42.733° N, 10.154° E
Complete guide
Spiaggia di Fetovaia: beach guide
What the beach is like
Spiaggia di Fetovaia lies on the south-western side of the island of Elba, in the municipality of Campo nell'Elba. The beach is sheltered by a narrow headland of gabbro rock, densely covered with broom, holm oaks and tall shrubs typical of the Mediterranean maquis. During the Second World War the headland had a lookout post, which communicated with a position at the Piane alla Sughera. The same headland gives the bay calm water, suitable for sheltering boats.
The bottom is made of fine yellow sand, which stretches for about two hundred metres and gives the bay turquoise hues. Behind the beach, towards Monte Capanne, there are narrow, rugged valleys. According to Wikipedia, the vegetation of the area consists of low plants typical of the dry Mediterranean environment, because the area faces south-west and is exposed to the south-westerly wind (libeccio). Monte Capanne blocks part of the weather systems coming from the north, so the climate of the south-western side is drier than that of the northern side. On the height above Fetovaia stands the rock formation known as Cote Spaccata.
The origin of the name Fetovaia, recorded since the sixteenth century, is disputed. According to one of the most widely accepted interpretations, it would be linked to the stench produced by heaps of Posidonia oceanica on the beach, a very frequent phenomenon documented on Elba as early as the eighteenth century. According to others, it would instead come from terra fetuaria, meaning fertile land, and not from fagetuaria, as had been suggested in the past.
Behind the beach, along the narrow valley that climbs Monte Capanne, lies a small settlement belonging to the municipality of Campo nell'Elba. In 1825, to a design by Luigi Bettarini, a guard post known as the Quartiere Militare was rebuilt not far from the headland; it was later turned into a private home.
Getting there
Marina di Campo, the main town and seat of the municipality, is 6.7 km east of the beach as the crow flies. Marina di Campo airport is in the hamlet of La Pila, which is 7.4 km north-east of Fetovaia as the crow flies. Portoferraio is 17.1 km to the north-east as the crow flies. OpenStreetMap has no data on parking, showers or accessibility for this beach.
When to go
According to QualeSpiaggia data, the beach faces south. With the south-easterly sirocco (scirocco), the southerly ostro and the south-westerly libeccio, the wind blows in from the sea and the beach is exposed to waves. With the northerly tramontana, the north-easterly grecale and the north-westerly mistral (maestrale), the wind blows from the land and the bay is sheltered. The easterly levante and the westerly ponente strike it from the side. This is an indication based on the orientation of the coast, not a forecast.
According to the 2026 tender, the future concession holder of the punto blu will have to keep it open from 1 June to 30 September.
Seabed and sea
The beach is sandy and faces the Tyrrhenian Sea. In the 2025 season the European Environment Agency (EEA) rated the bathing water quality at the reference sampling point for the beach as excellent.
In July 2023 Fetovaia had one of the five Caretta caretta turtle nests confirmed on Elba up to that point, and the president of the Parco Nazionale Arcipelago Toscano visited the site. The night-time hatching of those nests was expected between 20 August and 15 September. For 23 August 2024 the park announced a talk at Fetovaia on Caretta caretta nesting, as part of the La natura al Centro festival. The announced topics included the lighting of the shoreline and the management of beaches.
Facilities and free beach
For the 2024 talk the park announced a small tasting offered by the Pino Solitario beach establishment in Fetovaia and mentioned the cooperation of the area's accommodation businesses that have signed up to the European Charter for Sustainable Tourism. In 2025 the same establishment was one of the 5 participating beach establishments where visitors could collect the kit for the park's Portami via, non portarmi via campaign, which asked beachgoers on Elba to pick up cigarette butts and plastic fragments left along the coast.
On 23 September 2026 the tender for a new state maritime concession for punto blu no. 2 on Fetovaia beach was published by the municipality of Campo nell'Elba. According to the tender, the concession area can be up to 200 square metres with a sea frontage of 20 metres, of which 170 square metres for umbrellas and deckchairs and 30 square metres for a service structure, which can also serve as a kiosk bar. The concession is planned for 8 years, for renting out umbrellas, sunbeds and deckchairs and for running a kiosk bar. The concession holder will have to provide lifeguard and bather assistance in line with the beach safety ordinance of the Portoferraio Coast Guard (Capitaneria di porto).
Rules and protected areas
The tender refers to the rules of the beach use plan (Piano di utilizzazione degli arenili) adopted by the municipality. According to the plan's rules cited in the tender, kiosks and gazebos must be seasonal, easy to remove, made of wood or similar materials and no more than 3 metres high. Cement-based materials are banned for these structures, and fences of any type and material are banned in the outdoor spaces of the concession areas. The structures may be installed from 1 April and must be removed completely at the end of the bathing season, and in any case by 30 October of the same year.
Nearby
Not far from Fetovaia, at the places called Piastre and Tombe, are the remains of three lime kilns, one of which was in use until 1958; they exploited the limestone seams of the area. Spiaggia naturista Le Tombe is 1.7 km to the west as the crow flies.
To the east, Spiaggia Le Calle is 1 km away as the crow flies and Spiaggia Le Piscine 1.4 km. The beach of Seccheto is 1.9 km to the east as the crow flies, and Seccheto is one of the municipality's hamlets. Spiaggia di Cavoli, a sandy beach, is 2.8 km to the east as the crow flies.
To the north-west are Spiaggia del Relitto, 3.1 km away as the crow flies, and Spiaggia di Pomonte, 3.2 km away, both pebble beaches. The village of Pomonte is 3.2 km to the north-west as the crow flies and Chiessi 4.4 km in the same direction. The island of Pianosa also belongs to the municipality of Campo nell'Elba.
Sources
- Wikipedia (it) — Spiaggia di Fetovaia
- QualeSpiaggia — open data spiagge (CC BY 4.0)
- Wikipedia (it) — Campo nell'Elba
- OpenStreetMap
- Wikivoyage (it) — Campo nell'Elba
- albopretorio.comune.camponellelba.li.it — 2680834?fId=2680834
- AVVISO PUBBLICO – BANDO DI GARA PUNTO BLU N. 2 SPIAGGIA DI FETOVAIA – Comune di Campo nell'Elba
- EEA — Bathing water quality 2025 (IT009049003006)
- Tre dei cinque nidi di Caretta Caretta all’Elba sono nel Parco - Parco Nazionale Arcipelago Toscano
- Le nidificazioni delle tartarughe Caretta caretta nella Toscana settentrionale - Parco Nazionale Arcipelago Toscano
- Plastica e mozziconi in spiaggia? Li raccogli, li porti, VINCI! - Parco Nazionale Arcipelago Toscano