Hello, I am doing the Cinque Terre as a day trip from Lucca and traveling with three kids aged 8,11,15 who may not want to hike all the trail. I have heard there is a boat/ferry which connects these villages. Does anyone have information about this? I would like to have the option of walking between some of the villages but not all and was hoping the boat option would operate similar to the train which connects the 5 towns.
Posted by
Calgary
2297 posts
We also did the CT as a day trip with our kids (12 and 10 at the time). This is how it worked out:
9 am take the boat from La Spezia to Monterosso with all those beautiful views of the coast line. There is also a boat around 10 am.
11 am arrive in Monterosso, buy the pass for the pathway at the park office (very close to the beach).
Hike Monterosso-Vernazza. It was a VERY hot day so it took us 2 hours. When it's not 95F you can do it in 90 minutes. This is probably the most strenous stretch of the hikes but also one with incredible views.
1-2 pm have a light lunch break in Vernazza and walk a bit around the town. It was very crowded with tourists so we didn't really want to linger longer than needed to recharge our batteries after the first part of the hike.
2 pm take train to Riomaggiore and take the short hike to Manerola. Half way on that 20 minute pathway is a neat cafe where we stopped to have a cold lemonade (remember: this was 95 F in the shade and most of this part of the pathway has NO shade at all).
3 pm arrive in Manerola, have a quick walk around and take train to Corniglia
3.30 pm arrive in Corniglia, have gelato, cool down in the water ...
5 pm take train back to La Spezia
No, we hadn't worked it out like that by the minute beforehand. This is just how it worked out according how we felt with what we saw (great views, big crowds, high heat ...) and we never felt rushed at any time.
Our only regret: since it was such a hot day we should have taken the train to Monterossa in the morning to start the hike as early as possible and reserve the boat ride for the way back to La Spezia. In any case it was good not to start with the easy hike from Riomaggiore as that one is absolutely crowded in the morning as many tourists seem to start there.
Posted by
Elk Grove, CA, USA
6898 posts
In the CT, the main ferry area is in Monterosso. Its a wonderful ride with great views of the 5 towns. Note that the ferries will not run in rough weather. When we were there in late May two years ago, the weather was beautiful but the seas were rough. They did not run for 2 of the three days we were there. On the 3rd day, we were lucky. We went from Monterosso to Portovenere and had lunch. Just wonderful. But, the seas were rough enough that the ferry would not dock at any of the other 4 towns. They would come in close for great views but would not dock. You won't have trouble finding the ferry docks in any of the towns. The towns are small.
For hiking, the trail from Riomaggiore to Manarola is short and flat. Very scenic and easy to walk. Takes about 25 minutes if you don't stop (which you will because of the views).
Posted by
Athens, Georgia
65 posts
We were in CT the second weekend of May and took the ferry from Venazza to Monterosso. It's a 5 minute ferry ride and cost 3,50 Euros.I don't know what the charge would be going from one end to the other. I found my ferry schedule and they seem to run about every 10-30 minutes. There is no stop in Corniglia however. It states on the schedule "the service will be offered with only good weather conditions". If the sea is too rough the boats don't go. Don't forget that the train runs quite frequently as well and are pretty cheap. It only takes about 5 minutes to get from one town to the next by train. We found that the walk from Riomaggiore to Manarola and then on to Corniglia was easy. It's the hike to and from Vernazza that's a bit more strenuous.
Posted by
OP
Brush Prairie, wa, usa
10 posts
Hi. Thank you so much for your reply! Do you have any idea where the boat originates or the name of it? I think it would be great to get the views from boat coming into the towns. Thanks for your tip about where the hike is easiest.
Lola
Posted by
Athens, Georgia
65 posts
These towns are very small and the harbors where a boat would dock are also small, so you shouldn't have any problem seeing them or the large crowd waiting to get on. If you've got a RS Italy guide he's marked the boat dock on each town's map. For Monterosso it doesn't say boat dock but there's a drawing of a boat with an arrow "to Vernazza" along with the spot where you get your "boat tix".
Posted by
OP
Brush Prairie, wa, usa
10 posts
If I am coming from Lucca by car, I would be passing through Viareggio and Forte dei Marmi. Somewhere on the net I saw that there is a ferry which I could get from one of those cities that would stop at the Cinque Terre. Has anyone done that and be able to tell me how long such a journey would take.
Posted by
Texas
49 posts
Posted by
Ancaster, Ontario, Canada
12 posts
Hi Lola,
Just so you don't get stranded, the ferries stop running during siesta time, for approx. 2 hours. But the trains are always operating.
Nicole