Portovenere, named after the goddess Venus, one of the most romantic villages along the Ligurian coast. Dating back to at least the 1st century BC,
legend has it that a temple to the goddess Venus was situated on the promontory where the church of Peter the Apostle (consecrated in 1198) now stands.
Lord Byron once swam across the bay at Portovenere to visit his friend Shelley, who was living nearby – the cove now bears the name of the Bay of Poets.
Shelly died in the Bay when his boat overturned.