Cinque Terre

Marcie -
You could if the all of the Sentiero Azzurro ("Blue Trail") was open but it's not and hasn't been over 4 years or so. The segments between Monterosso and Vernazza, and Vernazza and Corniglia are open but the segments to Manarola and Riomaggiore are closed and will remain so for some time.

Actually, I've just glanced at the park map and the ENTIRE length of the "Blue" is closed from Monterosso to Riomaggiore. It is probably temporary for those two previously open legs - I've read that the region has had some heavy rain lately - but I'd keep an eye on it.

http://www.parconazionale5terre.it/Esentieri-outdoor.php

592-1 (SVA2) Riomaggiore - Manarola
592-2 (SVA2) Manarola - Corniglia
592-3 (SVA2) Corniglia - Vernazza
592-4 (SVA2) Vernazza - Monterosso

There are other trails, of course, but most are longer and more strenuous so it would depend on how conditioned a hiker you are. I'd plan on taking the train or ferry (if you're visiting during seasons the ferries run) between a couple of the villages.

That they're currently experiencing a complete closure of the most popular route is a good example of how fragile the trails are and how a spell of heavy weather can shut them down on short notice. It's not just the potential instability of the trails themselves but the steep terrain ABOVE them. Heavy rain can result in dangerous mud or rockslides so it's a bigger safety issue than it may look, and they may be shut to hikers after the sun has come out again.

Kathy,
Thank you so much. That information is very helpful. With that information perhaps one night in Rapallo-the ferry one day and the hike another day? There's a day tour that does the whole thing in one long day.
How long a stay in that area do you recommend?
I'm starting in Rome, then Florence, the Rapallo(so I can see Cinque Terre) and then flying out of Milan. If I don't stay in Rapallo long do you have any suggestions between Rapallo and Milan accessible by train.

There's a day tour that does the whole thing in one long day.

I'm not sure what tour you're looking at or what "the whole thing" means?

I hiked the whole trail several years ago - when it was open all the way through. I would recommend taking the boat (ferry) it stops at almost all the villages (Corniglia is up on the hill), you can get off the boat at each village, wander around, have a gelato /or lunch. Beautiful views.
I hope that some day the entire path will be open again, but it would take a lot of work and cost a lot of money.

Can you see al 5 in one day between hiking and ferry or is it best to break it up? there is a tour company that does a 12 hour trip from Florence which includes all 5.

On a day trip from Florence, I am not sure it is wise or necessary to see all 5 towns.

With the train and hiking you could but then you are just racing from point to point rather than enjoying the views and towns.
With the ferry you really could not since you cannot reach Cornligia by ferry and cannot reach Manarola from Cornligia except by train or much longer trail which you don't have time for.
Train is much faster than the ferry on routes where you have both options available.

With the normal route status (last few years but subject to change and maybe not right now) the best trail of the main blue trail is Vernazza-Monterosso
Plan on skipping 2 of the 5 towns (Cornligia and Rio Maggiore)
Get yourself to Monterosso, walk over to Vernazza leaving time to explore both towns. Ferry or train from Vernazza to Manarola and explore that town as well and call it a day.
Not the other 2 are skippable just I am not sure you have the time.

If you and more time continue walking from Vernazza to Cornligia, train to Manarola and then train to Rio Maggiore to see all 5 or do the same thing in reverse.

Can you see al 5 in one day between hiking and ferry or is it best to
break it up? there is a tour company that does a 12 hour trip from
Florence which includes all 5.

These are actually two different questions:

Can you see al 5 in one day between hiking and ferry or is it best to
break it up?

It depends. The ferries aren't great if it's raining, and you haven't said what time of year you're going so it's unsure if the ferries are even running. You may be looking at a combo of hiking and ferries or ferries and trains if the "Blue" (if that's the trail you want to hike) is completely closed, as it is currently. Lots of variables.

there is a tour company that does a 12 hour trip from Florence which
includes all 5.

But you don't say HOW they get to all five. By train? By a combo of train and ferry or what?
Corniglia can only be reached on foot or by train - no ferry - and you need to either take a park bus up to the village or take a long stairway from the station.

Plan on skipping 2 of the 5 towns (Cornligia and Rio Maggiore)

I will cheerfully disagree with this. Corniglia, while tiny and the most difficult to get to, is a favorite, and has two of the prettiest churches in the Cinque Terre.

Personally, I'm a fan of STAYING in the CT if one is going to visit. Like other overrun tourist magnets, the best times are in the early morning and evenings when the day-trippers are gone. I'm not a fan of day tours from Florence as you're going to be surrounded by people all day, and won't have the flexibility to choosing WHICH day to go (I'd skip it entirely if it's raining heavily) or how long you want to spend in YOUR personal favorite of the villages.

I saw that there are one-day bus tours of the Cinque Terre from Florence that are fairly inexpensive ($100 USD). This would suit me perfectly, just to peek at the towns as it is my first trip to Italy and I don't have much time to spend in the area. But I don't see these bus tours suggested here in the forum as an option. Can anyone tell me about them?

I did see one through Lonely Planet. When are you going?

I did see one through Lonely Planet.

The tours being advertised on L.P. are Viator, or the dozen or so I checked, anyway. Viator is a third-party booker; they are not a tour operator. You're probably not seeing bus tours suggested on this forum as I'm guessing few who post here regularly have used them for the CT.

I was in the Cinque Terre this past summer and we hiked from Riomaggiore to Vernazza (so one village short of all 5) in one day. As others have mentioned, the "easier" blue trail was only open the final stretch from Corniglia to Vernazza and considering it was at the end of the day, it was still kind of challenging with lots of steps. The other trails were very challenging for me but doable- in particular the first half from Riomaggiore to Manarola (literally 45 minutes of steep steps) and the first part of Manarola to Corniglia (I actually skipped this portion of the hike and took the train, just going by what my group reported back).

We arrived in Riomaggiore 8 ish and we left Vernazza about 6 ish and spent anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour in each village. I am new to hiking and had to train quite a bit for this trip so someone more accustomed to hiking could probably do it faster and have more time in each village. We were also staying in the area for several days so had time to go back to the villages we wanted to spend more time in.

If you really love to hike and are looking forward to the scenery (which is amazing) and physical challenge of it, you can definitely do this but except you won't have a ton of time to spend in each village. If you want more time to spend in the villages, maybe pick one stretch and then use the trains.

By the way, my favorite hike was the one from Levanto (north of the nothern most village of Monterosso). There were these spectacular views of all 5 villages from up high and the trail was a little less crowded. Then we ended with a beer and swim in beautiful Monterosso.

Enjoy your trip!

EDIT:
In an attempt you answer your question in a more straightforward answer.
-Yes, you can see all the towns in one day via train or ferry with some time in each town. Would it be nice to have more time? Absolutely, but we all have a limited amount of travel time and have to pick and choose. Ir you only have one day to devote to this, you can make it happen.
-If you are trying to be as efficient as possible with your time, the trains are more frequent and reliable. Many people will start in Levanto or La Spezia, take trains to all of the villages, and then once they reach the last village, take the ferry back to the starting point.
-If your budget can handle a few extra train rides, I don't think you need to decide now what cities to skip. With the exception of Corniglia, the train is close to the action. So if you arrive at a city, aren't "feeling it" or wish you hadn't left the previous city, you can just hop on the train at go back.