A highlight of 2025 for the Riviera Romagnola, Cala Cedrina in Punta Marina is experiencing its second season with remarkable success. Filippo Tagiuri and Massimo Bonci, founders and managers of the beach club in this Ravenna locality that went viral on social media for the so-called “peacock invasion”, estimate a 30% increase compared to the already satisfying summer of last year. This growth stems from the warm weather that drew crowds to the beaches in June and July, but there’s more to it. The early March opening allowed the beach club to capture the desire for sea during spring months, and the fine weather during Easter and major long weekends contributed to the seasonal success. There are also many new offerings launched in recent months.

The main highlight is the opening of the pizzeria, with pizzaiolo Antonio Salzano – a name already well-known in Ravenna – who developed a “classic” menu enriched by a gourmet pizza selection. There were also investments in the external dining area, with the installation of a pergola with exposed wooden beams that encouraged guests to enjoy the outdoor experience even at lunch time, and in the area that Filippo and Massimo have nicknamed “Playa” – the beach space dedicated to hosting events and aperitifs. The success of these initiatives is driving future plans. The intention would be to remove the current padel court, underutilized due to climate reasons – it’s now too hot to play on the beach – to create a sort of “Playa 2” that will allow them to manage scheduled events, including private and corporate ones whose demand is multiplying, without sacrificing a space for the sunset ritual for regular customers.

“We are satisfied – the managers say – because we managed to realize what we had in mind last year during our first season but didn’t have time to follow through on. And now we continue to invest. Next year we’ll change all the tables and chairs. We’ll create another pergola space and focus on what we consider our core business: events and aperitifs. Dining is clearly important, but we don’t see ourselves as just a restaurant by the sea. We’re a beach club where you play sports and enjoy aperitifs, where there’s steady traffic before and after lunch and dinner. This is how we differentiate ourselves from Punta Marina’s one-dimensional offering, which is all restaurant and umbrellas.”

The evening events program has been strengthened and organized by weekly themes. Monday is karaoke night, always sold out. Wednesday is dedicated to ethnic cuisine, from Persian cooking to Brazilian grill featured throughout August. Friday is live music night, with different artists and musical genres. Plus Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon DJ sets, always highly popular. And on August Tuesdays, Cala Cedrina beach was transformed into a cinema, with poufs and cushions instead of seats and a large screen for screening selected cult movies. Thus the Drive In Cala Cedrina project was born. A program that attracted many young people. “Compared to the previous management – Cala Cedrina rose from the ashes of Lido Pelo, ed. note – the average age has dropped by about forty years,” comment Filippo and Massimo. “And this makes us proud, because it’s exactly what we wanted to achieve: a young beach club with a completely different offering from what’s typical of Punta Marina.”