Cinque Terre for 4 nights, suggestions?

Do Venice, Florence, Cinque Terre, Rome in this order.
I suggest staying in Monterosso the whole time as it is bigger, has a beach, more accommodations. No sense changing locations since all towns are within minutes by train. Four nights is three full days. One day you can hike. One day you can take a day trip to Portofino. One day just take it easy at the beach all day.
Don't have hotels to recommend but Ken will give some names. Hurry up with booking as August will be tough no matter where you stay on the coast. If Monterosso is all booked, try Levanto or Bonassola or any town going toward Genoa, all of which are within easy reach by train.

I have stayed at Francamaria, in fact I am now going for the 5th time. They do have a rooms with 2 beds. I like it because there are maybe 10 steps to climb, and it is right on the harbor. My only suggestions are book directly through their website, other sites may show it as full, but I always get a room directly. And, book early, they fill up quick!!!

pn,

I would also suggest staying in Monterosso, for the reasons that Roberto mentioned. August is PEAK season there so it's going to be busy, and you may have to take whatever accommodations you can find. You can start by checking the RS Italy 2015 guidebook or THIS list (I believe it's reasonably current). Note that Monterosso consists of two parts, the "old town" (Centro Storico) and the "new town" (Fegina). It doesn't really matter which one you stay in as it only takes a few minutes to walk from one to the other. The train station is in the "new town". One point to note is that many of the places in Vernazza do not serve breakfasts (that's important to me).

Some possibilities you can look at (you could get lucky and find a vacancy in the more popular places)......

• Hotel Villa Steno (old town - an oasis of tranquility and my favourite hotel in Italy, and perhaps all of Europe!).
• Hotel Pasquale (old town)
• Hotel Porto Roca (old town - at the far end and more posh but the views from their patio are incredible, and they installed a swimming pool a few years ago - you many never want to leave!)
• Hotel Villa Adriana (new town - far end, rooms comfortable and they serve a nice breakfast).

Check the other places on the list to see which ones might appeal most to you.

I agree with other suggestions to travel Venice > Florence > Cinque Terre > Rome, as that's the most efficient route and will minimize travel times. If you haven't travelled by public transit in Italy before, there are some potentially expensive "caveats" to be aware of. If you need more information, I can send a PM with my usual "boilerplate" on the subject.

Are you planning to buy train tickets when you arrive in Italy? In each case, I'd suggest mid-morning departures so that you arrive in each new town in mid-afternoon, as your rooms should be ready by then. Here are a few thoughts on the rail trips you'll be making.....

• Venice to Florence - travel via Freccia high speed train from Venezia S. Lucia to Firenze S.M.Novella (time 2H:05M - you'll need to know which stations you'll be using, as many cities have more than one and you MUST use the correct Italian names for stations).
• Florence to C.T. - You'll have at least one change on this route (Pisa Centrale), and you could use a 10:28 or 12:28 departure, arriving 12:52 or 14:52 (time 2H:24M). One of the trains will be a Regionale so DON'T forget to validate your ticket prior to boarding the train on the day of travel, or you'll risk hefty fines!
• C.T. to Rome - the quickest route to take is to use one of the direct (no changes) express trains from La Spezia Centrale to Rome, and there are several of these each day. For example, you could depart Monterosso at 12:42, arriving Roma Termini at 16:32 (time 3H:50M, one change at La Spezia). There are many other solutions - check the Trenitalia website for details.

When in the C.T., be sure to try Sciacchetrà, which is a locally produced wine. If you end up staying in Monterosso and need some restaurant information, post another note.

Ok, I have sent emails and hope one of the recommended hotels have room for us. You guys are right, the reviews on your recommended hotels are top scores!

The train info is very good, that is my next step to look into booking them and getting the correct ones. Florence to CT. and CT to rome. 22-26 aug for CT.
Thanks everyone!

pn,

Regarding booking of trains, some of the routes will be via Regionale trains. There's no advantage to booking those in advance and it's often awkward to do so and the tickets come with restrictions. Just buy those tickets when in Italy, but DON'T forget to validate prior to boarding the train on the day of travel.

I'll check this thread again later. Must get to the gym!

Ken- great information. We've been to Monterosso for one night and we are going back in October. You mentioned you would send more train information if we wanted, please do. This was helpful reading your posts. Maybe you can tell us about lunch or dinner places in one of the Cinque Terre's. And how long is needed in each of the five. We will train but use Monterosso as a home base.

I love it when a plan comes together with your help! Hint: if trip advisor says they are sold out(hotels) contact them directly. Worked out well for me, thanks Ken. The hotels you suggested, all had rooms available and was offered an apartment by Hotel Villa Steno with breakfast served at the hotel that is close to the apartment. Everything is falling into place, and I think I have a good understanding of the trains. Part of the trip, Venice to Florence, then Rome I am considering booking the trip thru costco, anyone done this? The only advantage I see is its cheaper then booking separately. Maybe I am missing something.

Sandy,

Information sent via PM.

Buon Viaggio!

pn,

It's great to hear that you were able to get a booking at a Villa Steno property. I'm sure you'll be very comfortable there, and they serve a nice breakfast.

I wasn't aware that one could book Italian trains through Costco. My suggestion would be to book directly through Trenitalia or at www.italiarail.com as that's likely what Costco would be doing.

The trains from Venice to Florence and then Florence to Rome are very simple, as they're both direct using high speed Freccia trains. You can save money with pre-purchase of tickets well in advance, but you MUST be willing to commit to a specific train, date and departure time. Note that the cheapest Super Economy tickets are non-refundable and non-changeable, so choose carefully! Be sure that you're clear on which stations you'll be using, and the Italian names for those stations.

I also was surprised that first class tickets were included on trains. They only offer first class, but after pricing out the hotels separately, the package deal is incredibly cheaper, what the heck! It would be nice to know if it all works as smooth as it sounds, that is why I was wondering if anyone had used them? I have a few days before I finish booking thru them, so busy looking at other options.

pn,

I very rarely buy first class tickets as second class is much cheaper and still very comfortable, especially on the Freccia trains. On the Regionale trains, only second class is usually offered so I just buy tickets locally, usually at a Kiosk.

Ditto to Ken's reply: we only travel 2nd class in Italy, and buy tickets for regionale trains at the station before boarding. 2nd class carriages have been entirely comfortable and well worth the savings.

Ok, all booked and ready to go, darn have to wait until Aug.
Up date: Cinque Terre info: with advice from Ken I contacted Hotel Villa Steno and they were full but had an apartment we could rent. http://sites.google.com/site/casapalasgio Looked very nice and a very good price, downside is no breakfast but for €10 we can go to their hotel and eat breakfast or just go on our own to find a place.
Fly into Venice, 4 nights @ Palazzo Parutathen,
train to Florence for 3 nights @ Cerretani Firenze,
train to CT for 4 nights @ Casa Palasgio apartment in the old town of Monterosso,
train to Rome for 4 nights @ Mercure Roma Centro Colosseo.
Fly back to USA.
Sounds like the same itinerary every one uses the first time to Italy.
Now on to what to see in each town, and there is plenty of suggestions on the forum, so big thanks to all your help! If you would like any pricing info, just ask or send PM.