Does anyone have recommendations for hiring a boat to see Cinque Terre from the sea, and to possibly go to a specific location for dinner? I'm not necessarily interested in the packaged 1/2 day tours with lunch or dinner - I mean hiring a skipper to take us where we want to go...
Posted by
El Dorado Hills, CA
26 posts
I would highly recommend Megan McCaffrey-Guerrera with BellaVita Travels https://www.bellavitatravels.com/about-us. She lives in Lerici (beautiful town just south of Cinque Terre) and has owned her own travel company for over ten years. I've used her twice for private tours, including a sunset cruise. She's married to a local and they should be able to provide you with many options.
Happy travels!
Posted by
Last Frontier aka Alaska 🏔️
3598 posts
My friend did this this past summer. I believe she told me it was about $1,000 for a half day. She arranged it when she got there.
Posted by
Edmonds, Washington
2 posts
Hi, Kathy!
There are a few ways to see the towns of the Cinque Terre from the sea:
1) By private boat: We have a number of recommended captains who offer memorable boat excursions. I have listed a few of the recommendations from our Italy 2019 guidebook below:
Stefano has two six-person boats: the Matilde and the Babaah (about €100/hour, one hour is enough for a quick spin, two hours includes time for swimming stops; longer trips to Porto Venere and offshore islands possible; mobile 333-821-2007, www.matildenavigazione.com, [email protected]).
Diego offers half-day, daylong, and sunset excursions for up to seven on his cushy boat. Longer tours can include snorkeling, village visits, and a buffet lunch onboard (€120/hour for up to 4 people, €150/hour for 5-7 people, mobile 339-233-9297, www.cinqueterreboat.com, [email protected]).
At Vernazza’s breakwater you’ll find Nord Est, run by Vincenzo (with help from Cesare), the best-established option (mobile 338-700-0436, [email protected]). Vernazza Water Taxi, run by Pietro, is another choice (mobile 338-911-3869, [email protected]).
2) By public boat: From Easter to the end of October, a boat service connects all five towns of the Cinque Terre. It is merely a passenger boat, so it will not customize a tour for you, but it is a very scenic way to navigate between the towns for a very reasonable price! You can find more information on these boats here: http://www.navigazionegolfodeipoeti.it/en.
3) By kayak: For more intrepid travelers, there are also opportunities to rent kayaks in Monterosso and Riomaggiore. This can be a very unique way to see the Cinque Terre but may not be the best option for first-time paddlers! For more information on kayaking in the Cinque Terre, look here: http://www.5terrediving.it.
Finally, in regards to restaurants, Cinque Terre has a wonderful sampling of exquisite eateries that we highly recommend. It will very much depend on which towns you plan to dine in, though!
I hope that helps!
Gabe