Hello!
My husband and I will have three nights, two full days in Vernazza next October.
We are looking to spend one full day meandering between the towns with no real agenda. We are experienced boaters and were thinking about renting a boat in Vernazza and boating between the villages? Doable?
Also, thinking about a day trip on our second full day. What are the best places to go from the Cinque Terre that wouldn't take longer than an hour or two of travel each way?
I've never heard of anyone renting only boats there, but I suppose there could be someone. There are private boat tours, which include the boat and driver. It would be far easier to "meander" between the towns using the frequent local trains.
For day trips, you could board the local Ferry in Monterossso (or in Vernazza) and travel as far as Porto Venere. That would not only give you another town to explore, but also some time on the water.
You can rent kayaks and small boats in Cinque Terre. There are several links under #9. in this story http://www.apathtolunch.com/2016/03/cinque-terre-16-tips-for-avoiding-crowds.html You need a license for all but the smaller boats, but it sounds like fun.
From Vernazza, train takes 1 - 2 hours (depending on connection time) north to Rapallo or S. Margherita Ligure (two similar cities) and from either of those you can take the local ferry to Portofino or San Fruttuoso. Currently, there's also a direct train departing Vernazza at 7:30 a.m.
I guess I need more info. Where are you coming from and where are you going to? Not sure why, with only 2 days in the CT, you would want to spend 1 outside the area. Spend your second day hiking one or more of the trails or just do nothing more than just kicking back. Leave before the hoards decend and get back after they leave. Spend the eve with a bottle of wine appreciating the sunset. In my opinion, Portofino is over-rated. Also not much to do in SML except get the ferry to Portofino.
I don't think you have time to leave the area for a day
Especially if you do a boat rental, which i am not positive is available.
We just returned and spent 3 nights / 2 full days and seeing the 5 towns even quickly takes 2 days not 1
You lose time waiting for the train, ferry, etc...
Your best option outside of the 5 towns with 2 full days is nearby Portovenere which the ferries serve so easy to add on if you have time for a few hours there
Check out arbaspaa - we used them twice for accoms in CT, but they do so much more, including boat rentals, hikes, wine tours...
I think just visiting the five towns will take you two days. You can hike between, take the train or ferry to visit each one. It can take time if you want to wander the villages. It can be stormy in October and you could get rain. We were there in September and had heavy solid rain all day, so we did laundry. Luckily, we spent four nights so we still had time to see the villages. But, the ferries were not running due to the weather.
I would agree that you need both of your two full days to really cover the villages. There are areas of them above the piazzas that a lot of the day-tour people don't make it to. I'll especially recommend the cemeteries: beautiful views from them if willing to make the climb. Also be sure to trek up to the lovely little church of St Francis in Monterosso (it has a Van Dyke painting.).
Corniglia: get to that one early in the morning! It's the least visited of the 4 because it's a little more difficult to get to (have to take a bus or climb a loooooong stairway from the train station) but it's so tiny that it's very easily overrun. I really like that one as it has two of the prettiest little churches in the CT but others I've known who went later in day found themselves a little overwhelmed by the mob. It doesn't take all that many bodies to fill the narrow passageways! Corniglia doesn't have a proper harbor so I'm not sure if you could dock a boat there. You may have to skip it or do it by train or hiking trail from Vernazza.
Renting boats or taking boat tours is very possible in Cinque Terre. Here are few.
In Manorola: https://www.enjoycinqueterre.com/
In Vernazza: http://www.nordest-vernazza.it/
In Monterossa: http://www.angelosboattours.com/
I agree that you could easily spend 2 full days in the Cinque Terre area. It is very beautiful. Exploring the towns, hiking and seeing the area by boat will fill 2 days.
