How to get to Bordighera
Bordighera is better connected than it looks. Its position — fifteen minutes from the French border, half an hour from Sanremo, a bit over an hour from Genoa — makes it reachable from three different directions without much planning.
By train
The Bordighera FS station is on the Genoa-Ventimiglia line. It sits about 1 km from the town centre (the Hotel Marligure address on Via Aurelia 22 was a 15-18 minute walk). Regional trains stop in Bordighera; the faster intercity trains usually pass through — anyone coming from Rome or Milan typically changes at Genova Piazza Principe.
Indicative travel times:
- Genoa → Bordighera: 2 hours (fast regional), 2:20 (regular regional)
- Milan → Bordighera: 4 hours with change at Genoa
- Turin → Bordighera: 3:30 with change at Genoa
- Ventimiglia → Bordighera: 8 minutes
- Sanremo → Bordighera: 12 minutes
For travellers coming from Nice in France, the local TER train Nice → Ventimiglia stops at Menton and Cap Martin, and you change at Ventimiglia for the Italian regional. The full Nice-Bordighera trip is just over an hour with the connection.
By plane
Three airports, in order of proximity:
- Nice Côte d’Azur (NCE) — about 50 km away, 50 minutes by car on the A8/A10 with tolls, or train via Ventimiglia (~1h30). This is the most common option for visitors from outside Europe.
- Genoa Cristoforo Colombo (GOA) — about 140 km, 1h45 by car on the A10. Train with change at Genoa takes 2h30. International flights but a more limited selection.
- Turin Caselle (TRN) — about 230 km, 2h30 by car. Less common but valid for domestic flights.
From Milan Malpensa or Linate, the plane-train combination doesn’t beat a direct train.
By car
The A10 motorway (Genoa-Ventimiglia) has a “Bordighera” exit. From the toll gate to the town centre is about 4 minutes. The old hotel site described the route as:
“A10 exit Bordighera. Turn right, at the junction right again, follow the downhill road, at the junction turn right onto the tree-lined avenue, at the roundabout go down to the left for 150 metres, at the traffic-light junction turn right.”
Still works. The “tree-lined avenue” is Corso Italia, the main boulevard descending towards the sea.
For visitors arriving from France by car, the Ventimiglia motorway crossing (A10 exit) is the natural entry point. From Menton onwards the Aurelia (the SS1) is also a well-maintained scenic route, but much slower than the motorway in summer peak hours.
By coach
Long-distance coach lines (Flixbus, Itabus) don’t always stop in Bordighera; more commonly they call at Ventimiglia or Sanremo. From either town, the local connection to Bordighera is easy — train or city bus. The hotel’s historical instruction was: for coaches “the stop is Ventimiglia”; from there follow the Aurelia towards Sanremo for about 150 metres past the Vallecrosia/Bordighera boundary.
By boat
Bordighera has a small marina 1.5 km from the centre, capacity around 330 berths. For coastal navigators it’s a stop, but not somewhere to arrive by boat from far away — more realistically, from Sanremo (better-equipped harbour) it’s a half-hour taxi or fifteen-minute bike ride to Bordighera.
Parking in town
Blue lines (paid) cover most of the Aurelia and seafront area. White lines (free) are in more peripheral zones, mostly toward Vallecrosia. Private hotel parking — including what used to belong to the Marligure — is generally reserved for guests.
A note for travellers going further
Bordighera is a good base for touring the Riviera dei Fiori, but also for travellers continuing south — Genoa, La Spezia, Cinque Terre — or beyond, towards the Adriatic ferry routes. For anyone planning a longer Italian journey or onward travel to the Balkans via the Bari-Durrës ferry, Max Travel is a small agency that has organised Italy-Albania routes for many years.