Diano Castello: a tour in the medieval village with ancient water cisterns

The small village of Diano Castello, in Imperia's inland, still retains its medieval structure to this day; enclosed by city walls, it is a maze of narrow alleyways. In the eleventh century, it became property of the Marquis of Clavesana and remained such until 1228, when it joined the Republic of Genoa. Clavesana square and its palace - set in the heart of the village - the fresco on the facade of the town hall, depicting the naval battle of Meloria, and the white and gray stripes, in the apse of the Assunta Romanesque church - symbol of the power of the Doria, are testimony to this historical period.

When pirates stopped plundering the coast, much of the population left the hills and moved to the town of Diano Marina, on the coast, and Diano Castello lost its supremacy as a strategic location, gaining though in peace and focusing its economy on agriculture.

Originally surrounded by city walls, today only the gates are left: Marina, the southern door, Borgo the northen one, San Pietro in the east and Mercato in the west.

The town hall is located next to the majestic Palazzo Quaglia, a lovely fifteenth century mansion consisting of a crenellated tower, once a jail.

Fine examples of the Romanesque style are the Oratory of San Giovanni and the Church of Assunta, hidden within the village, only to be discovered strolling through this small open-air museum.

The village tours are organized by Giroborgo and wind through squares and pictoresque “carruggi” - or alleyways - while captivating participants' interest with the village historical development. The tour within the old walls includes San Nicola da Bari and Nostra Signora dell'Assunta's church, and San Giovanni Oratory. The visit then continues to the "lone", ancient horizontal water cisterns, one of the peculiarities of Diano Castello, which, being private, can only be visited through GiroBorgo.

Visit information:

June 1st – September 30th:

Thursday at 9pm, Saturday at 10am, Sunday at 6pm
December 18th – January 10th: Saturday at 10am

Meeting point: Via Meloria 1 (under the arches)

Tours in French, English, German, and Spanish during Summer (5 people min) available upon reservation

Ticket: Euro 7

Special tours and local products tasting for groups of 20 people or more, upon reservation

For more information: call +39 333 4775965 or 338 86713413, email: giroborgo@gmail.com