The city of Ravenna is the Capital of the Sea 2026, beating competition from Ancona, Gaeta, Riccione, Brindisi, Taranto, Santa Cesarea Terme and Policoro. The proclamation arrived in the Monumental Hall of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, by the voice of the Minister for Civil Protection and Maritime Policies, Nello Musumeci.
The title of Capital of the Sea is an initiative that involves all the municipalities overlooking the Italian coast: 8,000 kilometers of coastline along which, according to Musumeci, it is necessary to develop a sea culture that does not end between May and September. The winning municipality will receive a contribution of one million euros to finance activities to promote maritime culture.
Musumeci took the opportunity to draw a distinction which, in his words, is not at all trivial: that between the “cities with the sea” – where the sea is the landscape – and the “seaside cities”, where the sea has conditioned and shaped the identity, the economy and sometimes even the language of the community. The port of Ravenna is among the main ones in the Adriatic, therefore it clearly falls into the second category.
These are the Minister’s full statements:
This initiative, which involves all the municipalities overlooking the sea, was created to make the value of the communities competitive, and has demonstrated the concrete participation of the State bodies in this award. We have 8000 km of coastline, along which there are ‘cities with the sea’ and ‘seaside cities’, and the difference is not trivial: the city with the sea makes the sea a landscape, but does not shape the identity of that community; seaside cities have seen the sea condition and shape their identity, their economy and sometimes their language. It is necessary to overcome this gap, with a different approach towards the culture of the sea, with the acquisition of new skills, through cultural initiatives, with the support of schools and families, because we cannot only deal with the sea from May to September. Congratulations and congratulations to Ravenna, this is a competition that can stimulate projects, creativity and challenges, and I believe that in the end Italy will win.
The initiative falls within the framework of national policies dedicated to the protection and development of the sea, according to the dictates of the Interministerial Decree of 4 November 2025.
