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Portofino Peninsula

I'm looking for input from people who toured the Portofino Peninsula to see if this is possible: I am driving. I arrive in Portofino at noon, stroll the harbor area and have lunch. Take the ferry to San Fruttoso and stroll a while. Then take the Ferry from San Fruttoso to Camogli and stroll a while. Then take the train from Camogli to Santa Margherita. Whereas there are online sights that say this could be done, I'd like to know if anyone actually did this. I could incorporate this or skip San Fruttoso and Camogli as part of my trip to Italy. Thanks
Howard

Posted by
1540 posts

Howard, I have done all of these, but not on the same day. Feels to me like a lot to do in one day. San Fruttoso is very small, but I enjoyed a boat ride out into the "harbor" to see the statue of Jesus under the water. Camogli could take some time to stroll around and see things.
Santa Margherita is lovely seaside town. Could spend lots of time enjoying the sea there.

Posted by
1446 posts

Howard, we just did a version of what you're proposing except in opposite order. We took a train from Monterosso to Camogli in the morning; got there around 10:30 or so & walked around for a little while and then caught a ferry to San Fruttuoso. We weren't interested in actually visiting San Fruttuoso but wanted to get to Portofino and the only way is via San Fruttuoso. We immediately caught a boat to Portofino, walked around for a few hours and then took a taxi to Santa Margherita Ligure where we took a train back to Monterosso. We were going to take a bus from Portofino to SML but it took much longer and we also didn't want to wait the 30-45 minutes for it to pick us up in Portofino in the first place. It was a jam packed day and there's no way we could have done it all if we had elected to stop in San Fruttuoso as you are proposing. I would skip San Fruttuoso and then you'll have more time for both Camogli and Portofino. I really enjoyed Camogli because it was quaint and picturesque like the Cinque Terre towns but not as touristy or crowded so I wouldn't skip it. Have a great trip.

Posted by
57 posts

Dear Alta Loma, CA. Thanks for your input. This will be early September, 2014. I will drive from Bellagio, about 3 hours, ultimately winding up in Vernaza, Cinque Terre about 8 pm for dinner, including parking car and taking trains. In theory I'll have 7 hours to see what's what in Portifino, Camogli and maybe Santa Margherita before getting to Cinque Terre. I could park the car wherever, take trains, taxi or whatever in those 7 hours. Its one thing to plan on paper and another with shared experiences of a fellow traveler versus a pipe dream. Whereas you did just about what I want to do, how much could really be done in those 7 hours. The next day I'll get back to the car and drive to Florence. Thanks for taking the time.
Howard