Ultimate CinqueTerre Travel Guide | Beautiful towns, best hikes, things to do, where to eat

Ciao and welcome to Cinque Terre. We're here for the next few days to show you the best things to do including some hidden gems, how to drink this wine and the best places to visit. Cinque Terre is located on the Ligurian coastline in northwestern Italy and is the oldest and smallest national park in the country. The region is comprised of five towns all of which have their own unique character and personality. These are Monterosso Almare, Fenazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Rio Maggiore. You need at least two days to fully explore the region and this is the itinerary that we'll be following over the course of this video. The best way to get between the villages is to either take the train at a cost of 5 euro per journey or to hike between the towns and we'll cover all of the hikes over the course of this video. Our first Cinque Terre town was Corniglia which is right in the heart of the national park as it's the third town along the coastline. This is the only landlocked village and you either have to take a bus from the train station or climb over 380 steps to reach the village. We are currently around halfway up the steps to get to Corniglia. The walk isn't actually as demanding as you would imagine because the steps are quite shallow and there are a number of spots to stop and take a breather on the way up. Once you reach the top you'll be rewarded with charming streets, hole-in-the-wall eateries and centuries worth of history. If I'm honest Corniglia was certainly my favourite of the towns and it was definitely the quietest of the five. One of the main free highlights of Corniglia is the church of San Pietro or Saint Peter in English. The rather plain exterior belies one of the most ornate and beautiful of all the churches of Cinque Terre's interiors and the church itself dates all the way back to the 14th century. Focaccia and pesto both originate in the region and so it's not unusual to see shops selling sandwiches containing both. With such high temperatures even during the spring and fall you won't want to eat a heavy lunch so save the large pasta portions for dinner. We opted to go to kilometre zero which boasts a shady and pleasant courtyard in the middle of the centro storico i.e old town. I loved my light bruschetta served crisp with an ice cold aperol spritz. As with every Cinque Terre town the entirety of Corniglia's heart is car free and so you can explore with ease as long as you wear comfortable shoes. One of the most pleasant spots to sit in one of the little cafes and watch the world go by is in the small square in front of the oratory of Saint Catherine. You can also visit the interior of the church for free. Climb up the stairs to the right of the oratory and you will be rewarded with one of the best views in Corniglia. From here on the belvedere you can see all the way to the next town along Manarola. As most of the towns only have one central road which passes through them the only way to get to the houses and buildings which are constructed on higher ground are by walking through the Carrugi. These narrow lanes are typical of the region and can get pretty dark at night and at certain points the passages get so narrow that they pass through under neighbouring buildings. In many of the villages if you follow the passages right to the top you'll come out at the castle which in turn offers breathtaking views of the village below and its surrounding coastline. Some guides claim that Corniglia doesn't have any swimming spots but this simply isn't true. The only difference between Corniglia and the other Cinque Terre towns is that you'll have to walk down the stairs to sea level to access the water whereas the other towns are already all at sea level. To end our time in Corniglia we decided to freshen up with a quick ice cream. Now you can get these to take away but I recommend getting them and leaving the shop as soon as possible because it's pretty busy in the surrounding area. So we're currently trying the basil gelato and I'm very surprised but it's actually very sweet and refreshing and also melting on me so I'm going to eat it now. We're now on the way to Valastra and then Manarola from Corniglia. I think I said it right that time. It's around two hours to get there so I think we have to hurry because it's going to be sunset soon. While you have to pay to hike some of the Cinque Terre trails this one is completely free. Just be sure to set aside a couple of hours to complete the hike and bring lots of water along as this is the longest Cinque Terre hike between towns. One of the most important things to know before embarking on the hike is that the trails can be quite rough and the stones can be quite slippery in places so you'll want suitable shoes. Indeed it's worth noting that open-toed shoes and sandals are completely forbidden on the trails. We've just come across one of the wine monorails. Now these monorails are super steep. Unfortunately you can't ride them as a tourist but they're used to bring grapes from the top of the mountain right down to the bottom to sea level for production and export from the region. Now one of the biggest draws of the hike between Corniglia and Manarola and I recommend hiking the this way around as opposed from Manarola to Corniglia is the sheer number of vineyards which line the trail. Hiking this path will give you an idea of the sheer scale of wine production in the region and allows you to enjoy beautiful views of Manarola from a bird's eye perspective. If you're lucky then around halfway around the hike you'll find an open vineyard where you can have a local wine tasting overlooking the azure blue sea below. Falastra isn't part of the Cinque Terre group but you will have to walk through it on the way to Manarola. There's not a great deal by way of attractions, just a small church and smattering of houses scattered across the hilltop. There is a small bar and convenience store in town if you want to stock up on snacks drinks or go to the toilet. And so after a few hours and honestly my knees were really starting to ache a little bit at this point we were finally in Manarola. This is the second smallest village after Corniglia with a population of just under 400 residents and so the main attractions are admiring the views, hiking and strolling around the old town. Like all of the other towns the main church is free to visit, is dedicated to San Lorenzo and dates back to the 14th century. For the best views of Manarola you'll want to hike back up into the vineyards along the pathway which leads to the rocky outcrop housing the cemetery. The best time to visit this spot is at sunset and while it's definitely not a hidden gem this is one vista that is popular for a reason. Manarola has its own train station and trains run around every half an hour or so on a regular basis between this town and the next one along Rio Maggiore. Although the ticket costs five euros it's actually only a one to two minute train journey. Because we wanted to complete all of the hikes between the villages we instead opted to hike over the summit of the cliff top in order to reach Rio Maggiore on foot. This actually proved to be the most challenging of the hikes and took us around 45 minutes because we were rushing to get to the next town before sunset. Just check out my step count. I would also say to give yourself at least an hour to an hour and a half if you want to rest and soak up the views a bit. You should also note that this is the only climb where we had to use our hands and knees to hoist ourselves up and there are some even roped parts. I have to be honest and say I was pretty relieved when we made it to Rio Maggiore where we were staying for the week because we were just so tired. We ended up heading straight down into the port in order to watch the sunset. This is undoubtedly the best place to see the sunset in the entirety of the Cinque Terre region but it is very popular so you want to get there just before sunset in order to secure a good viewing spot. The best time to explore Rio Maggiore is easily during the early morning when the day trippers haven't arrived and the streets are quiet. I woke up for sunrise and headed straight down the street to the port. As soon as I arrived I was greeted by boats bobbing in the gentle waves, the colourful houses and the best part was that I was the only person there. There's one activity which is sadly closed for the moment but set to open up in 2024 and that is the Via Della More. This gorgeous walkway is set alongside the coastline and is a fairly flat trail which connects Rio Maggiore to Manarola. In summer of 2023 you could pay to visit part of the trail and we could easily see how this will soon become one of the best things to do in Cinque Terre. Truth be told the best way to get to know any of the villages in Cinque Terre is simply to stroll around and allow the village to reveal itself to you. You'll need a couple of hours in Rio Maggiore to explore its little nooks and crannies. The church of San Giovanni Battista of Rio Maggiore was founded in 1340 and is set a fair bit of a way up some steps near the top of the town. Highlights of this catholic church include a rose window, gothic arches and a neo gothic facade. Our feet still tired from yesterday and also just tired of stairs in general we hopped in an elevator next to the church which is free to access and headed up to the very top of the town where the old castle is. The old castle of Rio Maggiore sits at the highest peak in town and dates all the way back to 1260. Even if the interior of the castle is closed during your visit like it was for us you'll still want to check out the incredible panoramic views from the top. We then headed back down the hill towards the train station where we would end up in another beautiful vista this time with a drink. The view from Bar e Vini a Pied de Mar is like something out of a vintage italian film. Watch the trains departing from the platform, soak up the sea breeze and enjoy some of the most aesthetically pleasing drinks anywhere in town. We then headed down through the train station though not to catch a train. This is the start of the trailhead to go around the coastline and enjoy panoramic views of the other side of the port of Rio Maggiore. If you type Rio Maggiore beach into your maps application then you'll find the location of this gorgeous beach. We loved bathing here and the water was literally crystal clear. Now if you've been counting the amount of towns that we've been visiting then you'll notice that we've only visited two. There is three more towns to visit today so let's get moving and head onto the train. To be honest the best part about waiting on the platform at Rio Maggiore is being able to see the sea. It's honestly just very gorgeous and you won't be able to help yourself from taking photos. The largest of the five towns of Cinque Terre is Monterosso Almare, a lovely seaside location with centuries of history, an impossibly beautiful shoreline and stunning views onto the crystal clear waters of the Ligurian coastline. The sandstone from the cliffs around the town were once used to construct various buildings in town. Today they can be admired from a sea window along the seafront promenade. If you climb the stairs to get to the top of the town then not only will you be rewarded with some pretty stunning views but you can also visit the convent of the Capuchin friars. The church is free to visit and dates back to the 17th century. Construction of the building lasted for five years. If you head further up the hill still then you'll reach the cemetery of Monterosso. This tranquil spot provides sweeping views of the surrounding Ligurian countryside though some parts of the cemetery are in obvious disrepair. Please note that Monterosso Almare is sometimes simply referred to as Monterosso for short and while it must be said that the town is probably the least charming of any of the Cinque Terre villages this does not mean that it's not without its own merits. There are two main churches in town the church of Saint John the Baptist and the adjacent oratory of the Conference de Neri. We then realized it was time for a little snack before our next hike and so we headed to a little bakery in town. To be honest there are so many foodie options but I do recommend checking out the pesto and focaccia ones because they're local. If you're looking for a town with good beaches then the best one to visit in Cinque Terre is certainly Monterosso Almare. There are Lido's where you can rent lounges and there are also free beaches where you can relax on the sand for free. Now not all of the hikes in Cinque Terre are free and in a bid to reduce tourist crowds the area has actually put in a charge for some of the trails this includes the one between Monterosso Almare and Venazza which is also the most popular of the trails. The hike costs 7.50 and though the guide told us it probably takes an hour and a half to do we did it in less than an hour because we had a wine tasting to get to in Venazza. I think one of the things that surprised me the most about taking this trail is that because you have to pay I expected it to be of much better quality than the two that we'd previously done but this was definitely not the case. However there was a marked increase in the number of people on this trail and we found that we were constantly behind people in queues to get to the next section but it was beautiful nonetheless. Now you definitely want to do the trail from Monterosso to Venazza and not the other way around because the views down into Venazza are some of the best to be found anywhere in Cinque Terre. Venazza is made up of one long winding street that makes its way from the train station down to the port. Boats sway in the breeze in the natural harbour, the only natural harbour of Cinque Terre and there's a little pebble beach where you can relax or paddle in the sea. As it was pretty hot we decided that the next order of business should be to grab a local gelato and eat it while sitting in the main town. If you've watched the film Luca then you should know that the film is actually largely based on Venazza so be sure to look out for some top filming locations around town. We then headed on to a wine tour. This started in the town but soon took us up into the vineyards where we could enjoy unparalleled views of Venazza below. These wine tours can be pretty popular and so be sure to book at least a few weeks in advance ahead of your trip in order to secure a place and avoid disappointment. Italian wine is world famous and so it's worth noting that the Cinque Terre too produces its own white wine on the steep hills overlooking the villages below. Sierra wine found only in Cinque Terre is sweet and is typically consumed together with a crisp biscotti. The other wine that is produced exclusively in Cinque Terre is Cinque Terre D.O.C. In the past each family would have had its own small vineyard and the hills have been terraced for hundreds of years. Today the dry stone wall terraces line the hills above the towns. Indeed the dry stone walls and landscaping of the area by humans over the centuries is actually what Cinque Terre owes its UNESCO world heritage status to. We visited the family-owned vineyard of Eroico which boasts an enviable position overlooking Venazza below. We got to sample three local wines as well as some homemade pesto, homemade tapenade and other local snacks. We ended our time in Cinque Terre by hiking the last leg of the town routes which we hadn't yet completed Venazza to Cornelia. This route also costs €7.50 but as we were hiking close to sunset we found that there was barely anyone else on the trail. And there you have it two perfect days in Cinque Terre. Of course you can mix and match the itinerary to your personal preference. You can also opt to take the train between towns if you so prefer. Thank you so much for watching and don't forget to subscribe for more travel movies. I'll see you next time. Bye!