CInque Terre/Lake Cuomo/French Riviera

Although there have been 2 Italian American Governors of New York named Cuomo, however Italy has not named any of their lakes after them just yet :).
There is a Lake Como however. The riviera lies in the Italian region of Liguria. There is a Riviera di Levante (Levante=East) and a Riviera di Ponente (Ponente=West). Genoa is the dividing point. Both are beautiful and the 5 Terre (5=Cinque) is on the Riviera di Levante. Besides the 5 terre, I truly love Moneglia. On the Western side Sanremo is probably the most famous. If your destination is that area, I would recommend looking for a flight into either Genoa or Nice or Pisa. August is also extremely crowded with Italians and other European Barbarian tribes from the other side of the Alps, therefore you definitely need advance reservations. Lake Como is one hour north of Milan. If you intend to go there, Milan (MXP) should be your airport of choice. The riviera is instead 2+ hours to the south of Milan. Lake Como is shaped like a letter 'Y' upside down. On the southeast side you have the Lecco branch. On the southwest side you have the Como branch. The branch pointing north is known as the North Lake. The best area in Lake Como, imo, is the midlake area. Varenna, midway on the eastern shore is the easiest to reach (by train) from Milan. Just across is the famous town of Bellagio. They are connected by ferries several times a day. If you have more specific questions, ask. Lots of the contributors to this forum know that area well.

Denise, There are several possibilities to visit the places you mentioned. I have a few comments and questions.... > I normally suggest open-jaw flights, but in this case the easiest method might be to use return flights from MXP. > How long will the trip be? > Rather than stay in "some" of the Cinque Terre Villages, I'd suggest basing in one (Monterosso is my favourite), and visiting the others from there. There a couple of other places in the area that you might like to see also (depending on time), such as Porto Venere and/or Porotofino (day trips). > Whether you'll be able to "walk them all" will depend on whether the trails are open again at that time (I expect that will be the case). There's an extensive network of trails in that area, and most tourists focus on the Sentiero Azurro trails that run just above the ocean. One point to mention is that they have varying levels of difficulty, so the two northern trails (Monterosso - Vernazza - Corniglia) are more of a "hike" rather than a "walk". The famous Via dell'Amore is a "walk". > I'd suggest skipping Cannes, unless there's a specific reason you want to see it. Aside from Film Festival time, there's not a lot there other than lots of yachts in the harbour. If you're using Nice as a home base, you could also visit Villefranche, Eze, Monaco and Monte Carlo. There's an impressive Oceanographic Museum in Monaco. Nice has a great old town area as well as some nice Museums. > As Roberto mentioned, pre-booking accommodations would be a REALLY good idea for travel in August. That's especially true in the Cinque Terre! The Guidebooks have suggestions for good accommodations there. > What price range are you loooking for with accommodations? Continued....

Denise, cont'd.... One possibility.... > Flight to MXP > Arrive MXP; train / shuttle to Milano Centrale (~1 hour); train to Varenna (1H:03M - this would be a great place to start your trip and recover from jet lag; while there you could tour Bellagio or other towns on the lake - the Ferry dock is directly in front of Albergo Olivedo - large yellow building). > Train to Milano Centrale & Monterosso (trip will be as short as 2H:52M from Milan, but that will depend on which train you use). NOTE: It may not be possible to buy tickets at the station in Varenna, however there's a great travel agency just below the station). > You can get around the Cinque Terre either via the local trains or boats (weather permitting). One caveat - expect it to be hot & crowded in August (that was an issue at times even in September when I was there - large groups from cruise ships descend on that area). > Train to Nice Ville. The trip will take 5 - 6 hours with 1 - 2 changes at Ventimiglia and perhaps Genova. When you arrive in Nice, use an air conditioned Mercedes Taxi to the Hotel, as that's much more pleasant when hauling luggage. > You can reach the Monaco-Monte-Carlo station by train, or use the Bus from the main Gare Routière station in Nice. As I recall, the fare on the #100 Bus is only €1 each way. You can walk up the hill to Monaco, or take the Bus (another €1). Changing of the Guard is at 11:55 as I recall. Get there early to get a good spot! > At the end of your trip, travel back to Milan via train (minimum of about 5 hours, with one change). You may have to stay one night in Milan, depending on when your return flight is. This is one possibility, and I'm sure the others will have lots of suggestions. Good luck with your planning!

Yes - was just listening to the RS class about France that was on over the weekend - and they said to skip Cannes - there is nothing there to see! We stayed in Villefranche and visited Nice and Monaco/Monte Carlo as well - it was lovely - I thought the French Riviera was amazing - and we barely saw any of it! Can't wait to go back...

Be sure to check the other boards/information on this web site about the trails in Cingque Terre. I read somewhere about some of the trails still closed and would remain closed as they had bad rains.

Some information regarding the Cinque Terre trails...... The No. 2 / Sentiero Azzurro trails are still closed at the present time, but many of the other trails are open. The No. 2 trails were closed not due to rains, but rather a rock slide which occurred on the famous Via dell'Amore in September, which injured four Australian tourists. The trail from Manarola to Corniglia has been closed for much of the year due to previous damage (as I recall, that was unrelated to the floods of 25 October 2011). The other trails were closed following the rock slide in September as a "precaution". Given the popularity of these trails for tourists, I expect that most of the "blue path" trails will be open prior to August 2013. Cheers!

Denise, I am traveling to Italy in May, into MXP and then straightaway to Varenna. Ken had a very good idea for the complete itinerary, but as for me, we are doing Varenna first, for 4 nights, with a side trip into Milan to see Leonardo's Last Supper, La Scala, the Duomo, and Galeria. Other days we will relax on Lake Como. Then the next 4 days we will be in the Cinque Terre, staying in Monterosso. Rick Steve's new 2013 Italy Tour book (buy it now!) has a very reasonable, yet plain, hotel in Monterosso, the Albergo al Carugio. Suggest you email them to make room reservations for August. We stayed in Villefranche sur Mer in 2010 at the Hotel de la Darse. It was fine, not extravagant, not elegant, but had a great view. Request a balcony if you stay there. Nice walk to the port, or to town, or uphill to catch the bus to Nice or Monaco. Train is a bit further, but you'd enjoy the walk because you'll pass good shops and restaurants in the town center. Villefranche also has a nice beach. You can go topless there if you dare. Have a great trip.