Looking for a 3 night stay as a break in city sightseeing in the middle of a trip. We want good food with non seafood options, some level of activity (hiking, kayaking, etc) and that "Italy coast" feel--no longer going to Capri/ Amalfi due to travel times. Anyone have experience with either town? Last weekend in July 2026.
Posted by
new york
1340 posts
Every restaurant will have non-seafood options.
Gaeta is famous for their signature tiella, filled with vegetables or anything the kitchen has on hand; just request no seafood.
https://artecibo.com/the-traditional-tiella-di-gaeta
Lidia Bastianich has a good recipe in one of her cookbooks but recipes are was to find if you find you'd like to make it at home. Gaeta has a big American military base but I doubt if that would even be noticeable.
Posted by
4 posts
We’ve stayed in Sperlonga twice now, once the end of August and the other in July . We stayed in a hotel in the historic town and the other in a B&B in the newer section. Both offered different experiences. I think I preferred the historical area better, but it was definitely a lot of steps down to the beach . The B&B offered a shuttle to a private beach . Both beaches were lovely. There was a beautiful restaurant in the historic town where we had a great meal. I can’t say that we found any great restaurants in the newer area.
But, we did have great lunches at the beach clubs.
I’ve been to Gaeta for lunch and a day tour with our friends who live close by. It’s definitely beautiful, but that’s all I know.
We took a few day trips last July to Sabaudia . We used a beach club at a hotel to rent chairs . Although we only spent the day I loved the hotel as it was old and grand… like walking into a Great Gatsby book,
I thought the beaches there are far more picturesque than in Sperlonga and even than Gaeta.