This well known, elegant seaside resort lies on what was once a strip of Mediterranean maquis. It has a large sandy beach and many good, well run hotels. The town grew up in the Renaissance period around a quay used for loading marble from the nearby Apuan mountains which was carried to the sea along a road that was built on the suggestion of Michelangelo himself.

In 1788 the Grand duke Leopoldo built the fortress that gives the town its name and is still to be seen in Piazza Garibaldi in the centre of the town. Marina di Pietrasanta and Lido di Camaiore are also important seaside resorts and lie on the coastal road between Forte dei Marmi and Viareggio.