Riviera di Ponente

The Riviera di Ponente is the Ligurian coast running west from Genoa toward Ventimiglia. The slopes of the Alps and Apennines descend close to the sea, forming rocky headlands; between them, hills open around coastal settlements. The broader plain at Albenga is a notable exception to the narrow coastal terrain.

Ports and coastal routes connected towns such as Savona, Noli and Albenga with Genoa and the wider Mediterranean. Fishing and seafaring complemented agriculture, including olive cultivation on the slopes. In the later medieval and early modern centuries Genoese power shaped much of this shore, where maritime commerce and the defence of coastal communities were closely related.