Cinque Terre

Yes, you can do Monterosso to Vernazza to Corniglia (or the other way around). I did it last week and it was great! The other two legs are closed.

sue: Why were they closed???

I believe that there were floods a few years ago and two of the trails have never been reopened since then. You can take the higher trails to get to the other two cities but it takes much longer. I just did the three cities and I really enjoyed that.

As the first reply indicated, the Sentiero Azzurro trails from Monterosso to Vernazza and Vernazza to Corniglia are currently open. The Corniglia-Manarola and Manarola-Riomaggiore (Via dell' Amore) trails are closed and will likely remain that way for the rest of the year. Note that a Park Pass is required to hike those particular trails, and that can be purchased at local stations or even at the small wooden huts at the start of each trail. Note that there's an extensive network of other trails in that area, so if you don't mind a robust hike, there are lots of possibilities.

John,

The Corniglia-Manarola segment has been closed for a few years due a large slide which covers about 10 metres or more of the trail. While it may be possible to get across this, it wouldn't be safe (it's a long way down if you slip). The Manarola-Riomaggiore segment has been closed since September 2012, following a large rock slide which seriously injured four Australian tourists. Local authorities have been stabilizing the slopes above the trail in order to avoid a repeat of this incident. There is a small segment of the Via dell' Amore open from the Manarola end to the small bar so it's possible to walk a small portion of the trail.

I see from John's hotel question that he's just starting to plan for June/July of (presumably) next year, so the situation is likely to keep improving, barring another major event. Official trail updates are at www.parconazionale5terre.it and at park information desk's in each town's train station.