This summer, I am thinking about spending some time in the Cinque Terre region, specifically the town of Vernazza. I understand that this area can be substantially crowded at times, and therefore am looking into staying somewhere outside Vernazza that is accessible by train. Additionally, if anyone has already traveled to Vernazza, I know that there are several different beaches to lounge on, but is there one that is more recommended over the others? Any suggestions?
Posted by
Boston
1816 posts
Levanto is quite near by train to all the CT villages. It is very enjoyable, has very good beaches and somewhat more services than the CT villages. You can also hike to Monterosso (also with a beach) directly from Levanto in a couple of hours. Vernazza has very little in the way of a beach.
Posted by
Houston, TX
487 posts
Most of the towns in Cinque Terre do not have a beach, with the exception of Monterosso which does have a sandy beach, it is more like small pebbles. They have loungers and umbrellas I think. The other towns have rocky areas where you can jump in the water and sunbathe. Most people that stay nearby are based in either Levanto or La Spezia.
Posted by
Boston, MA
1832 posts
You should do a little more research on the tiny area called the Cinque Terre.
Vernazza is one of the 5 towns.
There are no beaches in Vernazza ; well there kind of is one but it will be crowded and not very beachy.
More of rocks people lounge on.
Of the 5 towns only Monterosso has a true beach.
It will be crowded but if you are interesting in spending your time there I would not stay outside of town purely due to crowds fact is if you do that it will be most crowded when you are there and not crowded at the times you are not (morning and night)
Posted by
381 posts
We stayed in Vernazza in September and there is a beach but it is very rocky....both large and small. If we had it to do over again I think we would stay in Monterosso which has a large sandy beach and a larger central area. Just be aware all of these small towns are overrun during the day with day trippers but take on a different personality in the evening and early morning. We travelled between the towns on the ferry and only used the train upon arrival from La Spezia and returning to La Speiza.
Posted by
Big Island of Hawaii
767 posts
I second staying in Levanto. It is an easy train ride to all of the CT towns. It is a nice, quiet, mostly flat cute little town away from the madness of the CT towns. And they have a lovely beach.
Posted by
4 posts
Vernazza is not a beach town. But it is my absolute favorite in that area. I've only been in November when it is fairly quiet. Hiking is amazing and views are spectacular. You can get to Vernazza by train or hike. We've walked the entire length of Cinque Terre. A must do if walking is your thing. I know ferry boats run from town to town in the summer months. I believe Cinque Terre is going to begin limiting the number of people entering so make sure you check on that as well. Personally, I would not stay anywhere else. Crowd or no crowds.
Posted by
Minnesota 🎒
16748 posts
I believe Cinque Terre is going to begin limiting the number of people
entering so make sure you check on that as well.
Megan, there are no restrictions on the number of visitors to the CT and no concrete plan to do so at this time. That was a rumor started by some erroneous media reports awhile back. But I wouldn't go to Vernazza if beach lounging is the goal.
We've walked the entire length of Cinque Terre. A must do if walking
is your thing. I know ferry boats run from town to town in the summer
months.
I'm not sure what year you did this but at least 2 segments of the famous Sentiero Azzurro (Blue Trail) have been closed for some time now with one - the Via dell' Amore between Riomaggiore and Manarola - not scheduled to reopen until 2018, and no timeline at all for the segment between Manarola and Corniglia. There are other trails which access both but they're longer and more strenuous. I am cautious not to categorize any CT trail but Via dell'Amore as a 'walk' as tourists with certain mobility limitations, heart conditions or even fear of heights could get the wrong idea about what's involved.
Ferries do run during the summer but not to Corniglia; it doesn't have a proper harbor.
Posted by
San Diego
1540 posts
We stayed in Levanto on an RS trip (Village Italy). We all bought a 1 day train pass and were able to go down to all the 5 towns, get off and spend as much time as we wanted, hop back on a train go the next town, or hike between a few of them. The pass was good until midnight.
Levanto is a great little town with several excellent restaurants and as mentioned it has a sandy beach excellent for swimming.
Note if you want to walk on the trails - you have to buy park pass - it is also available at the train stations.