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Characteristic medieval village in the western end of the Gulf, with its fortress-houses, the Genoese Castle, the church of St. Peter on the sea. Particularly interesting are the many colors of its tower-houses arranged in parallel rows and alleys. In Porto Venere, in addition to the classic visit to St. Peter's Church, built on the promontory of Arpaia, pay a visit to the Church of San Lorenzo, Casa Doria, and the Castle. Beautiful and charming, Portovenere offers the possibility of living the sea by means of a number of companies that deal with rental boats or organize personalized tours. In the village of Le Grazie is an interesting visit can be made to the remains of a Roman villa Varignano. Since 1997 Portovenere, together with the islands of Palmaria, Tino, Tinetto and Cinque Terre has been included among the UNESCO World Heritage List.
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Already in Roman times "Portus Veneris" was celebrated for her beauty. Influence over the promontory of St. Peter, around which developed the "castrum vetus", was erected a temple to Venus Ericina, from which the village took its name. Byzantine base in the Middle Ages, it was destroyed in 643 by Rothari but flourished in later centuries, thanks to the monastic movement which involved the two islands of Palmaria and Tino. In 1113 the Da Vezzano ceded to the Genoese, who developed the military and marine potential of the village building the characteristic row of houses facing the sea fortress, the walls, the three towers, the gateway to the country, and between 1118 and 1130, the church of San Lorenzo, the work of the masters Antelami. Portovenere was impregnable bulwark of Superba during the long war against Pisa: the characteristic church of St. Peter on the reef was built by the Genoese in 1256, out of gratitude to the portovenerini who gave a decisive contribution to the achievement of Lerici. The "upper castle" built by the Byzantines, resisted two sieges, Pisa 1165 and 1198 and was demolished in the fifteenth century to make way for the fortress, which was constructed in phases until 1751. Today it is visited and used as an exhibition space for exhibitions and cultural events. Portovenere is a path that climbs the steep slope and you submit to the Cinque Terre, in the middle of the Mediterranean maquis. From here you can also reach the climbing Muzzerone. A boat service to the island of Palmaria, regional park: preserved by the speculation, offers hikers beaches and cliffs, vegetation and caves accessible only by sea: the cave of the pigeons was inhabited in prehistoric times.
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