Cinque Terre Travel Guide: Exploring the Coastal Villages of Cinque Terre as a Day Trip

Apr 17, 2024
7 min read

Updated: Apr 22, 2024

Welcome to Cinque Terre, a hidden gem on the picturesque Ligurian coastline in Northwestern Italy, where you will find a cluster of five enchanting villages nestled along the rugged shoreline. Each village has its own unique charm and allure, from pastel-hued houses on rocky shores of the Mediterranean sea to vineyards clinging to terraced hillsides to panoramic viewpoints along coastal trails that take your breath away. In this travel guide, I will take you on a journey to exploring the quintessential jewels of Cinque Terre in a day – Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Manarola, and Riomaggiore.

Monterosso el Mare

Start your day in Cinque Terre at Monterosso, which is the largest village and is known for its beautiful beaches. The village is divided into two main beach areas: the larger, more popular Fegina Beach, known for its soft sand and clear waters, and the smaller, more secluded Monterosso Beach in the old town. Spend your morning renting sun loungers and umbrellas, indulging in water sports, or simply relaxing and enjoying the coastal scenery. You will find many restaurants along the beach where you can enjoy a snack or drink with a scenic view. Monterosso also has a historic old town, Monterosso Vecchia, that has narrow cobblestone streets, colorful buildings, and quaint shops selling local artisanal products.

If you are planning to stay in Cinque Terre for a few nights, then you will find the most hotel options in the town of Monterosso. Since Monterosso is the only village in Cinque Terre with a sandy beach, I would suggest spending your time in Monterosso enjoying the beach because there will be plenty of picturesque towns to explore in the other villages

Vernazza

For your second stop of the day, spend the early afternoon exploring the village of Vernazza. If you arrive by ferry, your will disembark in the small harbor lined with fishing boats with postcard-perfect sights in the background. Pastel-colored buildings line the harbor with lush green hillsides and vineyards beyond the village. Vernazza has a strong maritime tradition, and fishing remains an essential part of its cultural identity. Stroll along the harbor area to see fishermen at work and admire the colorful boats.

After exploring the harbor, I recommend heading through the town towards the vineyards. As you walk through the town you will see many local houses built into the steep hills and staircases throughout the village instead of traditional streets.

There is a path beyond the town that goes through the vineyards on the hillside, and leads to a scenic seafood restaurant where you can enjoy lunch. Look for signs to the hiking trail named The Sentiero Azzurro (Blue Trail) and follow it south along the coastline through the vineyards. About half a mile down the trail you will come across a restaurant built into the cliffside called Ristorante La Torre. While the walk is fairly short, it is a steep and unpaved hill so I would only recommend this if you are in good health and physical shape. I was able to walk to the restaurant in a dress and sandals with no issues, so don't let the hike scare you from missing out on this amazing view. The restaurant has large outdoor patios, and every table has an unparalleled views of the harbor below. Ristorante La Torre is best known for their seafood, and I recommend trying the mussels with a glass of refreshing white wine.

Riomaggiore

The next village you will visit on this itinerary is Riomaggiore. Riomaggiore is the southernmost village, and if you are taking the ferry you will remain on the boat when it stops at Manarola. Don't worry, we will come back to Manarola later for dinner and sunset. Spend your afternoon enjoying Riomaggiore with its colorful houses cascading up the cliffside from the small harbor. If you are a wine enthusiast, you will find some wine cellars in the village from the surrounding wineries in the hillside, the most popular being Terra di Bargon. Enjoy a glass of wine and browse some of the local shops in the village.

Riomaggiore has a small harbor that is surrounded by large rocks and has a rock wall extending out to protect the harbor. You will see many people enjoying a swim in the refreshing water and laying out on the rocks. I would recommend bringing your bathing suit so you can enjoy some relief from the hot, summer sun. If you don't want to go in the water, Riomaggiore also has some great gelato shops you can enjoy.

Manarola

Manarola will be our last stop in Cinque Terre, and is my personal favorite of the villages. The highlight of Manarola is its scenic overlook viewpoint with the contrast between the colorful buildings and the deep blue sea creating a breathtaking panorama. The scene is particularly magical at sunset as the sun reflect off the water onto the pastel colored village. You can get to the scenic viewpoint from the harbor by following the cliff path on the opposite side of the village. On your way up, you will find many photo opportunities. At the very top, you will see public picnic benches. You can bring wine and snacks from the village below, relax, and enjoy the view.

Also at the top of the hill you will find the Nessun Dorma restaurant. Nessun Dorma is a small, outdoor restaurant perched at the top of the cliff known for their spritz's, bruschetta, and cheese boards. This is a highly popular restaurant, and you must join a waitlist for a table. You can join the queue on their website - join here. In high season the wait can get long so I would recommend checking the queue periodically in the 2-3 hours leading up to when you wish to dine. When you get close to the top of the list, head up to the restaurant and wait for your name to be called. Enjoying the charcuterie boards and refreshing cocktails at Nessun Dorma is a unique dining experience that you must do while in Manarola!

Make sure to try their pesto sauce, which is local to the Cinque Terre region. Nessun Dorma also offers a Pesto Experience where you can learn how to make your own pesto using local ingredients and enjoy a meal afterwards. This experience must be booked separately in advance on their website.

If you would like a more substantial meal, there are also many cozy trattorias in the town and other restaurants overlooking the sea. If you would like to take a private boat tour along the rugged coastline to admire the cliffs and villages from the water, this is the town to do it! You will see many folks by the harbor selling scenic sunset boat tours.

How to Get to Cinque Terre

While Cinque Terre is located on a remote part of the Italy's Northwestern coastline, it is easily accessible by train from the nearby cities of Florence, Pisa, and Genoa. From any of these major cities, you can take a direct train to La Spezia Centrale station, which is the main gateway to Cinque Terre. From La Spezia Centrale, you can catch regional trains that stop at each of the Cinque Terre Villages. Since you will need to change trains in La Spezia, make sure you plan your train times in advance and allow plenty of time for transfers. Traveling to Cinque Terre by train is the most straight forward and stress free means of transportation to the villages. It will take you ~1.5 hours to reach Cinque Terre from Florence, and ~1 hour from Pisa or Genoa. Cinque Terre's proximity to these cities, makes it an ideal day trip.

While you can also drive or take the bus to Cinque Terre, I would not recommend as these means of transportation may be more stressful. You can access Cinque Terre by car via highway A12, but parking is extremely limited and there can be restricted access near the villages, especially during peak tourist months. There are also buses that go from nearby cities like La Spezia to the village, but this is more time consuming. If traveling from one of the major cities, you will still need to take a train to get to one of the bus stops and switching from train to bus can add complexity and cause confusion. For the smoothest trip to Cinque Terre, its best to just stick to the train.

How to do Cinque Terre as a Day Trip

When visiting Italy, I stayed in Florence and spent a day in Cinque Terre. If doing Cinque Terre as a day trip, I would recommend leaving early in the morning, by 7:30AM, to make the most out of your day. I recommend taking the train to the northern most village of Monterosso al Mare first, and then working your way south down the coastline. Monterosso al Mare, the northernmost village, is known for its beaches so it's best to start at this village. Manarola, one of the the southernmost villages, is famous for it's sunsets and has incredible restaurants for dinner so its best to end the day here. From Manarola, you can take the train back to La Spezia where you can connect to the city you are staying in.

Once you arrive at the first village in Cinque Terre by train, I would recommend using the ferry to travel between villages. One of the best parts of Cinque Terre is seeing the coastal villages perched on the scenic shoreline from a boat in the sea. Taking the ferry between villages will give you the perfect view and is an efficient means of transportation. You can buy a day pass for the ferry and there is a ferry stop at each village . You can learn more about ferry tickets and timetables here.