Hello,
My husband and I are heading to Europe in October. We plan to visit Rome and Venice and he would like to go the the "Italian Riviera". I think he is looking for something relaxing after the cities. I'm wondering if you may have a recommendation for a place to go and if you think it will be cold and rainy at that time. Does the CT make sense?
thanks,
Obviously your chances of bad weather increase the further into October you go. Good weather is more likely in early October than late October. (I visited the Cinque Terre first in early October and the weather was still warm enough for shorts on the hiking trail, and I also went for a quick swim in the ocean. But it's going to vary year to year.)
I will be on the West Coast for October and November. I will be staying in Chiavari...quite relaxing there wih a lovely promonade along the sea. When last in Italy during October (2019) the weather was lovely...no guarantee of course. Rapallo is also a nice town in the area also with a bit of a promanade seaside and in the same vicinity of CT which is likely to be a bit less crowded in the Fall. Enjoy!
We have been to Liguria at least 5 times in October and always had good weather with occasional afternoon showers, once a storm. I would suggest looking at Camogli or Santa Margherita Ligure as a base to expand your options beyond the Cinque Terre. Even in October the crowds can be intense, especially on weekends and when cruise ships are in La Spezia.
Yes, I think we have decided that the CT itself seems a bit claustrophobic. Thanks so much for these suggestions.
Camogli and Santa Margherita Ligure are wonderful towns. But I wouldn't necessarily fear crowds as a reason to completely avoid the Cinque Terre. I've stayed in Levanto, the town just north of Monterosso in the CT, several times, and it is a nice alternative to the five villages. It's a little less crowded but still a nice town. You can hike from Levanto back to Monterosso (not a bad hike), and Levanto is just one train stop north of Monterosso.
But the trains make getting up and down the Riviera very easy. You could stay in any of these towns and easily visit the others by train.
