Getting into the Cinque Terre in August -- how bad is it really?

My biggest worry would be the trains and train stations. It is worse than the Tokyo subway at rush hour. So if you need to change towns go early or late, like dinner time late. The ferry limits passengers so while slow, they are more comfortable, IMO. The trains have no limit to how many passengers can cram on and it gets out of control so your kids might be uncomfortable.

Sorrento will be crowded and probably hotter. The Circumvesuviana is no picnic, either.

In Liguria, think about leaving the Cinque Terre and going north for day trips (or to stay) and take advantage of walks that do not require the train. You can hike up above Riomaggiore to the sanctuary, for example, and the little bus will take you up to a starting point so you do not have to do the entire uphill slog.

The Italian Riviera is a whole lot bigger than just the Cinque Terre, FYI. Lots of other towns like Santa Margherita Ligure, Rapallo, Camogli. I'm not saying they won't be crowded too (Italian coast in August - good luck avoiding crowds!), but you certainly don't have to look all the way south to Sorrento for an alternative.

Personally, I can't imagine wanting to endure the summer crowds in any of these places. If you're going to try to limit your "activities"to morning/evening, what are you going to do all day?

Laurel -- if we took a late afternoon train in from La Spezia to Monterosso (say, 5 or 6 p.m.) do you think we'd be able to avoid the worst of the day trip crowds? We're comfortable with NYC-level crowds, but from what I understand Tokyo is much more packed, so if that's comparable, that's definitely my biggest concern (moreso than the actual villages being crowded, which we can deal with).

Andrew -- the reason I mentioned Sorrento as the alternative is that I had a tough time choosing between CT and Sorrento in the first place. As I mentioned, we don't expect to avoid crowds -- but if one would be significantly more navigable than the other in August, I'm not opposed to making that a deciding factor. As far as daytime activities, we planned a whole lot of nothing -- sit by the water, have a snack, take a boat ride.

kwahlgren,

The crowds everywhere in Italy will likely by "apocalyptic" in August, as that's also when most Italians and other Europeans take their holidays. As Laurel mentioned, Sorrento will probably be worse for heat and at least as bad for crowds so (IMO) the Cinque Terre would be a better choice. Where are you staying in Monterosso?

At 5 / 6 pm most of the cruise ships hordes and day trippers will be heading out of the Cinque Terre, and you could even make the trip earlier from La Spezia as the trains going north likely won't be as crowded. That's also true of southbound trains heading to the Cinque Terre from Levanto, which is where a lot of coach tours drop passengers as it's difficult to get large coaches into the C.T.

One pleasant day trip you could consider would be the "hike" from Levanto to Bonassola through the old railway tunnels. It's flat and and level for the most part and not difficult at all. Take a hat, sun screen and lots of water, and then take the train back to Monterosso from Bonassola. If you're heading north from Monterosso to Levanto, the train likely won't be too busy in the morning (it's only about a 5 minute trip anyway). Levanto also has a great beach so you could spend some time there.

Okay, thanks -- then I feel like we'll stay with the original plan of Cinque Terre, and just make a point of traveling against the flow of the crowds as much as possible. I'll definitely check out the day trips mentioned above. The railway tunnel hike sounds like something my kids would love.

One "crowd coping" strategy that I sometimes use, is to return to the tranquility of my "old town" hotel in the peak part of the afternoon, where I can sit on the balcony with a glass of Prosecco while watching the chaos below.

Also, I've always been able to find a few pockets of tranquility in some of the back alleys of the "old town", even in the busy part of the day. One place that never seems crowded is the small Church on top of the rocky hill in the old town (the one where the tunnel is located).

The beach in the "old town" tends to be less crowded than that of the "new town". One point to note is that some parts of the beaches are "pay-per-use" while other parts are free. Your hotel staff can help you sort that out. I've also found that the far end of the "new town" (close to the large car park along the beach) tends to be less crowded. The day trippers tend to congregate closer to the restaurants and shops in both parts of town. There's also a trail that runs from Monterosso to Levanto, but I've never hiked it. Laurel would be the best person to comment on that.