Liguria: Cinque Terre

The "5 lands" or the Cinque Terre is made up of Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore. It is called the Cinque Terre because the mountainous terrain has isolated these towns from the rest of the world and often from each other forever…...the farmers here grow olives, lemons and grapes in this sunny, mountainous area. As a matter of fact you can see that trees are planted strategically in the vineyards to offer shade from the baking sun when the contadini (farmers) are working. The Cinque Terre has some very good wines — make sure you enjoy some while you’re here. One of the local sweet wines is called Sciacchetra (it is made with raisins). From the lemons grown here you get limoncella, a lemon flavored and colored liqueur — tastes great on the rocks (known more on the Amalfi Coast, but you’ll find it here too!). The largest village on the Cinque Terre is Monterosso. This town has the most hotels and trattorias. Don’t let that deter you from staying in or visiting the other towns — they’re all great! The hikes between the villages vary in length from about 30 minutes to 3 hours (or more). I usually suggest that you hike to Vernazza (a beautiful village) from Monterosso — this is the 2 hour hike. It’s challenging, but beautiful (bring water). You can take a train between the villages and I think this is one way to see them all….but you can train to Vernazza, have a nice lunch and then hike back or even take a boat/ferry back to Monterosso (check the schedules). From Vernazza to Corniglia the hike is about 2 hours but a bit more grueling (especially because of the stairs up to the town — it’s in the hills on the cliffs). From Corniglia you go to Manarola and that hike is about an hour. The shortest hike is from Manarolo to Riomaggiore (about 30 minutes). It’s called Via dell’Amore (Lover’s Lane). Again, you can train in between or ferry in between — do as much or as little as you like. I especially like the views from the ferry — you really get to see the hills, mountains and rugged coastline you’ve just hiked (and the photo ops are terrific). I would suggest stopping in at the churches, bell towers, convents and monasteries in the area — they offer great views in to the type of people who have lived and thrived in these villages for centuries.