Cinque terre in September ??????

You'll be bored to death after 4 days, if not sooner. Three days would be plenty in my book.

I've visited the Cinque Terre in September, but definitely not for 4 weeks!

If you're considering staying in one of the villages of CT as a "home base", to travel around Italy, you may want to reconsider your decision.

Would you please clarify your post?

Don't know if even the biggest fans of the region advocate spending more than 1 week there

rocco,

The Cinque Terre is one of my favourite parts of Italy, but even so there's no way I'd want to spend four weeks there. I agree with the others that 3-4 nights would be perfect, unless you're planning on using it as a home base to visit other nearby places such as Porto Venere, Portofino, etc. With that time frame, you could see several different parts of Italy at a relaxing pace.

Whatever you decide, I'd suggest getting a hotel booking in the Cinque Terre soon as September is often quite busy there.

Is there a specific reason you want to spend 4 weeks there? With 4 weeks to spend in Italy, I would be going to many more places!

Too long but defintely wished we had more than 3 days. We stayed at Hotel Villa Steno in Monterooso and what a lovely spot! Kind staff, spotless rooms, incredible customer service, delicious breakfast...but lots of stairs to get there or a taxi. Worth it, though!

I can see the appeal of spending four weeks in one spot but the CT is so crowded you wouldn't have a relaxing time at all. I'd go there for a week and then maybe somewhere else less crowded.

I'll be returning to CT in October for a week, but I've planned four day trips to surrounding towns to get away from the mid day cruise crowd.

I've never been to the Cinque Terre, but here's what I do know in response to your questions.

"I'd like to know you opinion about spending four weeks in Cinque terre." "Any difficulties?"

Yes, several. First, the Cinque Terre towns are tiny, with not much to see and do. That's the point of going there - relaxing, with some hiking of the trails mixed in. But after a week, even the most dedicated relaxer and hiker would probably want a change of venue.

Second, the area is remote and a bit hard to get to from other places. This is what preserved the villages in the first place, but it means that it's a poor base for day trips.

Third, even Rick's people are saying that the area is a victim of its own popularity. It gets mobbed during the day in season, so it can be unpleasant in the towns (which, again, are tiny and simply cannot handle crowds well). It's much less crowded before 10 AM and after 6 PM. Most people who stay a few nights develop strategies to get away from the worst of the crowds during the day, but after a few days of this, you'd probably want to be in a place where this isn't needed.

"I'll go in the off season and avoid this problem," you say. A perfectly good strategy for many places. But much of the Cinque Terre closes in the off season (November to March) and many have said that when it rains, there's nothing to do. If you don't mind taking a chance on the rain, April and October are, by all accounts, much better in terms of crowds.

"Have any of you used Rick Steves' Europe's back door?"

Yes, many of us have. It's a great introduction to the "nuts and bolts" of European travel - how to deal with trains, how to book hotels, what to expect with meals, etc. Once you've decided where you want to go, his country and city guides will have lots of specifics for the places he covers. But beware: he doesn't try to be comprehensive. So, you should always supplement Rick's books with other ones. He will always have the the most detail about what he includes, but he excludes a lot - by design (this upsets some, but that's how he does it).