Trip Report: San Marino – Country #104

Trip Report: San Marino

Visited in August 2020

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Have you ever heard of San Marino? And if so, did you know that it is a sovereign country?

If you answer one of these questions with no, do not worry. You are not alone. San Marino is not really a well-known country, although it actually should be. Because it is the oldest country in the world, founded in the year 301.

It is also one of the smallest countries in the world. Only Vatican City, Monaco, Tuvalu and Nauru are smaller. Plus, it is only one of three countries in the world completely surrounded by another country (the other two are Vatican City and Lesotho).

For me personally, San Marino was country no. 104. Due to the latest COVID-19 developments I canceled a long weekend in Croatia one day before the departure and went to San Marino instead. Since San Marino is accessible from my home country by road in just a few hours, the country was a low hanging fruit, so to speak, which I had saved in case a trip was canceled at short notice.

A day-trip from Bologna

Now, how do you even get to San Marino? Since the country is one of the six countries without an airport, getting there by plane is not an option. San Marino is an enclave in Italy and most people visit it as a day trip from Rimini, Florence, Bologna, Rome or any other nearby city. In my case it was Bologna, which served as my base camp. From there, I took the train to Rimini and then the bus to San Marino. Travel time per way was about 2.5 hours (including half an hour waiting time in Rimini).

Taking the train, bus or car is not the only option, though. You can also take a funicular for example. Sporty people can even enter the country by bike or on foot. At least I saw a lot of cyclists cycling up the mountain to San Marino City. The capital of the country, which is also called San Marino, sits on top of a mountain, the 739 meters high Mount Titano. The lowest point of the country is at 55 meters above sea level.

I arrived in my 104th country at 10.30 and was ready to explore the capital. Buses from and to San Marino run every 1.5 hours. So I had about 6 to 10 hours, depending on how long I wanted to stay.

“What can you do in San Marino?”, some of you might ask. Not very much, to be honest, but still a few things that will keep you entertained for a few hours. In fact, there are two things in particular that I call the highlights of the country. The towers and the old town.

The main attraction and landmark of the country are definitely the three towers, two of which are open to the public. I have visited both of them and even walked to the third one, which is a little bit off the beaten track (however, going to the third tower is not a must it in my opinion). The three towers are the pride of the nation. You can even see them on the country’s flag.

The second highlight of the capital is the old town, since 2008 a UNESCO world heritage site, with its beautiful alleys and houses. The roads lead up and down the mountain, whereby the way up to the top is much less strenuous than you might think. Those who still feel exhausted can take a gelato break in between.

It did not take me long to realize that San Marino is a beautiful place. For me, the country was the last of the six European micro-states I visited and I would describe it as the most beautiful country among them.

Also fantastic are the views you get in San Marino. As I wrote before, the city is located on a mountain and you will find many viewpoints, from where you can see the lower parts of the country and parts of Italy as well.

In the eight or so hours I spent in San Marino, I probably saw every inch of the capital… at least twice. Because the city is very, very small. I would estimate that you can see everything of it in 30-45 minutes at most. Getting lost is therefore almost impossible.

Apart from the sights, San Marino offers some good restaurants and cafés where you can pass the time. Obviously, the food is not really different from the Italian cuisine, but this is of course not a bad thing. On the contrary. You will find the usual pasta dishes, pizzas, piadina, tiramisu etc.

If that is not enough for you, there are still quite a few shops, a large number of which seem to specialize in (fake?) firearms. Oh, and there are also some weird museums. The Torture Museum and the Museum of Creatures of the Night for example (I didn’t visit both).

The last “tourist attraction” I want to mention is getting your passport stamped. Actually, I never voluntarily give up valuable space on my passport pages, but some people might like to do it.

Surprising for me was how much was going on in the city, because the streets were sometimes quite crowded. It was surprising because a) there is a pandemic and b) because San Marino is actually one of the 30 least visited countries in the world. But since they probably measure that by hotel bookings and most tourists only stay during the day, the unofficial number of tourists must be much higher.

And one last point: in terms of prices, I would rank San Marino above European average. The prices are similar to Italy, maybe even a little bit higher. That’s not really surprising, since San Marino, with its population of around 30,000, is per capita income one of the richest countries in the world.

Is San Marino worth a visit?

As I wrote before, San Marino was the last of the six European micro-states I visited (the other five are Vatican City, Monaco, Liechtenstein, Andorra and Malta). And although there is something fascinating about these micro-states, I still have to admit that most of these countries were rather obligatory visits for me in order to progress with my project.

After all, most of these micro-states are add-ons to their neighboring countries, so to speak. Whether you are in Liechtenstein or 20km next door in Switzerland makes no difference. It looks the same and it feels the same. The same applies to a certain degree to Monaco and Andorra.

In addition, some of these countries (for me Andorra and San Marino, for those who don’t live in Switzerland or Austria, also Liechtenstein) are rather difficult to reach, as the nearest airport is a good distance away.

Having said that, I must admit that San Marino surprised me in a positive way. For me it is the most beautiful of the six countries and the location of the capital on a mountain gives the country a bit of uniqueness, which most of the other micro-states don’t have. The views are amazing, the food is great, the city looks pretty… there is basically nothing to criticize.

Is San Marino a country you absolutely have to see? To answer this question with yes would probably go a bit too far. Because let’s be honest, not many travel stories start with “do you remember that crazy day/night in San Marino?” It is obvious that there are many countries in the world that offer a lot more than this micro-state.

However, even though I do not consider San Marino a must see country, it is still worth a visit. If you are in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, you can definitely travel to San Marino and enjoy the beautiful old town as well as the towers. At least, it won’t be a trip where you end up thinking it was a wasted day.

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