Cinque Terre
Italy, Europe
Five cliff villages, one coastline, and roughly ten thousand tourists.
The houses are stacked in colours that shouldn't work together, terracotta, mustard, faded pink, climbing cliffs that drop straight into the Ligurian Sea. In the villages, the streets are too narrow for cars and barely wide enough for two people with bags. The smell is anchovy paste and sunscreen, and by 10am in July the pathways between villages are single-file queues of people in inappropriate footwear.
Our honest take
Cinque Terre is genuinely beautiful and genuinely overrun. July and August reduce the villages to bottlenecks of selfie sticks. The trail between Vernazza and Corniglia is the real payoff, views earned on foot. Come in May or October and you'll understand why people keep coming despite themselves.
Why go
- The Sentiero Azzurro trail section between Vernazza and Corniglia, two hours of clifftop walking with the sea directly below and no road access to interrupt it
- Sciacchetrà, the local sweet wine made from dried Bosco grapes, drunk at a plastic table in Manarola with anchovies on toast while the fishing boats come in
- Manarola from the cemetery viewpoint at golden hour, the village looks like it was arranged by someone who wanted to make photographers cry
Skip if you can
- The Riomaggiore to Manarola 'Via dell'Amore' section, perpetually closed for renovation, been charging entry just to see a locked gate
- Any restaurant with a laminated photo menu facing the main harbour, they know you're not coming back, and the seafood pasta will reflect that
- Visiting all five villages in one day, you'll see everything and experience nothing, just a sweaty train-hop with no time to swim or eat properly
Things to do
Where locals eat
Short hand-rolled Ligurian pasta with basil pesto, potato, and green beans. Liguria is the birthplace of pesto, grassier and less oily than exports. No cream, that's not Ligurian.
Ristorante Belforte in Vernazza, a 50-year seaside classic serving trofie pesto and Monterosso anchovies
Monterosso anchovies lightly floured and fried, sold in paper cones, cheap, fresh, and everywhere along the coast.
A friggitoria (fry shop) in Monterosso or Vernazza
Ligurian focaccia (dimpled with oil and salt) and farinata, a chickpea-flour flatbread baked in a copper pan, bakery snacks eaten standing up.
A village focacceria/bakery
The rare sweet passito wine made from grapes dried on the terraces above the villages, expensive, small-production, a genuine specialty rather than table wine.
An enoteca in the villages pouring local Cinque Terre DOC
Costs
Per person, per day on the ground, lodging, food, local transport and activities. Excludes international flights (see Getting there).
Cinque Terre Card (train + trails): €18.50/day (~$20). Plate of trofie al pesto: €12-16 (~$13-18). Glass of local white wine: €4-7 (~$4.50-8). Gelato: €3-4 (~$3.30-4.50).
Getting there
Where to stay
The most photogenic village, best harbour, gets loud at night in summer, book months ahead
Highest village, no beach, fewest tourists, quietest nights, reached by 382 steps from the train station
20-minute train to any village, real restaurants, normal prices, where locals actually sleep
Good to know
- Trail sections close regularly after landslides, check parchinazionale5terre.it before hiking, some paths require timed entry reservations
- Hiking in flip-flops is genuinely dangerous on the Sentiero Azzurro, the stone steps are uneven and slick after rain
- Pickpocketing on trains between villages is common in summer, keep bags in front
- Heat exhaustion risk on south-facing trail sections July to August, carry at least 1.5L water, start before 9am
Prices, visa rules, and transport details may change. Always verify with official sources before booking. Last updated: July 2026.
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