01Cesenatico and Milano Marittima at a glance
A trip along the coast from Hotel Viking, the Antonioli family's 3-star hotel in Viserbella di Rimini. Cesenatico has the harbour canal designed by Leonardo da Vinci, with the old sailing boats of the Museo della Marineria. A little further north are Milano Marittima, with its pine woods, and Cervia, with its salt pans and flamingos.
It's 20.9 km from the hotel, about 30 minutes by car, and you're back by the sea in the evening for our Romagna cooking. For festivals and events at the time of your stay, see events in Rimini.
| Where | Via Carlo Armellini 18 (Museo della Marineria, on Leonardo's harbour canal, the Porto Canale Leonardesco), 47042 Cesenatico (FC) |
|---|---|
| From the hotel by car | 20.9 km, about 30 minutes |
| By train | Cesenatico and Cervia-Milano Marittima railway stations |
| When to go | all year round; at Christmas, the nativity scene on the boats in the harbour canal |
02History and fun facts
- Cesenatico's Porto Canale dates back to the Middle Ages and is the town's main historic sight. Leonardo da Vinci visited on 6 September 1502, while working for Cesare Borgia, and drew it twice in Codex L: once as a bird's-eye view and once as a technical plan.
- The Museo della Marineria (Maritime Museum) is the only museum in Italy with a floating section: ten traditional Adriatic boats moored in the oldest stretch of the canal. In summer their coloured sails go up every day, each painted with the emblem of a fishing family.
- The museum's land section is a hall built like an old shipyard. In the middle stand a trabaccolo and a bragozzo with their lug sails. The ground floor shows how the boats were built and sailed, and the first floor covers fishing, navigation and everyday life for the seafaring families.
- Some thirty traditional boats, nearly all privately owned, are moored in the Porto Museo, and in summer they take part in gatherings and regattas for historic sailing boats. Since 2023 the Romagna lug sail has been officially recognised as intangible cultural heritage.
- At Christmas the museum's old boats are home to the Presepe della Marineria, Italy's only floating nativity scene: around 50 figures made from wood, canvas, wax and the dyes once used to colour the sails, set out as a seaside village.
- The Piazzetta delle Conserve, next to the Pescheria (fish market), is named after the old ice houses for storing fish: pits about 6 metres deep, filled with layers of fish, ice and snow. There were once around twenty in the town and three have been restored. Every morning the square has a farmers' market.
03Things to see and do
Also on the canal is Casa Moretti, birthplace of the poet Marino Moretti (1885-1979). He left it to the town with his library, papers and furniture, and today it's a house museum with the rooms kept as they were.
The Antiquarium covers the area's early history, with Roman and medieval finds such as a small hoard from a ship attacked by pirates, up to Leonardo's visit in 1502 and Giuseppe and Anita Garibaldi setting sail from here in 1849.
Milano Marittima started life as a "garden city" in the Cervia pine woods. The Società Milano Marittima was founded in 1911 and signed its agreement with the town council on 14 August 1912. The painter Giuseppe Palanti inspired the plan of small villas set among the trees, and many of them, in Art Nouveau (Liberty) style, are still standing.
The centre of Milano Marittima is built around the Rotonda Primo Maggio, with wide avenues of old pines, boutiques and bars. The Cervia and Milano Marittima pine woods cover more than 200 hectares and are part of the Po Delta Park, with nature trails, the Casa delle Farfalle (Butterfly House) and the CerviAvventura adventure park.
The Cervia salt pans have been a nature reserve since 1979 and are a Ramsar wetland. Black-winged stilts, avocets and Kentish plovers nest here and pink flamingos stop off. Cervia salt is known as "sweet salt". At the Salina Camillone it is still raked by hand with wooden tools, and it has been a Slow Food Presidium since 2004.
The Magazzini del Sale, the salt warehouses (1691 and 1712), line Cervia's harbour canal. The Magazzino Torre houses MUSA, the Salt Museum, run by salt workers. Just beyond is the Borgo Marina, with its low fishermen's cottages and ceramic tiles showing each family's sail.
Sources: visitcesenatico.it · museomarineria.it · casamoretti.it · Wikipedia · discovercervia.com · musa.comunecervia.it. Information checked in October 2026.
04Visitor information
You can see Cesenatico's Porto Canale and the museum's floating section for free from the quayside. The land section (Via Armellini 18) is open on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays 10am–12pm and 3pm–7pm (times published in October 2026), and schools and groups can book other times. One ticket covers the Museo della Marineria, the Antiquarium and Casa Moretti: €5 full price, €3 reduced, €1 junior (ages 6-18), €10 family ticket, free for under-6s. Via Armellini is pedestrianised, so the museum suggests parking in Piazza della Rocca; the railway station is about 200 metres away. The Presepe della Marineria (40th edition) will be lit up on Sunday 29 November 2026 at 5pm. In Cervia, MUSA (Via Nazario Sauro 24, Magazzino del Sale Torre) opens from 16 September to 31 May on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays 2.30pm–7pm, and from 1 June to 15 September every evening 8.30pm–12am (times published in October 2026). Entry €2, reduced €1 (ages 15-18), free for under-14s and on the first Sunday of the month. Guided visits to the Salina Camillone with the salt workers are run by MUSA from June to September, and guided trips by electric boat leave from the Centro Visite Salina di Cervia (Via Bova 61). Every year Cervia holds the Sposalizio del Mare (Marriage of the Sea) on Ascension Sunday and the Sapore di Sale festival in September.
Opening hours, prices and dates may change: always check the official website before you go.
Sources: museomarineria.it · visitcesenatico.it · musa.comunecervia.it · discovercervia.com. Information checked in October 2026.
05How to get there from Hotel Viking
By car: 20.9 km, about 30 minutes. At reception we'll suggest the best route and where to park. Your space at the hotel stays free for you in our private car park, which is fenced and has CCTV.
Without a car: the no. 4 bus stops 100 metres from the hotel (stop 25) and runs to Rimini station, where regional trains leave for Cesenatico and Cervia-Milano Marittima.
06Nearby
- Gatteo Mare and San Mauro Mare, north of Cesenatico
- Pinarella and Tagliata, with their pine woods between the beach and the houses
- Terme di Cervia, a spa that uses salt water from the salt pans
- Mirabilandia (about 11 km from Cervia)
- Ravenna and its UNESCO mosaics (about 20 km from Cervia)
- Po Delta Park and the Pineta di Classe pine woods
- Ravenna and its mosaics
- Bellaria Igea Marina
- Mirabilandia
More ideas for days out on our things to do in Rimini and inland hills and villages pages.
07What our guests say
What guests say about the hotel's location and days out.
Day trips
«You can book trips inland with the help of the reception staff»
Handy for everything
«excellent location, close to everything, the sea included, but on a quiet street.»
08FAQ
When can you see Cesenatico's floating nativity scene?
The Presepe della Marineria is set up on the old boats of the Museo della Marineria along the harbour canal over Christmas. The 40th edition will be lit up, nativity scene and Christmas tree together, on Sunday 29 November 2026 at 5pm.
Can you see the old boats in the harbour canal for free?
Yes. The ten boats of the floating section (Sezione Galleggiante) and those of the Porto Museo are moored in the harbour canal and you can see them for free. You pay to visit the museum's land section (Sezione a Terra), with one ticket that also covers the Antiquarium and Casa Moretti (€5 full price).
Where can you see flamingos at the Cervia salt pans?
Pink flamingos feed in the pools of the Salina di Cervia nature reserve. Visits and guided trips, including by electric boat, start from the Centro Visite Salina di Cervia at Via Bova 61. From June to September MUSA also runs visits to the Salina Camillone with the salt workers.
How far are Cesenatico and Milano Marittima from Hotel Viking?
20.9 km, about 30 minutes by car from Viserbella di Rimini. Without a car, take the bus to Rimini station and then the train.
How long should I allow for Cesenatico and Milano Marittima?
Half a day for the harbour canal and the Museo della Marineria. Add the Cervia salt pans and Milano Marittima and you'll want a full day.
Where should I stay to explore the Romagna Riviera?
Hotel Viking in Viserbella di Rimini: a 3-star hotel 150 metres from the sea, with a private car park, open all year and halfway between Ravenna and Gabicce.
