My husband and I are planning our belated honeymoon to Cinque Terre, after falling in love with the area from watching Rick Steves' program on the five waterside towns. We are so excited about it and have begun our airfare search. We noticed that airfare drops significantly in September (school back in session, presumably), and wanted to know if you think that is a good time to visit the area, or if you would recommend another timeframe.
Posted by
Napa, CA
3580 posts
September is a great time to visit the CT. I've been there in spring and fall several times. It's perfect. The biggest crowds are gone and the weather is still nice. Sometime in the fall the private beach umbrellas in Monterosso are taken down, so you have access to the entire beach. Businesses are still open.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32349 posts
Andra,
I've visited the C.T. in September, and that's a great time to tour that area. While school is back and it's a bit less crowded, it probably won't be "quiet" as that's the fall shoulder season and lots of people like to travel at that time. Therefore, pre-booking accommodations would probably be a good idea.
While there are never any guarantees, the weather should be decent.
Happy travels!
Posted by
Sacramento, California U.S.A.
10597 posts
Hey Andra, you forgot the "e" in your name... :-)
My husband and I will be going to C.T. for the first time this September and everyone has told me it is a good time to go.
Have a great belated honeymoon!
Posted by
Ottawa, Canada
695 posts
We we're there last September, we had a great time,
weather was pretty good, there was a few days of rain
and some of the the trails we're closed, we managed to do them all
after they reopened. We even swan in the sea,
the water was quite warm. What a great place for a honeymoon!
Have fun!
Posted by
Hayden, ID
196 posts
We stayed in Vernazza in early October '07; only 3 nights which was not long enough. It was definitely more crowded on the weekend (we arrived Sat afternoon), but the busloads of tourists do clear out later in the day. The weather was pleasant; short sleeves & cropped pants fine w/ swtr in the evenings. You should have a great time!
Posted by
York, PA
300 posts
I'll echo the advice to book in advance. We visited in May a few year ago and our fist hotel choice was sold out (but they put us up in an apartment overlooking Riomaggiore, so it wasn't bad).
Posted by
Granite Bay, CA
1930 posts
Hi Andra, My wife and I were there in Sept. and it was great.You guys will love it! I know a great place with a sea view if you if you don't have a place yet.P.M if you want.
All the best, Monte and Susan
Posted by
Myrtle Beach, USA
12313 posts
We were there in late October and it was really nice. The weather was warm in the day and cool at night. We had no problem showing up without a reservation and finding a nice apartment at a great price. We were in Vernazza. It wasn't empty but it was quiet and relaxing.
The potential drawback is all the restaurants will close by 9 pm. I've heard the nightlife is a little better in Monterosso but we didn't check it out. Also the water is pretty cold, we never did more than wade up to our knees. The beach in Monterosso isn't "set up" in October like it would be in the summer (chairs for rent on the beach).
I think September will be warmer and potentially have a little more activity than October.