Ravenna · Go deeper
Where to live
Ravenna spreads out flat from a compact, mosaic-filled historic centre, through the everyday inner districts and the reviving old port canal, out to a string of Adriatic beach towns a few kilometres away. The spread is gentle, and so is the change in price.
The historic centre
Centro Storico
most expensiveThe compact old heart of Ravenna, where the famous Byzantine mosaics, Dante's tomb, and the main piazzas all sit within an easy walk. It's handsome, quiet, and deeply historic, with the best of the city's cafés and daily life. The trade is cost: it's the priciest part of an otherwise affordable city, and the ZTL limits cars.
Best for: those who want to live surrounded by the mosaics and the history
Learn more about the historic heart
For a couple of centuries Ravenna was one of the most important cities in the world. It became the capital of the crumbling Western Roman Empire in 402, then the seat of Ostrogothic and Byzantine power in Italy, and it kept the greatest surviving mosaics of the age. Eight early Christian monuments, the churches and mausolea of San Vitale, Galla Placidia, and Sant’Apollinare among them, glow with fifth- and sixth-century gold-and-blue mosaic work found nowhere else this complete outside Istanbul. They’re a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and they’re scattered through the walkable old centre.
The centre holds one more thing Florence has never forgiven it for. Dante Alighieri, exiled from Florence, spent his last years in Ravenna and died here in 1321, and here he was buried. Florence has been asking for its greatest poet back for seven hundred years; Ravenna has politely kept him. Florence even built a grand tomb for him, which stands empty to this day. His actual tomb is a quiet little temple in the old town, with a lamp Florence sends the oil for, by way of apology.
The inner districts
Semicentro (the ring around the centre)
mid, residentialThe everyday residential ring just outside the historic core: a mix of older housing and newer builds, local shops, and schools, all within an easy cycle of the centre. Practical, well-connected, and gentler on the budget than the old town. This is where a lot of Ravenna actually lives.
Best for: those wanting a practical, well-connected home a short ride from the centre
Darsena
mid, changingThe old port and canal district east of the station, in the middle of a long regeneration from industrial docks into a mixed, up-and-coming quarter of lofts, bars, and events along the water. It has energy and potential and often more space for the money. It's a work in progress, uneven block to block, and still finding its feet.
Best for: those who want a changing, characterful quarter with room to grow
The coast
Marina di Ravenna & the Lidi
premium in seasonThe string of Adriatic beach towns a few kilometres east, Marina di Ravenna and the other Lidi, with sand, pine forests, and a lively summer scene. They're the priciest places to buy and busiest in season, then quiet and cheaper through the winter. Coastal living with the city a short drive or bus away. The trade is the seasonal swing: alive in summer, sleepy off it.
Best for: those who want the beach and don't mind the summer-versus-winter rhythm
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