Cinque Terre Tickets and which town to sleep in?

Several of the easier hikes between towns are closed down due to damage with no plans to reopen this year. There are other trails available but they are steeper and more difficult. The tickets are because the trails are part of a national park or similar. We bought ours at a ticket booth as we were starting out but you may also be able to get them at a train station. I would not overly worry about this. Your hotel could also tell you the best place to purchase them. You will not need them to enter the town.

The towns are so close and a quick train ride from town to town that I would not worry about being in the "best" town. Best is really subjective but many like Monterosso because it is the largest and the flatest. Cornelia is the hardest to get to because it is not seaside and requires a bit of a hike or bus from the train station so I would prioritize it last. Because the towns are small accommodations book up quickly.

Marie, you don't need any sort of tickets; you need a park pass to hike the segments of the Sentiero Azzurro (Blue Trail/SVA2). Unfortunately 2 of the 4 segments have been closed for some time (landslide and rockfalls) and will remain so through 2017.

Those stretches are between Corniglia - Manarola (592-2) and Manarola - Riomaggiore (592-1) The sections between Monterosso - Vernazza (592-4) and Vernazza - Corniglia (592-3) should be open but heavy rain or sudden change in stability can close any of the trails at any time.

These are not the only trails in the park - there are many others - but they're the most traveled, when open, as others tend to be longer/more strenuous. You can view a map of the trails and which are currently open/closed on the park website:

http://www.parconazionale5terre.it/Eindex.php

http://www.parconazionale5terre.it/Esentieri-outdoor.php

The red-and-white circles and black lines indicate trails which are closed. Clicking on the individual listings below the map will provide a description of each trail. You can also get descriptions by clicking segments on the map itself.

And here is info on the pass for the Sentiero Azzurro. You can buy it at the train stations in any of the villages, at kiosks at the entrances to the trail, and you do not need the pass for trails other than the two segments of the S.A. listed above.

http://www.parconazionale5terre.it/Ecinque-terre-card.php

Getting around by train is easy and you might want to take at least one ferry ride. If taking the trains about, do NOT forget to validate your tickets before boarding as fines are high if caught with unvalidated tickets, and the authorities tend to be especially vigilant in this area.

Monterosso is our favorite but to be honest, at this point I think you'll have to take anything that's still available in ANY of the villages as accommodations fill far in advance of high season. If you can't find anything, try Levanto or La Spezia; only a few minutes away by train. The CT is going to be very, very busy in July...

Thanks Jen & Kathy! That makes sense. We are trying to avoid huge crowds (to the extent possible). To that end, is best to avoid weekends? I know about the cruise ships that come during the day. We've been to Venice, and we preferred mornings and evenings/nights.

Also, we were considering taking a ferry ride - any suggestions?

My daughter wants to see if we can take a boat to Nice, but we don't know if that's even possible from CT, do any of you?

I don't know if this is complete yet but here's a La Spezia port schedule for July:

http://www.cruisemapper.com/ports/la-spezia-port-160?month=2017-07#schedule

Ferries around the CT are easy (they don't dock in Corniglia) but schedules aren't up for summer yet. You might keep an eye on this website:

http://www.apathtolunch.com/2014/06/complete-cinque-terre-portovenere-la.html

Really, I don't think 'quiet' is going to be possible during the day in July but the early mornings and evenings will be much better, and you could try during the week although I see some ships scheduled for weekdays as well as weekends. Heading off to lesser-hiked trails will provide some breathing room.

http://www.apathtolunch.com/2016/03/cinque-terre-16-tips-for-avoiding-crowds.html

Sorry, can't help with ships to Nice but I'm very sure you can't do one from the CT, and it's much too far for a day trip, if that's what you were thinking?

Editing to add: there aren't any ships to Nice from anywhere on Italian mainland that I can find but I didn't dig too deep:

http://www.directferries.co.uk/nice_ferry.htm

We went to the Cinque Terra in September with our Rick Steves tour. We got on the ferry at Porto Venere and rode it all the way to Monterosso. That way we got to see all of the towns from the water, which was a lovely sight. Once we disembarked in Monterosso, we took the train to Levanto, where we stayed for two nights (not nearly long enough). Levanto is a sweet, quiet little town with a great beach. Our hotel (Albergo Primavera) was about a ten minute walk to the train station, and it was really easy to get to the other towns on the train. I think that our train ticket also gave us entry to the hiking trail between Monterosso and Vernazza.

The BEST city hands down is Riomaggiore. We have stayed there several times. It is not the party town that Vernaza and Montorosso is. Real people live there, and after the daytrippers leave the town there is an evening passagiata. Plus there is more to do there than the other villages, especially with kids. Try renting an apartment instead of one of the hotels. Another plus to Riomaggiore is there are quite a few places that have wonderful terraces that look out over the sea or the village. You can easily daytrip to the other four villages, by train or boat. I would especially recommend taking the boat ride to the village just south of the Cinque Terre, Portovenere. It is fantastic!

If you go to Google maps, there are dotted lines in the seas (you may have to zoom in or out). I think these represent major ferry lines. There are no ferries indicated between Nice and mainland Italy, you would have to make at least one stop on an island.

Marie,

I'm not sure what "tickets" you're referring to? Where did you read about tickets? If you're referring to train tickets, you can easily buy them at local stations, either from a Kiosk or a staffed ticket office. The Park Passes required for hiking the Sentiero Azzurro trails can be purchased at the local stations or in the small wooden huts at the start of each trail.

As others have mentioned, it's likely that only two of the four segments of the Sentiero Azzurro trails will be open this year. However there's an extensive network of other trails in the area, so you'll be able to do as much hiking as you want. The Park Pass is not required to hike the higher trails.

To answer one of your questions, I'm not aware of any Ferries from the Cinque Terre to Nice.

Which town to sleep in.... Each of us have a preference, and my favourite is Monterosso. It's the largest of the five towns and has the greatest choices in hotels, restaurants and other tourist amenities, as well as the best beaches. The other four towns tend to have mostly just room rentals (some which don't provide breakfast) and lots of stairs and no elevators. Whichever town you decide, I'd suggest getting accommodations booked soon.

"We are trying to avoid huge crowds (to the extent possible)."

Good luck with that! July is peak season and all of that area (and elsewhere in Italy) will likely be crowded. One reason I like Monterosso is that it's larger, consisting of an "old town" and a "new town", and therefore seems to handle crowds better. I try to minimize the problem by not being in the towns between about 10K-16K when the cruise ship hordes and day-trippers descend on the towns. If I am there during that time of day, I avoid the crowds by relaxing in the tranquility of my hotel far above the "madding crowd", while enjoying a glass or two of Prosecco.

If you haven't travelled in Italy before, there are some potentially expensive "caveats" to be aware of when using trains and other public transit. If you need more information on that, post another note here.

Last fall we traveled from Provence to Cinque Terre. We wanted so badly to take a ship/ferry from one to the other. We ended up taking the train to Nice, staying overnight, then another train to CT the next morning. There are no ferries from Nice to CT. Seems weird, with so many seaside towns in between, you'd think that would be a good idea. However, the train was fun - lots of tunnels, and beautiful scenery along the way.

I think CT is going to be crazy any time now, but if you can avoid the weekend, it may be better. We first went in 2008, then in 2012. Pretty much the exact same dates - third week of Sept. First time was a Mon-Wed (or Sun-Tues), second was Sat-Mon - well, the crowd difference was incredible. The trains/stations were overrun in 2012, streets overflowing...if our experience in 2008 had been the experience we had in 2012, we'd never have gone back. I think in the 4 years between visits, it had become more well known, and I think now even more so. Sadly, the 2012 experience will probably keep us from returning (unless we go in April).

Now, both visits we stayed in Corniglia - why? Well, I like to be contrary. ;) Yes, it is the hardest to access, but luckily, we travel light and took the shuttle bus from the train stn to village center. Also, it was the quietest and least touristy (also - kinda boring...lol). We used arbaspaa.com to book our room - we actually stayed in the same place both times, just different rooms. Arbaspaa helps you find everything from a room to a B&B to an apmt to hotels. They also do excursions as well - hiking, wine, boat, scenic flights - the have (or did in 2012) a storefront in Vernazza. And if you are looking for July, you better get cracking - it's a popular place now, and your choices may already be getting limited/more expensive by the day.

Last year, we spent 4 nights in Monterosso, mid-June. (Two nights were due to travel, so we really only had 2 full days in the CT.)
We managed to see all 5 towns in one day by taking the train, though my husband & two 20-something aged daughters did make the hike from Corniglia to Vernazza. We started early in the morning, and the crowds on the trains/towns weren't bad at all. But by the time we took the train from Vernazza to Monterosso (around 2pm), we were packed in like sardines. My suggestion......If you take the trains to visit any of the any/all of the villages, do it early in the morning!

Each of the Cinque Terre has a unique personality, so deciding which town to stay in depends on your goals. I was charmed by Corniglia........We hiked the zillion stairs to the town (You can also take a shuttle to town, but the views from the stairs are beautiful!)
Corniglia has the narrowest winding streets, literally cut into the cliffs. It's the least touristy (in my opinion), therefore the quietest. But w/a teenage daughter, it might be too quiet. Monterosso is the only village w/a beach. If you think about ocean pics of Italy, w/a half circle beach lined w/lounge chairs & umbrellas........That's Monterosso. My husband & daughters LOVED swimming in the ocean!As mentioned, there's the "new part" of town (which is still old), where most of the larger hotels (but none are huge) are locate. Then the "old part" of town (which is REALLY old) w/classic narrow winding streets, small shops, cafes w/outdoor seating, a piazza w/a church, etc. Because the town is larger, which means more establishments are open at night, and because it has a beach, it was the best choice of a home base for our daughters.

We are returning to Cinque Terre for another 3 nights this Sept., in celebration of our 35th Anniversary. Although we've seen all 5 villages, we're STILL having a hard time deciding which one to stay in! Whatever you decide, you're going to be amazed at the beauty and charm of the region......Have fun!!!

Hi all, I'm wondering about the path closure situation.

When I view the map of the paths on this website — http://www.parconazionale5terre.it/Esentieri-outdoor.php — it looks as though all the waterfront paths are closed when I click on them.

Is that actually the case? Or am I using the website incorrectly/the website is experiencing a glitch?

Lauren H, the trails can close at any time due to weather and/or other issues. So just because it might show as being closed or open today does not mean that it will be closed or open on the day you are actually in Cinque Terre. If you are there today, then it does appear that the trails are closed. That may also be because it is the off season right now and so they show them as closed. Some of the easier trails are closed for the long-term due to landslide damage and there is no known opening date at this time.

Lauren H.,

As the previous reply indicated, the Park website may show the Sentiero Azzurro paths closed as they haven't "officially" opened for the season yet (that usually takes place on 1 April or thereabouts). I believe the Corniglia - Vernazza trail is accessible now and the Vernazza - Monterosso trail should be accessible within the next week or so.

If you're going to be travelling there in the near future, this is probably not a good time to be hiking as the paths could be a bit treacherous and miserable in wet weather.

Gotcha. Thank you for answering my question about the trail closures. I was a little confused at first.

Grazie!

Thanks all!

Reading through so many recommendations, we had initially planned on sleeping in Monterosso, but someone recommended the Monica Lercari apartments in Vernazza, and we were able to book her "Honeymooners Suite", which is a 2-bedroom with a terrace & ocean view.

We've booked it for 4 nights, so hopefully that's not too much time for one spot. Also, hope we can easily hike over to Monterosso to swim at the beach (is swimming not allowed elsewhere in CT, including Vernazza's harbor? or is it just rocky/pebbly?)

We plan on taking a ferry from Monterosso to Porto Venere (looks like about 30 euros/person round trip). Any tips on that?

Karenaw3 - we will make sure to avoid the trains mid-day & go early, thanks!

Also, hope we can easily hike over to Monterosso to swim at the beach
(is swimming not allowed elsewhere in CT, including Vernazza's harbor?
or is it just rocky/pebbly?)

Marie, swimming is allowed at both (Vernazza doesn't have much of a beach) but the hike between villages is steep/ fairly strenuous in points if you're not much of a hiker. Let's just say I wouldn't call it "easy", and it's going to be a conga line of humans besides. You might want to consider taking the train back and forth, or just do it once to see how you manage? The section you're referring to is part of the Sentiero Azzurro, and you will need to buy park passes to use it.

Also, not all of the beach in Monterosso is public; you have to pay a fee for a chair/use of the showers/changing rooms on the private section.

Yes, some sections of beaches are pebbly, and they're going to be overrun in July. As noted several times earlier in this thread, we can't over-stress how crowded the CT is during high and even shoulder seasons anymore.

Edited to add: please don't try to do that path between Vernazza and Monterosso in flipflops!!! It is a little over two miles (3.6 km.) and the steps can be slippery.

http://www.parconazionale5terre.it/Eiti_dettaglio.php?id_iti=3578

In the towns other than Monterosso, most people swim from big rocky boulders that are easy to access instead of a "beach". That would work fine for your teen daughter and other adults but might be difficult for a younger child.

Marie,

" Also, hope we can easily hike over to Monterosso to swim at the beach"

As Kathy mentioned, hiking between Vernazza and Monterosso is not the best idea, as that's the most robust section of the Sentiero Azzurro trails and has a steep downhill section at the Monterosso end. The hike would take about 1.5 hours each way, and you'd also need to buy a Park Pass to hike, and for one segment it's hardly worth it.

Travel via the frequent local trains is a much better idea. The trip from Vernazza to Monterosso is only about 4 minutes and fare is €1.90 PP each way. I'd suggest trying to avoid being on the trains between about 10:00 - 16:00 as they'll likely be packed like sardines with cruise trip hordes and day-trippers. That would be a good time to take the Ferry to Porto Venere (weather permitting).

Also as mentioned, parts of the beach in Monterosso are "pay-per-use" and other parts are free. I don't think the charges for a beach chair and umbrella are too expensive, but have never rented one.

In the towns other than Monterosso, most people swim from big rocky
boulders that are easy to access instead of a "beach". That would work
fine for your teen daughter and other adults but might be difficult
for a younger child.

YES! We saw people swimming from the rocks in several of the villages (including parents with children) and that looked like more fun than the beaches! I would bring water shoes, though, as it could be tough on your feet.