Liguria, Italy

Cinque Terre

Five fishing villages in impossible colours clinging to the Ligurian cliffs — technically drivable, sensibly not.

Best forCouples · Walkers & hikers · Photographers
In January11°C · 11 rainy days
Ideal stay3–4 nights
Approx. flying time~12h 25m from Los Angeles

Cinque Terre, Liguria, Italy Open in Google Maps Powered by Geoapify · © OpenStreetMap contributors · © OpenMapTiles

CurrencyEUREuro
LanguageItalian
Local time12:231h ahead of the UK
PlugsType C / F / LBring an adapter
Drive on theRightOpposite to the UK
Dialling code+39

Why go

Five villages sit in clefts of the Ligurian coast, their houses stacked in ochre and rose above small harbours, with terraced vineyards held up by dry stone walls climbing the slopes behind. There are almost no roads worth using and very few flat places to stand. The pleasure is in moving slowly between them, on foot along the cliff paths or by the train that ducks in and out of the headlands.

Base yourself in one village and treat the others as walks. Manarola and Corniglia are calmer than Vernazza and Monterosso; Levanto and La Spezia at either end offer more space and better value. May, June and September are the sweet spots, with warm sea and manageable numbers. High summer is crowded to the point of discomfort, and the paths themselves become queues by mid-morning.

Ideal stay: 3–4 nights
The vibe: Coloured houses, terraced cliffs, salt air

From our guides

Park the car in La Spezia and let the coastal train do the hopping while you walk the clifftop stretches between villages, vineyard on one side, sea on the other. Stay in Manarola or quiet Corniglia rather than busy Vernazza, and eat trofie al pesto in its birthplace. September is the sweet spot.

Featured in Ten coastal drives for a honeymoon on wheels

Things to do

Sentiero Azzurro

The coastal path linking all five villages, ticketed in sections and occasionally closed by landslip. The Vernazza to Monterosso stretch is the most demanding and the finest.
Manarola at dusk

The path towards the cemetery and Punta Bonfiglio gives the view that appears on every poster, with the village lit and the sea going dark below.
Corniglia's steps

The only village not on the water sits atop 382 brick steps from its station. The climb thins the crowds considerably and the vineyard views repay it.
The high sanctuary trails

Older paths run above the villages between hillside sanctuaries, far quieter than the coastal route and with wider views over the whole coastline.
Monterosso beach

The only proper stretch of sand, split between free shingle and rows of loungers, with a sheltered bay for swimming and the easiest access of the five.
Trofie al pesto and anchovies

The pesto is Ligurian and made with local basil; the salted anchovies of Monterosso have protected status. Order both, plus a glass of Vermentino.

Getting there

Fly to
Pisa (PSA)

Nearest airport to Cinque Terre, about 73km away as the crow flies.
Then
To Monterosso al Mare

About an hour and a half from Pisa (PSA), taking the mainline train up the coast to La Spezia Centrale and changing onto the Cinque Terre local line.
On the ground
Getting around

The Cinque Terre Express links all five villages in a few minutes each, with boats in season and the clifftop footpaths in between. Cars are effectively barred from the village centres.

Public transport: Excellent: the local train runs all day and is how almost everyone moves between the villages.

Flights

Los Angeles Cinque Terre, Liguria, Italy

Flying from

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Roughly 12h 25m in the air from Los Angeles (LAX), estimated from the distance — check for a direct route. Pick a month to see every available flight with live prices.

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When to go

Daytime highs run from about 11°C in January to 27°C in August. Driest in July; wettest in December, with rain on about 16 days.

The year at a glance — pick a month for detail

January11° · rain 11 daysCold with rain most weeks.

Monthly figures averaged from daily records for 2020–2024 at this location (ERA5 reanalysis).

Where to stay

Small guesthouses, affittacamere rooms above shops and holiday apartments. There are a couple of hotels in Monterosso and essentially nothing else, no chains and no resorts.

Best base overall
Monterosso al Mare

The only village with a proper sandy beach and flat streets, so luggage and legs both survive. It is also the busiest and least vertical of the five, which purists grumble about.
Find stays in Monterosso al Mare
Best with children
Monterosso al Mare

Sun loungers, shallow water and a seafront promenade mean small children get a normal beach holiday. The other villages ask them to climb staircases in the heat instead.
Find stays in Monterosso al Mare
Best for couples
Manarola

Ranks of coloured houses above a rocky swimming inlet, with the Nessun Dorma terrace for aperitivo. Rooms are small and mostly reached by steps, and the day crowds only thin after six.
Find stays in Manarola
Best value
La Spezia

A working port ten minutes down the line, where a night costs a fraction of village prices and parking actually exists. You trade the postcard view for a proper town.
Find stays in La Spezia

Worth knowing before you book: Village rooms for May to September go months in advance, and most owners meet you at a set time because there are no reception desks and no car access.

Search everything else in Monterosso al Mare by budget. These are indicative budget bands in GBP per night for two people, not live quotes or guarantees of hotel type. Check your dates, guests, taxes and final price on Booking.com.

Or see everything in Monterosso al Mare

Good to know

Cards and passes: A regional card covers the paths and unlimited local trains, which is worth it if you plan to move between villages more than twice in a day.
Paths close: Sections of the coastal trail shut regularly after rain or rockfall, sometimes for years. Check what is open the day before rather than the month before.
Footwear: These are proper mountain paths with steps, loose stone and steep drops. Trainers or walking shoes only; sandals cause most of the injuries here.
Driving: Do not bring a car into the villages. Park at La Spezia or Levanto and use the train, which runs every twenty minutes or so.
Crowds: Cruise arrivals and day-trippers peak between eleven and four. Walk early, swim at lunchtime and have the villages to yourself in the evening.