Cinque Terre on foot: the Ligurian coast at three kilometres an hour

There’s a stretch of the trail above Vernazza — the Sentiero Azzurro, the high coastal path — where the olive groves drop away to the sea on one side and the chestnut woods rise on the other, and you can walk for forty minutes between any other human beings. The light comes off the water in the white-blue Ligurian way. The cicadas are the only sound. The next village, when it appears around a curve, is the size of a postcard: roof tiles, terracotta, the pastel-painted houses stacked vertically.

Why I keep coming back

The Cinque Terre — the five villages on this stretch of Ligurian coast between Genoa and La Spezia — were, for centuries, a forgotten section of Italy, accessible only by boat or by mule trail. The first railway came in the 1870s but the villages remained genuinely isolated until the late 20th century. Today, they’re a UNESCO site, on every Italian itinerary, and in high summer essentially impossible to enjoy.

The trails, however, remain the original way through. Walk between the villages on the high path or on the low coastal path (when it’s open — landslides have closed sections for years at a time), and you experience the Cinque Terre as it was meant to be experienced: slowly, on foot, with views that exhaust your camera and your superlatives.

Where to base yourself

Vernazza is the prettiest, in my view, and the most central of the five. Choose this if you want the postcard.

Corniglia is the only village not on the water (it sits on a clifftop 100 m above the sea) and consequently has half the day-trippers. The walk up from the train station is 380 steps; locals take a small shuttle bus.

Monterosso has the only proper beach and is the largest of the five. Useful if you have small children.

Manarola is, photographically, the iconic village (the one in every guidebook cover) and is correspondingly crowded.

Riomaggiore is the southern entry village and has the largest harbour atmosphere.

Many travellers stay in La Spezia or Levanto outside the park and day-trip. This is fine but you miss the evening and dawn experience.

What to actually do

Buy a Cinque Terre Trekking Card. This combines the trail entry (some sections require it), the train between the villages, and other small benefits. Around €18 per day in current pricing.

Walk the Sentiero Azzurro. The classic coastal high trail connects all five villages. Total distance about 12 km, total time about 5 hours (with stops; six villages along the way for refreshment).

• Monterosso to Vernazza: 1.5 hours, moderate climbing.
• Vernazza to Corniglia: 1.5 hours, the prettiest section.
• Corniglia to Manarola: technically the Via dell’Amore (Path of Love), the easiest section, but currently the coastal stretch has been closed for landslide repair; check before. The high route via Volastra is the alternative.
• Manarola to Riomaggiore: short, was the classic Via dell’Amore, partially open after years of repair.

Take a boat trip. Boats run between the villages from mid-March to early November. The view of the villages from the sea is the angle the rail and the trail don’t give you.

Swim in the small harbours. Vernazza’s small harbour, Manarola’s rocks, Monterosso’s beach. The water is clear, the rocks are warm, the swimming is honest.

Try the pesto. Liguria is the home of pesto. The genuine version — Genovese basil, pine nuts, garlic, Parmigiano, pecorino, olive oil — is sharper and herbier than the version you’ve had elsewhere. Try it on trofie (the small twisted pasta), with potatoes and green beans in the dish.

Where to eat

Ligurian cooking — basil, anchovies, focaccia, white wines from the local Vermentino and Bosco grapes.

Gambero Rosso (Vernazza) — On the harbour, the anchovies, the trofie al pesto.

Cecio (Corniglia) — Family-run, the acciughe (anchovies, marinated and salted, the Ligurian classic), the sea view from the terrace.

Trattoria Gianni Franzi (Vernazza) — Old-school, the taglierini al limone (pasta with lemon).

Belforte (Vernazza) — Inside a medieval tower, the menu modernised, the seafood serious.

Focaccia from any bakery — The classic Ligurian flatbread; the focaccia di Recco (a thin two-layer focaccia with melted cheese in the middle) is the regional specialty.

Local wine: Sciacchetrà, the local dessert wine from dried grapes, hard to find and remarkable when you do.

When to come

Late April to early June, or mid-September to mid-October. The trails are open, the temperatures are pleasant, the day-tripper crowds are tolerable.

July and August are best avoided. The villages are at full crowd capacity and the heat (30°C+) makes the trail walking unpleasant.

Winter (November–March) is a quieter experience but many restaurants and most accommodations close. Only worth doing if you specifically want emptiness and are flexible about food.

Practical notes

• Visa: Schengen.
• Money: Card increasingly accepted; carry cash for the smaller trattorias.
• Transport: The regional train (the Cinque Terre Express) connects all five villages and runs every 15–30 minutes. Single tickets are around €5; the day pass at €18 is the move.
• The trail rules: Closed-toe shoes (in fact, proper hiking shoes) are required by park rules. Bring water. There are no shops between villages.
• The landslides: The coastal trails are subject to closures after heavy rain. Check the park website (parconazionale5terre.it) before your trip.
• Where the day-trippers cluster: Around the stations and harbours of each village. The upper streets are largely empty even in peak season.

A final thought

The Cinque Terre is one of the iconic Italian places that has, over twenty years, become harder to enjoy in the standard way and easier to enjoy in a non-standard way. The standard way — train to each village, photograph it, lunch, train back — is the way 90% of day-trippers experience it, and it is the way that delivers the least.

The non-standard way is the walking trails. The villages were connected, for most of their history, by mule paths along the cliff. The mule paths are still there. They are still beautiful. They are largely empty by 10 a.m., when the day-trippers cluster around the harbours. Walk the trails. Stay overnight in one village. Eat dinner in a Ligurian trattoria with the lights of the next village visible across the bay. Watch the cliffs in the morning. The villages are crowded for a reason, and the reason — once you are walking between them at three kilometres an hour — is unambiguous.