3 days in Cinque Terre - Which town to stay in ?

Monterosso is the largest and therefore some faster trains stop there as well, whereas the other towns are served only by the regional trains. However regional trains are very frequent therefore you shouldn't limit yourself to Monterosso only. The best town to stay in is the one where you find the best accommodations that fit your need. Shuttling between towns with trains is easy and fast, there are lots of trains going ;back and forth. Most people like Vernazza the most, however I think they are all pretty. The only thing you should know is that Corniglia is a long walk from the station (a very long series of steps), albeit serviced by a shuttle bus. All other towns have the station right in the middle of town (or in the case of Monterosso a short flat walk away).

My vote would be Manarola. It's a quieter town (in comparison to Monterosso and Vernazza) and even more so at night. 6-10 really good restaurants and the charm of real town. We stayed in an apartment (2 bedroom) for about $200nt but there were plenty of other options, many of which have ocean views.

We are partial to Riomaggiore. We have rented twice from Edi's apartments. Both times we rented the same apartment. We had a terrazza that looked out over the main piazza and had a view of the sea. Every evening the piazza would fill with locals. Adults visit and children ride their bikes and play. We love the slightly more real feel of this town.

Lindsay, My recommendation is about the same as Roberto mentioned. Each of the five towns has their own "character", so you'll have to decide which one best fits your criteria. The Guidebook has listings for good accommodations in all of them. Monterosso is the largest and also has the best sandy beaches. If "beach time" is important for you, that's something to consider. It also has the greatest number of hotels, restaurants and other tourist facilities. While Corniglia is high on a rock bluff, some people prefer it. One point about Corniglia is that the boats don't usually stop there, so if you plan on using the boats at all, it's not a good choice. IMO, Manarola is a bit "quieter" than Vernazza. During the day, Vernazza is often PACKED with tourists, and it becomes very crowded (the evenings are better). I agree with the previous reply regarding Riomaggiore. It's a great town to stay in with a good choice of small rooms. However, many don't provide breakfast, so you'll be on your own for that. I tend to prefer Monterosso, and always stay at Hotel Villa Steno, although that's probably not considered "budget friendly". Their rooms do provide views of the water (check their website for a sample). It's a bit of a hike to reach with luggage, but once there it's like "home". They have a good breakfast (which includes scrambled eggs) and the owners are absolutely wonderful. Understandably, it's very popular so booking early is essential! Their sister property, Hotel Pasquale is also good. If you decide on a "splurge", you could also consider Hotel Porto Roca which is at the far end of the "old town". Buon Viaggio!

We stayed in Vernazza back in 2008. Not sure if it has rebuilt since the floods but it was definately the best town. We did the 5 towns walk which took most of the day but the views were amazing. We caught the train to Monterosso (didn't think much of this larger town) and began the walk from there. After seeing all 5 towns we were convinced that we picked the best one for our 3 nights. The best meal we ate whilst in Vernazza was a past with pesto (specialty of this region) meal at Gambero Rosso on the harbour. Still dream about going back to have that again. A good day trip from Cinque Terre is to catch a train to Santa Margherita Ligure (beautiful town) and then a boat to Portofino. Best of luck planning.

We were there in May and chose Monterosso because of larger size and relative ease (depending on where you book) of accessing hotels. Large parts of this village is on fairly flat ground compared to some of the others: we weren't keen on hauling our luggage up tons of steps or very steep hills. We chose small, family-run La Spiaggia: it overlooks the beach, tariff includes breakfast, and is just steps from the train station. It is also cash only so if you decide on this one, make sure to have enough euros set aside to pay your bill. Vernazza was well on its way to recovery last year, and I expect even more work has occurred over the winter: no problems should you wish to book there. I will note that the most popular of the trails (the #2 Blue Trail/Sentiero Azzurro) between the 5 villages is currently completely closed but I'm sure they're working hard to have sections of it open again by high season. I don't expect the piece between Corniglia and Manarola to be traversable anytime soon (take the train between them) but some of the others should be.