Description
The Ghiaie Beach
Le Ghiaie is in the north, very near the old part of Portoferraio. Its unique beauty is famous for its small, felsite pebbles that the water has made smooth, that are practically candid white.
Legend has it that this was the beach where the Argonauts landed in search of the Golden Fleece, and that their drops of sweat fell on to the pebbles and turned them a greyish-bluish colour.
The best time to go the beach is when a southern wind is blowing, because that is when the colour of the sea makes it look more like a swimming pool. A swimming pool, however, that is home to many different species of fish, to the point that the entire area is now part of the “Scoglietto Marine Reserve for Biology Protection”; just throw some pieces of bread into the sea and watch how hundreds of fish arrive out of nowhere and practically eat out of your hands- in short a snorkellers’ paradise!
The beach is 280 metres long, and behind it there are several bars and restaurants, as well as a public garden and play park, making it the perfect place for families with small children.
From here the view is breathtaking: the Medicean fortress, the tiny island called Lo Scoglietto with its lighthouse, and last but not least the open sea whose changing hues of blue make it difficult to see where the sea stops and the sky starts.
Perfect for one last swim in Elba at the end of your holiday before you board the ferry that will take you back home.
You can get to the beach either by car or by bus, because it is very near the centre of Portoferraio and the port where the ferries come in.
