Castelo di Vezio, Varenna

If you’re in moderate shape it’s not that hard. We went up the trail that was nearest Varenna and down the other one. It was a very nice view.

I hiked up the trail on the right side and walked down the path on the left side (when at the bottom looking up).
At the time I was 55 years old, not that fit and had a torn meniscus in my left knee. It was September, 2018.
The trail was a bit rugged with places that you had to make a big step up from a dirt surface to a rock surface.
The path down was very steep, but from what I remember had bricks, paving stones or hard paced dirt.

After the experience I was tired, of course. It did strain my knee and I elected not to go hiking at Cinque Terre after that.
I think that the path on the left would have been easier in that you could go at your own pace and wouldn't have those giant steps up. I also think you would be less likely to fall or get hurt on the path.

I hope this helps.

Thanks for the replies.
I am in moderate shape overall. Knees can cause me pain. So from the bottom looking up the left trail is possibly a better fit it sounds like. Guess by the description of the physical trail I guess it would be better going up and down.
So from the layout of Varenna sounds like the left trail is possibly the one that goes up from the ferry stop part of town vs over by the Villa Monastero does that sound right?
I can just imagine what great views there are from the top which is why I want to hike up there.

carol,
My husband and I, in our late 70s, did this hike this year in September, with trekking poles (our knees say, 'thank you').
We are slow hikers; we pace ourselves, take time to enjoy the view, and prefer "roundtrip" hikes rather than "out and back" trails.
We did the trail as "vandrabrud" described. Looking up toward Castelo di Vezio from Varenna, we started on the right, past the Villa Monastero, and walked down on the "paved" path (which would be on the left, facing Castelo from Varenna). I like the path going up because it is very scenic, past olive grove, but it is very uneven and rocky. I would not want to go down on the path.
We talked to another couple at the Castelo di Vezio who had also come up the same way we did; they were not looking forward to going back on that trail. We suggested to them to take the paved path down, which they did. We ran into them later that day in Varenna, and they agreed that the way down was easier.

Thank you for reply,
Although I like a round trip type hike as well, sounds like I will be better off going up/down the same paved trail with my knees.