Portovenere?

Posted by Marshall (Greenville, SC, USA) on 08/03/10 08:14 AM

Will be in the CT for 3 nights, staying in Monterosso al Mare. One day we are planning to hike as much of the trail as we can (from Monterosso to Riomagiorre) and then take a boat back to Monterosso. The next day we are going to relax on Monterosso's sandy beaches in a lounge chair (as a vacation from our vacation).

My question is, is it worth our time to take the boat from Riomaggiore out to Portovenere before heading back to Monterroso? I understand it's only accessible by boat? Would appreciate comments from anyone who's been there and has opinions about it. If we do go, how much time should I devote to the town?

Posted by Larry

Elk Grove, CA, USA

08/03/10 10:06 AM

6898 posts

Actually, as you sit in your lounge chair on the beach at Monterosso, look to your slight right out near the breaker wall and look for a large boat. That's the ferry to Portovenere. You don't have to go to Riomaggiore to catch it. There's a ticket booth there as well. If the sea is a bit rough, the ferry may not stop at the 5 towns. If the sea is quite rough, it won't run at all. Take the ferry from Monterosso to Portovenere and have lunch at one of the many restaurants. Then, take a later ferry back to Monterosso. It's a very scenic ride and you'll wonder why Portovenere isn't a 6th CT town.

Portovenere is also reachable by bus from La Spezia.

Posted by Marshall OP

Greenville, SC, USA

08/03/10 10:32 AM

263 posts

Thanks Larry. I mentioned Riomagiorre because I was thinking of catching the boat from there after our hiking.

Posted by Charlene

Centennial, CO, US

08/03/10 10:48 AM

2186 posts

I agree that Portovenere is a great place to visit. It's a very picturesque little town, with a castle to climb around in. When we went several years ago, it was pretty much a full day trip from Monterosso. We left in the morning, stopped at several CT towns on our way, and then the ferry dropped us in Portovenere for several hours. We had lunch and wandered, and then the ferry came back to pick us up. It was like a mini-Mediterranean cruise -- really relaxing.

When you arrive in Monterosso you could see what time (and if) that ferry stops in Riomaggiore. Then you could decide if it's possible. If you can, I think you'd enjoy it.

Posted by Ron

Cesena, Italy

08/04/10 08:40 AM

791 posts

From a June 2010 ferry schedule:

Ferry starts in Monterosso @ 10:30 am, works it's way down to Riomaggiore(skipping Corniglia)@ 11:10 and on to Portovenere @ 11:40. Ferry leaves from each location every 40-60 min. The cost is 25 Euro but includes trips to the 3 islands near Porto.

Posted by Anthony

Florence

08/04/10 08:41 AM

362 posts

I was just there Saturday - I will try to post some pictures. Great little town - crowded of course this time of year, but felt relaxed at the same time.

Posted by Lisa

Holliston, MA

08/21/10 03:42 PM

11 posts

We did the entire hike, from Monterosso to Riomaggiore...granted, we did a 2 hour lunch in Vernazza, but I think adding on Portovenere after doing the hike would be too much. We took the ferry out of Monterosso to Portevenere the next day, spent a few liesurely hours, and now we're going back to Portovenere next month to stay for a week (using that as our jump off point to Cinque Terre since we waited too long to book where we wanted to).