• Dave HipplerEurope 2025Traveler
    Vernazza
    Leaving MonterossoApproaching VernazzaVernazzaAnother one...VernazzaOk. Does that say Dave Hippie? Dave Hippler? WTF!After leaving VernazzaNo grapes on the vine yetPit stop with a lemon slushieTakin' a breakThe Ligurian SeaThis bus lists all the towns. Some tourists drive to them instead of doing the arduous hike.The train station down below at Corniglia

    Cinque Terre, Italy

    April 4 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 59 °F

    I had all but given up on seeing this area of Italy. I just wasn't finding decent lodging on short notice. Most people book months in advance to stay in one of the five villages that make up Cinque Terre. So we gave up on it. That is, until I realized we could do it on a long day trip from Genoa.

    It took 2 1/2 hours each way of travel time, but it was worth it. We arrived at 9:00 or so in Monterosso, the first of "5 lands ". From there, we hiked southeast along the Ligurian coast. This region is known as Liguria and this part of the Mediterranean is the Ligurian Sea.

    We had lots of sun and the trails weren't crowded in early April and this early in the morning. It wasn't long until it came upon the stunning views of Vernazza. Once in town we ate our packed lunch. It's kind of hard to find gluten-free options so we knew this would be easier and faster.

    The next segment to Corniglia was a bit harder, but so rewarding. We were hoping to take a ferry back so we took a train to Manarola to catch the ferry. But their port was not in service so we couldn't take the ferry. Drag.

    Manarola was was so full of tour groups, construction, and fishing boats parked in the streets that we couldn't wait to leave. From land, it's the least attractive of the villages we saw. From the water it looks much better apparently. That was enough hiking for us. The trail between the next villages is closed because of landslides and we didn't feel like doing the last stretch.

    We caught a train home from Manarola and made it back to our comfortable apartment and ate at home that night. After almost 12 miles of up and down hiking we were too tired to go out.

    This trip is on a lot of people's bucket list. It is pretty beautiful. I wouldn't recommend going May through September. We met an American guy on the trail who was here last September and he said it was unbearably crowded on the trails. The trails are generally narrow, so going early in the morning and in shoulder or in the off season is your best bet.

    More photos and videos are here.
    https://photos.app.goo.gl/8XJxtPhNUMsHnEAcA    Read more