La Lanterna, Trieste

The most democratic beach club in Italy: entrance fee €1.20, and each paying adult is entitled to two free entries for children under 12 years old. We should add that people with disabilities can obtain free five-year passes. All this happens at La Lanterna beach establishment, which the people of Trieste affectionately call “El Pedocin”, a name that seems to be linked to the fact that Austrian soldiers, during the Habsburg era, frequented it to get rid of the annoying parasites that tormented them. Managed directly by the Municipality of Trieste, La Lanterna has been in operation since 1903 and has a unique feature in Europe: gender separation. The left beach is reserved for women, the right one for men, while children can stay on either side, depending on who accompanies them to the Pedocin. At a certain point in its centennial history, some administrators thought it was time to tear down the barrier that separated the two sexes, but the people of Trieste would have none of it and did everything to maintain the tradition: women because they wanted to enjoy their day in the sun without being disturbed, men so they could play cards in the shade with one or several glasses of white wine to keep them company. So, after depositing the euro and twenty cents in the coin machine at the entrance, you cross the fence and enter the beach located near the port of Trieste, with the possibility of taking a chair, having a shower and enjoying the atmosphere of the place. La Lanterna is also open in winter for heliotherapy treatments, but be aware that from October to March it closes on holidays. In the women’s section there is also a bar, which is missing in the men’s section, but for those who are thirsty there is the possibility to go out and come back in, using the well-stocked kiosk located beside the beach entrance.