Hiking the Rugged Cinque Terre Coastline

The dazzling landscapes of the National Park of Cinque Terre are best experienced on a hike, although non-hikers will also have plenty to see and do here. These five small fishing towns along the rugged Ligurian Coastline of Italy are in my opinion nothing short of magical and spellbinding. 

The National Park boasts more than 120 Km of trails along its coastline. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997. 

The Cinque Terre (meaning Five Lands) comprises a string of five little towns called Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso. They are all part of the larger National Park of Cinque Terre. These hidden villages precariously perched on clifftops have been for centuries accessed only by boat or mule tracks.

The ancient system of footpaths is surrounded by cultivated terraces, where the residents grow olive trees, fragrant fruit (including flavourful lemons), and a variety of vegetables. There are also striking vineyards clinging to the cliffsides or along precariously looking rocky terraces, painstakingly constructed over millennia. The terrain seems impossibly steep and rugged and yet people have lived and thrived here for centuries.

We visited during our 2 months motorhome traveling in Italy, arriving in this region at the end of September/2020 and staying for 3 nights in the nearby city of La Spezia.

During our stay, we hiked the two most famous trails: Monterosso-Vernazza and Vernazza-Corniglia, which are part of the Sentierro Azzurro (Blue Trail, marked SVA on maps). The whole trail is about 12 km long linking all 5 villages. Landslides in recent years meant parts of the trail had to be closed for repairs, currently, only the two (above mentioned) sections of the trail remain open. 

Although it is possible to hike both trails on the same day we did it slightly differently and decided to split them into two days.  We acquired a two days Cinque Terre Train Card, the card included access to the hiking trails and unlimited train rides on Cinque Terre trains for 29 Euros (visit their website for more information and current prices). Most of the hiking trails are free, apart from the two most famous trails, mentioned above. 

Map of Cinque Terre trails.

Day one: Vernazza to Monterosso – Part of the Sentiero Azzurro/Blue Trail. 

• Difficulty: Average, very steep in many places
• Length: 3.5 Km
• Duration: 1.5 to 2 hrs (depending on how many stops for snacks and photos, we did it in just over two hours). 

Most people start from Monterosso towards Vernaza and then continue on into the next trail Vernazza to Corniglia. But like I mentioned above we decided to split the hike into two consecutive days and we also decided to start from Vernazza, rather than start in Monterosso. 

Our day started early when we rode Little Bill (our scooter) from our campsite in La Spezia to the local train station and left it parked there at their small car park. Soon after collecting our train and hiking tickets, we boarded the Cinque Terre train ( note: it is very important to validate the ticket BEFORE getting on the train) towards Vernazza. The train ride itself is short but beautiful, the ride alternates between going through tunnels and sea views. From La Spezia to Riomaggiore (the first Cinque Terre town) is just a 10 minutes train ride and between the other Cinque Terre towns, it is just a 5 minutes train ride. The train route is spectacular,  the coastal terrain is so rugged that the journey seems mostly to be spent in tunnels, emerging every few minutes for amazing views of the sea before disappearing under the cliffs again.

From the train station in Vernazza, we walked along the main street towards the town center where we picked up the trail going in a Westbound direction towards Monterosso. The path is well signed posted, leading upwards via a stone footpath. Soon the views over Vernazza become better and better as we look over to the little harbour below, surrounded by the gleaming waters of the Mediterranean Sea. It was a dry and sunny day, but temperatures were pleasant with a light breeze, making for perfect hiking conditions.

Stunning views over Vernazza and the start of our hike to neighboring Monterosso.

The views over Vernazza once we reached the higher path were simply stunning. The candy-colored buildings look like they are made of “Lego”, all stacked together and spilling down from the cliffs into the charming little harbor below. We could have stayed looking at these views for hours, but there was plenty more to see.

We continued hiking among olive trees with more captivating views all around us. The path was narrow and uneven in places, but it never felt exposed. We stopped many times for photos, or for drinking water and eating our snacks. We wanted to take our time to appreciate the breathtaking landscapes. 

We occasionally met other people on the path but it was not at all busy, although we are hiking during the shoulder season the main reason for the lack of other tourists is, of course, the coronavirus pandemic which has dramatically affected tourism in this region. We were surprised to see a small market stall on the path with someone selling souvenirs. There was also an old chap playing music and we could hear the lovely melody well before we spotted him among the lush green vegetation. We also spotted a few locals maintaining the path, working on their gardens, cutting grass, tending to their vineyards and orchards. 

Souvenirs anyone?

Someone is busy cutting some bushes.

We were relieved that the path was not busy at all, since there were some very narrow sections with only space for one person at a time. People were very polite, giving way whenever necessary, wearing a face mask/covering when passing each other and we would also often hear a lovely and friendly “Buongiorno” or “Tchau”. We did also see some people walking the dog along the path and occasionally entire families with young kids being carried in backpacks.

There was a checkpoint, where we were asked to show our tickets, just as we started to descend into Monterosso. 

Checkpoint just before descending into Monterosso.

Monterosso is the largest of the Cinque Terre towns and the only village to have a proper sandy beach.

Views over to Monterosso.

The steepest part was when approaching the descent into Monterosso, where there were a series of steps down before it leveled off into the town. We were quite glad that we were going down rather than up those steps. Starting the hike in Monterosso involves a much steeper incline than the way we did…be warned.  

The long hike gave us a good appetite to devour some tasty Italian fare at a really lovely sea-front restaurant in Monterosso. We sat outside on the restaurant’s terrace with views over the sandy beach and the calm turquoise-blue waters of the secluded harbor. There were a few people swimming and/or sunbathing on the beach in front of us, but it was surprisingly quiet for such a lovely sunny day. At the far end of the beach, there was a good size car park, we did even spot a couple of motorhomes parked there. 

We stayed here for lunch overlooking the lovely beach. Can you see the car park at the far end of the beach? I think this town could have been an option for an overnight stay by motorhome since we did spot a couple of motorhomes parked there.

After lunch and a good rest, we caught the train from Monterosso to Manarola for some more exploring. The trains run every 30 minutes throughout the day.

We wanted to hike the “Via Dell Amore” from Manarola to Riomaggiore, but it was closed due to a landslide in 2011. It is due to open up again in 2022. We did manage to walk part of the way and get to admire some very pretty views along this path. We walked with views over the train line for some of the way.  The Via Dell Amore gets its name from the many “love padlocks” fixed to the sidewalk rails with couples’ names on them, left here as a testimony to their everlasting love. 

Rusty “love padlocks” along “Via Dell Amore”. The Manarola train station down below.

Manarola is, like the other villages along this coastline, a very quaint place. The small harbor does not have a beach, but that does not stop people from sunbathing on the rocks and jumping from the rocks into the sea for some refreshing swimming.

From the town center, going in a westbound direction, we walked up to a viewpoint above the town. 

Views over Manarola.

Apparently, the locals here speak a local dialect called Manarolese, and the village is considered the oldest of the Cinque Terre.

After hiking and exploring 3 out of the 5 small towns we decided to call it a day and we headed home, leaving some more exploring for the following day. We caught a train from Manarola back to La Spezia and then rode Little Bill back to our home-on-wheels. 

Day 2: Vernazza to Corniglia – Part of the Sentiero Azzurro/Blue Trail

• Difficulty: Easy to average
• Length: 4 Km
• Duration: 1.5 to 2hrs, although we did it in about 3 hrs stopping for coffee and cake. 

Again we rode Little Bill from our campsite to the train station of La Spezia and took the short train ride to Vernazza. The footpath started in Vernazza going Eastbound towards Corniglia, and it was well signposted. The steady ascent was not too difficult and in fact, we found it easier than the previous day. It had been raining through the night, so we were worried about not being able to do this trek, but the rain stopped soon after sunrise and we were able to proceed.

View over to Vernazza behind us. Can you spot Monterosso in the far distance? This hike took us in the opposite direction to where we hiked the previous day.

The rugged landscape was again just stunning with terraces covered in olive trees, vineyards, fruit and vegetables, and gorgeous wildflowers. Midway through our hike, we stopped for coffee and cakes at the most charming place, called il Gabbiano with amazing views over Corniglia.

We sat for coffee and cake at an indoor table with great views over to Corniglia, at Il Gabbiano.

They also had outdoor tables with fabulous views, but with rain showers predicted we opted for an indoors table instead.

Corniglia is the smallest of the five towns and the only one with no access to the sea since it lies perched on a cliff about 100 meters above sea level. After the hike, we stopped for lunch in this little town and found a really nice restaurant with sea views. The town was very quiet, with hardly any visitors. 

Corniglia main street, with lemon-themed souvenirs everywhere. In this town, the locals turn lemons into Limoncello.

It did not take us very long to explore Corniglia, since it comprises just one main road. There was a viewpoint at the end of the quaint main road, from where we could spot Riomaggiore in the distance and that was where we would be heading to next.

We decided to make good use of our Cinque Terre Card and save our tired legs, so we boarded a small shuttle bus from Corniglia to the train station down below (at sea level). To reach the train station from Corniglia there are about 380 steps, called Lardarina, and perhaps going downwards it would not have been so bad to tackle it, but not an easy feat if walking uphill. In any case, the shuttle bus was nearly empty and it proved to be a very good option. 

We then caught the train from Corniglia train station for a very short ride to Riomaggiore and the last town we would be visiting in the Cinque Terre. 

From the Riomaggiore train station, there was a tunnel taking people to some great views over the town. We missed the signs and took a wrong turn, ending up going on a much longer, steeper, and convoluted way through the town. We did eventually find the tunnel and the fabulous views.

From the station at Riomaggiore take this tunnel through to a great viewpoint over the town.

Views over Riomaggiore.

By the end of our stay, we had explored all five of the little towns called Cinque Terre (five lands), each having its own personality, character, and charm. We have eaten our own body weight of focaccia, sipped delicious Italian coffee on exquisite clifftop terraces, and enjoyed a local vino…or two. We are still not sure which one of these five little gems would have stolen our hearts the most, choosing a favorite would be like choosing a favorite child…not possible. We concluded that we loved them all…

Tips for visiting the Cinque Terre

• We traveled there by motorhome staying at a Sosta in La Spezia (GPS N 44.10340 E 9.86062), which was very convenient, although it was really just a large car park with grass pitches, it cost us only 6 Euro per night to stay. There were emptying facilities for grey/black water and fresh water, but no electric hook up. There are other options for motorhomes in La Spezia, Levanto, and other neighboring towns. We did notice a couple of motorhomes at the car park in Monterosso, so I guess that staying there overnight might have been a possibility, but can’t recommend it ourselves, since we have not stayed there. The route in could well be a challenge given the terrain of the area.   
• If flying to Italy, the nearest airports to the Cinque Terre are Pisa and Genoa. But it is also within easy reach (by train or road) from other major cities such as Florence, Rome, Milan, etc.
• This region of Italy is VERY popular, and for good reason. Visiting during the high season of July and August would probably result in a less enjoyable experience since it will likely be mobbed, so we would recommend avoiding it during those months. We visited late September/early October and it was perfect. Although it was particularly quiet when we visited because of the coronavirus pandemic when tourist numbers have been greatly reduced. I don’t think this region could otherwise be described as quiet. 
• I would recommend at least two full days here to enjoy it at a more leisurely pace. It is possible to do both of the hikes featured in this post in just one day, although it will be a long and tiring day. If not hiking it is possible to see all of the 5 villages in one day, by taking the train or by boat from one village to the next. But I don’t think you would be doing it justice staying just one day, particularly because it is in the evening when you can really experience it without the hordes of tourists. After 4 pm most of the day-trippers would have gone home, leaving you to enjoy it at a more leisurely and peaceful pace. 
• Shoulder season, such as April, May, September, and October are good months to visit with warm temperatures and fewer crowds, although not guaranteed. We got mostly good weather in early October, with a few showers on our second day. Make sure to avoid it during any of the Italian National Holidays. 
• You don’t need to be superfit to hike in the Cinque Terre, but we do recommend appropriate hiking clothing, shoes, and plenty of water, snacks, sun protection, sun hat, etc. Some sections are very long and steep.
• Traveling to and around the Cinque Terre by train is the best option. There is a train connection between neighboring La Spezia and Levanto which stops at each of the Cinque Terre towns, the trains run up to 3 times per hour in each direction from 5 am to 11:30 pm, time tables are available from train stations and/or online from the official train sites.
• It is also possible to visit each of the villages by rented boat or even a public ferry boat that departs from Portovenere, La Spezia, and Levanto connecting all the villages, apart from Corniglia, which does not have a harbor. 
• Vehicles are not allowed to enter the villages, since they are pedestrian-only and/or restricted to residents only. There are designated car parks outside the center of the villages, but parking can be quite expensive. Make sure to do your research if driving into any of the villages, and good luck with all the small winding mountain roads. We noticed that Monterosso had quite a large car park at the far (Westside) end of the beach. 
• We do recommend getting the Cinque Terre Train Card (which include the hiking trails, train, and some other attractions), visit their website for more details, and don’t forget to validate the train ticket before boarding the train. There are validation machines at the train station, so just scan your ticket there on the first day, before boarding the train. Failure to validate your ticket can result in a costly fine. 
• If staying overnight in one of the 5 villages, there are good accommodation options, such as hotels, guest houses, and apartments, although it can be pricey. But certainly, it could be a lovely experience to enjoy it in the evening. The larger villages of Monterosso and Riomaggiore are likely to have the widest selection of accommodation options. Monterosso is the only village with a proper beach and seafront promenade, it is also more accessible and less hilly, therefore it could make for a good base from where to explore the region. 
• Consider staying at either La Spezia or Levanto for a larger selection and more budget-friendly accommodation. 
• English is widely spoken around the Cinque Terre.

We thoroughly enjoyed our visit to this region and could have spent a lot longer enjoying this incredible coastline – but with much still to see in Italy, we reluctantly departed towards Lucca and the start of our motorhome road trip through beguiling Tuscany and Umbria.