San Marino Travel Guide
I have arrived in plenty of places that turned out to be easier than I feared, and a few that were harder. San Marino surprised me in the best way, a tiny republic so straightforward that I wished I had packed my doubts away before I got there. This guide collects everything I learned about getting to Mount Titano, moving around the old town and making the most of a country that fits on a single hilltop.
Getting to San Marino
There is no airport, and that is really the key to planning. The nearest gateway is Rimini in Italy, about twenty kilometres down the hill, and the drive or bus ride up the mountain takes roughly an hour. If you are coming from further afield, fly into Bologna, which is a couple of hours away and well connected, or use Rimini for the closest option. A hired car gives you the freedom to park at the foot of the old town and ride the funicular up, while the local buses run up the mountain from Rimini several times a day. For most travellers the car is the easiest, since it also lets you reach the lower villages and the views on the way down.
Getting Around the Old Town
The old town is compact and entirely walkable, which is fortunate because it is the whole point of the visit. Once you arrive by funicular from the main parking area, everything lies ahead on foot, the towers along the ridge, the piazzas and the museums on the terraced slopes. Comfortable shoes are non-negotiable because the streets are steep and the ridge path between the three fortresses is rough underfoot. There are escalators tucked into the town to save your legs on the steepest drops, and the funicular runs throughout the day to shuttle you between the parking and the historic heart.
Where to Stay
Most visitors come up from the coast for a day, but staying overnight changes the experience completely and I recommend it. The hotels inside the old town give you the hilltop at its quietest, when the day-trippers have gone and the piazzas empty out, and a few of them sit right on the ridge with views that stretch to the sea. If you prefer, the hotels at the foot of the mountain are cheaper and still a short funicular ride from the top. For the full effect, book something up high and wake to the towers in soft morning light.
What to Eat
The food leans heavily Italian, and that is very good news. Pasta is everywhere, as are the cured meats and cheeses of the neighbouring Emilia Romagna region, and I ate my way happily through plates of tortellini and slices of local prosciutto. A few traditional dishes carry the San Marino flag, including a flat cake called the torta tre monti, and the local wines are worth trying with dinner. In the old town you will find casual trattorias and a handful of nicer restaurants, often with terraces overlooking the drop below. Book evening tables in season, the best spots fill up.
Money, Language and Practicalities
San Marino is not officially part of the euro zone but uses the euro anyway, so there is no currency to worry about and cards work almost everywhere in the old town. Italian is the language, though you will be fine with English in the tourist areas. The top of the mountain can be a few degrees cooler and windier than the coast, even in summer, so bring a light layer. Everything is a walk, a climb or a ride on the funicular, so build in time for the slopes and expect a bit of legwork.
How Much Time to Budget
You can see the essentials, the three towers and the main piazza, in a half day if you rush, but I would not recommend it. A full day lets you walk the ridge properly, visit a museum, eat without hurrying and catch the changing of the guard in the afternoon. Two days, including an overnight, is ideal, because it gives you the empty evening streets and the opening of the hilltop to soft light the next morning. This is a small country, but its pleasures are best taken slowly.
Practical Tips I Wish I Had Known
Buy the combined ticket for the museums and towers, it covers the highlights at a fair price. Arrive early to beat the coach parties, especially in summer. Save the fortress ridge for a clear morning because a hazy day hides the famous coast view. Wear layers and sturdy shoes. And give San Marino the respect its history deserves, this is not a theme park but a country that has endured on one mountain for over seventeen centuries, and there is something moving about that, no matter how touristy the main street has become.
Final Thoughts
San Marino does a neat trick. It gives you a genuine country, with borders, a government and a seventeen hundred year story, and it hands it to you in the space of a single walkable hilltop you can see in a day. I came up expecting a curiosity and left genuinely impressed. Between the towers, the views and the quiet after the crowds, it is a small place with an outsize amount to offer.
