We are saddened for both the wonderul people of Cinque Terre and for us to had planned a Vernazza stay in early March. We need ideas to fill the middle part of our trip. We had planned to hike in Cinque Terre. Some thoughts that have come our way are Portovenere, Lugano, Innsbruck, and Assisi. All are very different, which is why we are having trouble deciding. Our original plans were Rome-Florence-Cinque Terre-Milan-Venice. We have 3 days.2 nights to reschedule. Any ideas for February 29th-March 2nd?
Posted by
Seattle, WA, USA
7737 posts
Are you looking to fill that particular slot in order, or can you rearrange your itinerary? I ask because the more you can stay in the south, the better weather you're likely to get. You could look in to possible hikes around the Sorrento area. FWIW, a lot of the trails around CT could have been closed then anyway due to the time of year. Good luck.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32398 posts
Bonnie, March is a bit "early" in the season for visiting the Cinque Terre, but some hiking may still be possible (depending on the weather). Although it's unlikely that Vernazza will be ready to host tourists by then, you could stay in one of the other villages. The "old town" section of Monterosso will also not be completely back to normal by then, but they've been making good progress and a few of the businesses have now reopened. The tourist facilities in the "new town" section should all be available. Regarding hiking in the area, local authorities have announced that they intend to have all of the trails open by Easter. Hopefully they'll be able to achieve that. If you'd prefer to explore that area, you could also stay in Levanto which would be a convenient "home base" for exploring that area. From there you could visit the Cinque Terre, Portovenere, Santa Margherita Ligure and Portofino. Good luck with your planning!
Posted by
Long Beach, CA, USA
360 posts
as others have mentioned the other villages that were not damaged are fine to visit but hiking and weather could be questionable for that time of year. What about adding time to Florence, Venice...???
is the priority hiking or just seeing a different part of Italy?
Posted by
Tel Aviv
15798 posts
One of my favorite places is Verona, easy to fit in between Milan and Venice. I'd say one night, 2 days, and add one day/night to Rome, Florence or Venice.
Posted by
Chicago
2876 posts
There are some nice hiking areas around Lake Como, plus it's a very beautiful part of Italy.
Posted by
Milwaukee, Usa
5 posts
We did most of your trip in reverse. Venice-Florence-Cinque Terre-Siena-Rome. Siena was a good stop and we scheduled a day trip wine tour that was wonderful. The tour picked us up, drove us to 2 wineries and an olive orchard in Tuscany , included lunch too. It sounds as if some of the Cinque Terre towns are still open and it would still be worth a visit even if you have to take the train, rather than the hike, between towns. These 5 small towns offered a respite from the bigger cities with absolutely breathtaking views. I'm sure you will enjoy your time no matter how you fill it. I would recommend avoiding Pisa. It was too much time to side-track for very little reward beyond the classic picture with the tower.