Riviera Italiana - Cinque Terre
One of the highlights of my trip was definitely our impromptu visit to Cinque Terre. Usually, we’d discuss our plans for the next day the night before. The original plan was to visit Sienna the next day, but after some email checking and researching online, we decided to go to Cinque Terre, setting off bright and early.
Undoubtedly one of Italy’s most scenic areas, Cinque Terre’s five villages - Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso – are situated along a steep mountainside, some villages built into the walls of towering cliffs, while others are open to tiny ports at sea level. Each of the villages have its own atmosphere and character, and no trip to Cinque Terre would be complete without visiting all five villages.
You will need to purchase the Cinque Terre Card (€5) - available at the tourism office at the La Spezia station. While hiking, many fellow tourists questioned our choice of footwear (we were in havis, pumps and birks) but it wasn’t that much of an issue for us! So unless you really feel more comfortable hiking in sports shoes, sandals should suffice. No heels please.
The hike should take you five to six hours, excluding time spent soaking up the atmosphere in the various towns, taking photos, and stopping for photo-moments. My advice? Start early at 10am, giving you plenty of time to take in the stunning views of the Ligurian Sea, admire the vertical vineyards, savour the wines from each of the towns (and perhaps even buy a bottle of limoncino home) and for multiple photo ops.
The Cinque Terre villages are well connected by rail and each of the villages has a train station. We took the train from La Spezia to Monterosso and hiked our way past Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and lastly, Riomaggiore. The 11km hike left us perspiring and tired, but we emerged with more toned legs (thanks to the stairs) and an experience of a lifetime.
Cinque Terre gave “blue” a whole new meaning, with unbelievable gradients in the sky, and clear azure waters. I’m definitely coming back here one day. #addtobucketlist
