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Bonassola vs Levanto stay

3 of us, including a teen are going to Italy in June. Our itinerary is starting to come together.

We plan to stay 4 nights north of Cinque Terre. I found a great condo in Bonassola. I read that it might not be the best town to stay in, too small, not many options for eating and even though Levanto is 4 min. by train it could be miserable to use daily in June due to the crowds. The accommodations in Levanto are not quite as ideal and also a little more expensive.

This is our relaxing part of the trip. We may take a boat trip or train in the evening to Cinque Terre 1 day, but mostly want to hang out at the beach, paddle board, bike, relax eat.

I guess my main question is how miserable is it to catch the train back and forth to Levanto in June? and does Bonassola have enough restaurants?

Thank you

Posted by
4959 posts

If you go to Trip Advisor and view the restaurant section, it looks like there would be plenty enough restaurants for a four night stay. I'd go for it!
I would not really sweat a short train ride. There is also a bike trail, your teen may like that. For what you are seeking (downtime at the beach), this sounds perfect to me.

Posted by
2298 posts

You can also walk (or bike) from Bonassola to Levanto through an abandoned train tunnel - about a 25-minute walk.

Posted by
1798 posts

Bonassola should work out well. The tunnel to Levanto is very handy especially with a bike. Also Moneglia to the north is a short train ride. It's a member of the 'Borghi più belli d'Italia' (Most Beautiful Villages of Italy) and quite enjoyable with an active center, good beaches and numerous restaurant choices.

Posted by
1135 posts

You should also at least consider staying south of the CT, in La Spezia. Fantastic food options, in our experience the best in our entire month spent in Italy. And trains and ferries to the villages depart regularly from La Spezia.