We are traveling with another couple from Avignon to Cinque Terre end of April , what would be a good stopping point halfway between cities to enjoy and stay one night? Any suggestions appreciated. We are flying in to Nice driving to Avignon and then Cinque Terre, back to Nice to stay a few days total trip is about 12 days. We will have rental car during time in Europe. Also any hotel suggestions appreciated.
Thanks
Audrey
Audrey,
Nice would be a good intermediate point between Avignon and the Cinque Terre (assuming you're not stopping there when you first arrive). It's a beautiful city and there's lots to see and do in that area.
Having a car isn't an advantage in the Cinque Terre, as parking and vehicle access are limited. There's a large car park at one end of the "new town" in Monterosso, but I'm not sure what the costs are. You won't be able to drive into the town, so if staying in Monterosso your best bet would be to get a hotel at that end of the new town or the far end of the old town and use the local trains to get around. I can offer some hotel suggestions if you're interested. If you were planning to stay in Vernazza, I'm not sure if there's parking available at all. It was destroyed in the floods of 2011, and I don't believe the facilities have been re-built yet.
Note that for driving in Italy, each driver will require the compulsory International Driver's Permit, which is used in conjunction with your home D.L.
It would probably be a good idea to book accommodations in the C.T. as soon as possible, as they tend to book up very quickly.
Happy travels!
So many choices!
Try Menton, between Monaco and the border with Italy. Also good for visiting the principality without the exorbitant prices.
Audrey, tourist cars are not permitted in any of the five towns of the Cinque Terre. However, you can drive to hotels with parking lots, parking lots in the hills above the towns and, as Ken points out, to the large parking lot near the water in the new town part of Monterosso. I believe that the large multi-story parking lot above Riomaggiore is OK from the mudslides of almost 2 years ago but I don't know about the smaller lots that were in the hills above the towns. You might consider parking the car in lots near the train station in Levanto. By train, you are looking at a journey time of 10.0hrs-14.0hrs and 4-7 transportation changes depending on the run and transfer times.
Thank you Ken, Larry and Roberto,
This has been so helpful.....booked a nice little hotel in Monterosso where we can park car and see the rest of this area, also booked in Menton, we are staying in Nice the last 3 days of our trip.
Thank you!
Audrey
