Villa Azzurra is located in the outskirts of the seaside holiday village of Torre San Gennaro, with its long sandy beaches, marina and small fishing harbour.
Torre san Gennaro is just 2 kilometres from the seclusion of Villa Nicola and Villa Suzannah, with Villa Sun Beach being nearly another kilometre further south.
The road along the litoranea from Lendinuso leads to the southern edge of Torre San Gennaro and widens into a large area with ample parking, complete with showers, public toilets and washing facilities by the sands beside the beach.
Along this stretch of the village there are free, uncommercialised stretches of sand, as well as Lidos with sun-loungers and parasols for hire, with nearby beach bars serving all manner of refreshments. There is a large Super Brio supermarket as well as a fresh bakery and many small shops scattered amongst the houses and small streets to the left.
The seafront road winds through the village and over to the right the Casablanca restaurant, specialising in seafood and Pizzas, extends over the water supported on pilings.
Zoki’s, has a terrace and tables with a view across the waves of the bay, serving ice- cream and great lunches. It also hires out deckchairs etc on its own adjacent, private walled beach.
The harbour area in the centre of Torre San Gennaro has slipways and winches which daily haul the bright blue wooden fishermen’s boats out of the water after their days fishing.
It is possible to buy sea-bass and bream, calamari, anchovies, prawns and the occasional small tuna fresh from the sea as the men sort through their days catch.
There are harbour-front bars and stalls as you pass by the marina with its pleasure boat yard, again paddle boats are available to rent if one wishes.
The shingle beach on the northern edge of the village gives way to a long stretch of wide sand that extends in a curve to nearby Campo di Mare.
Strolling into Campo di Mare, a long promenade shaded by palm trees runs along the escarpment parallel to a succession of snack bars and cafes. Stairways, cut through the stone cliff, lead down to the beach beside stone-framed breakwaters that shelter the seven circular bays. These artificial bays ensure shallow, sandy bathing areas, protected and safe from the waves of the open sea.
Beach bars line the sand, with commercial Lidos providing sun-loungers, deckchairs and parasols for daily or weekly hire. (In high season get in early in the day because they will be booked out fast)
Along the promenade above, there are more cafes, gelateria and snack bars with music, and, dotted through the streets, amongst the tree lined gardens of the residential houses and small holiday homes, there are more osteria, restaurants, trattoria and pizzeria tempting the passers by with the aroma of cooking.
Zia Anna’s is a barbecue restaurant with an attached butchers counter, it is possible to choose your selected meat and it will be griddled over a wood fire before being served to your table in the covered garden dining area.
Torre San Gennaro is a great little village to spend a day at the beach, then after dining out in the evening before the short trip home, relax in your chosen holiday “placeinpuglia” holiday Villa.