Cinque Terre has a big name, and many people travel far to see these five villages along the Ligurian coast, lured by the many beautiful photos. What very few people mention was that these photos were taken from the trails, and it's a shame that so many visitors only used the train and missed out on the best views.
Sights visited: Manarola, Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, the Blue Path (SVA#2), Riomaggiore
Somehow I had this feeling that Cinque Terre was made famous by a certain Rick Steves. I kept hearing about it, long before I started planning on my first Italy trip. I gave it a miss the first time because it was out of the way and I wasn't all that impressed, but then my friends back home were baffled by my decision. To put my mind at ease and see what the fuss is all about, I departed from Rome for a two day excursion to this famous tourist destination.
As I got closer to Cinque Terre, the scenery outside was really nice.
Cinque Terre refers to five villages along the coast - Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore, from north to south. They are all connected by Trenitalia rail and numerous hiking trails. The closest major train station on the south is La Spezia, and on the north Levanto. The train runs back and forth between these two stations and stop by each villages, and travel time between the villages only takes 2-3 minutes.
With so many trails to choose from, Cinque Terre is a hiker's dream. The most visited and well-known hiking trail is the "Blue Path", or trail no.2, that connects all five villages, as well as the easiest. If you have more days in Cinque Terre, it is recommended to try some of the higher trails extending into the mountains. Here are websites with very detailed information on all the trails in the area, like the length and estimated time needed for each trail:
In Cinque Terre
Parco Nazionale delle Cinque Terre
After five hours and two connections, I arrived in Manarola.
Tourist info like this one could be found at La Spezia and each villages's train stations, but they weren't very useful. They didn't sell Trenitalia tickets, and the special "Cinque Terre Card" wasn't as good value anymore since the landslide. I suggest buying the train tickets at a major station beforehand, as the vending machines at the stations were sometimes out of order.
Staying at one of the villages would be an amazing experience, but hotel rooms were in high demand, so early booking is recommended.
After inquiring several B&B's that were full, I switched to AirBnB and found Il Patio. It was on the expensive side but I was very happy with the quality of rooms. Located in a secluded alley in Manarola, I did have to climb many stairs, with my luggage, to get there.
Il Patio was self-serve, so I had all my breakfast at Manarola's Aristide. The food was nice, but it was the only place open in the morning and could get busy.
A great place to see the whole view of Manarola like in the cover photo was at a cafe called Nessun Dorma. I took the shot at sunset and had a leisurely dinner.
The same view could be taken from the walkway outside, so dining at the restaurant was not necessary. There was plenty of space to set up a tripod too.
Next day, I spent the whole day hiking the famous Blue Path.
In 2011, there was a landslide that destroyed a good portion of trail no.2. Reconstruction was still taking place in 2015. When I went, the segments between Corniglia - Manarola - Riomaggiore (Via dell'Amore) were closed. My plan was to hike the segment between Monterosso - Vernazza - Corniglia, and found that was plenty enough hiking for a day.
Monterosso al Mare, as the name suggests, has the only extensive beach in Cinque Terre. It is also the flattest village out of the five, so something to consider when choosing accommodation.
With my favourite map app "Map With Me", I had zero trouble finding the entrance to the trails.
Trail no.2 is the only trail in Cinque Terre that require an entrance fee, and only during working hours. I got lazy and slept in a bit, but the best time to start the hike is definitely earlier the better. The sun gets hotter towards midday, and the trail became more crowded. I had to queue for a while at the ticket booth, and also wait for slower people in front of me. In the first twenty minute of the hike I was rather annoyed because the trail was only wide enough for one person.
The hike started with a sharp ascend of stairs for the first bit then flattens out.
I would rate the hike as easy. It is well marked with no climbing involved. The first part of the Monterosso-Vernazza trail was mostly forests and vineyards.
Because the trail runs along the edge of the mountains, I was continuously bombarded with drop-dead gorgeous views. The approach to Vernazza was epic.
Once I was near a village, it was usually a quick descend again. The segment of Monterosso - Vernazza took me ~2.5 hours with plenty of photo stops.
Vernazza is the prettiest and the most popular village in Cinque Terre. Luckily for me, the weather was impeccable and the colours of the villages reflected really well in photos.
The villages themselves were not that interesting for me. Streets were congested with tourists, the beaches were not that great, and the buildings looked a bit messy up close. I found them most beautiful when viewed from a distance and as a whole.
At a tourist trap infested place like Cinque Terre, I had a few meals that were downright crap. I was delighted by a decent lunch at Il Pirata Caffe. It was located away from Vernazza town centre, which explained a lot.
I only had a pesto gnocchi, but it was obvious the ingredients were fresh. Their desserts also looked really good and I regret not trying them.
The heat got unbearable at midday, so I decided to return to my hotel in Manarola by train and continue the hike until late afternoon.
So many tourists were confused about the train even though there were only two platforms, one route, and the ocean is right there for orientation. I had two incidents of other tourists asking me for help, and then didn't believe me and missed the train (trains come at ~1hr intervals, so not all that frequent). The confused tourists congregate at the door and left the seats empty, which enraged me to no end because they blocked other tourists and delayed the train!
The number of tourists on the trail was significantly less than in the train stations. Many of these visitors were day trippers so they only had enough time to see the villages by train. Personally I wouldn't find Cinque Terre worth a visit if I couldn't hike the trails.
After the midday break, I went to Corniglia by train. Corniglia is the only village not by the water, but located up on the hills. Visitors needed to climb a long set of stairs from the train station to get there.
The inconvenience made Corniglia the least visited and the most quiet village, and my favourite. It would be the best village to stay for people seeking a peaceful ambience.
Cinque Terre actually has more than five villages, and this was another less known village seen from a viewing point in Corniglia.
After a quick stroll in Corniglia I continued my hike on trail no.2. This shot was taken looking back at Corniglia after I've walked some distance.
I was kind of hungry, so I stopped at a a small cafe with great views, at exactly halfway between Corniglia and Vernazza.
The last stretch of this trail consisted of a never ending downward path of uneven stairs. It's not difficult, but people with bad knees might need to take this into consideration.
I paced myself pretty accurately and got to Vernazza right before sunset. This segment took also about 2.5 hours. A good photo spot was near the trail ticket booth, about ten minute flight of stairs from town.
To capture the classic Cinque Terre postcard view of Vernazza at night, I walked 15 minutes up the trails towards Monterosso. I was rather tired at this point, but was willing to climb the same path I already did once in the morning just to get that chance to take a photo that many others had taken. Sounds stupid, but the process of it all made me really happy.
On my last morning in Cinque Terre I visited the one last village, Riomaggiore. The postcard view was taken from the jetty extending out of the dock. This is probably also the best village to be shot from water level (commuter boats and boat tours are available as an alternative to train).
Via dell'Amore, the trail no.2 between Riomaggiore and Manarola, was the most popular walk in Cinque Terre. It is super easy and short so anyone could do it, and it carried the legend that couples who finished the walk would find long lasting love. It was still under reconstruction since the landslide and only 100m of it was open. The old locks were probably taken away with the landslide, but new locks had been placed since then.
(the Mandarin written in white says "Mr.Right, where are you?")
After a quick visit to Riomaggiore, I caught a train for my long long ride back to Rome.
I was perfectly content with only walking the two segments of trail no.2, as those were the highlights. If I had more days I wanted to try the upper trails for some vertigo inducing walks. Ditch the train and the day tours, because hiking is the single best way to enjoy Cinque Terre.
