Follonica · IT

Varco 3 spiaggia libera riserva naturale statale tomboli di Follonica

Varco 3 is one of the numbered beach gates that cut through the Tomboli di Follonica, the state nature reserve of pine-clad coastal dunes ringing the Maremma seaside town of Follonica. Here the word 'varco' means an opening in the dune ridge, and 'spiaggia libera' means a free public beach: pass under the stone pines on a boardwalk path and you step out onto a stretch of shoreline with no concession, no fenced loungers, just sand and a clean, shallow Tyrrhenian sea. This is a quiet, nature-first alternative to the busy resort beaches of the Gulf of Follonica. The reserve was set up in 1977 to protect a fragile tombolo—a low sandy ridge of pine forest running from the town toward Puntone di Scarlino—so the beach gate is part of a wider protected landscape you can walk through, cycle to and swim off, free of charge.