full meal with wine will run 50 euros pp. The down side of this, as a beach spot, is that there is only one bathroom and it’s the only one for many miles around, so beyond servicing clients of this bathing establishment, users of the free beach for miles around come to the bar and bathroom.
The beach at this point of Marina is sandy and very deep, with the pine forest behind you and a long stretch to either side great for a long walk at water’s edge. Marina is known for its wind, which means that the water tends to get less clear and more sandy, with some floating algae, in the afternoons. This also means that it’s perfect for wind water sports!
At 3pm the kitesurfers came out in droves, like a flock of birds who all know when to fly south together. Kites of every colour filled the sky, attached to surfers of various levels who either zipped or hesitantly floated along the water’s surface. Some tugged on their strings to perform impressive jumps. Here’s a video, my apologizies for the quality but all i had with me was my cell phone.
Given the heavy traffic in the water, you probably wonder how the kitesurfers manage to not collide or get their strings mixed up. In fact we saw two such incidents, which cause the kites involved to come crashing down. In one case this happened scarily close to the water’s edge and two kites smacked down right near a family that was swimming. For this reason I would stay out of the water while this sport is being performed nearby, and you need to stay alert even if you’re on the beach near the edge, too.
How to get there: Getting to Fiumara is not entirely obvious. You need to take the coastal road between Castiglione della Pescaia and Marina di Grosseto. The access road is not indicated on the map but you can see it in satellite view. It is a sandy road that cuts through the pine forest. The road is a right turn from the main road if you’re driving south towards Grosseto. If you’re driving north, you’ll need to go over the bridge and make a U-turn to enter.
View Fiumara in a larger map
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