On this post I will highlight the best things we did when we visited the Cinque Terre villages of Vernazza, Corniglia and Manarola as well as the Sentiero Azzuro trail linking Monterosso to Vernazza.
After a brilliant previous day exploring Riomaggiore, we woke up early at “Affittacamere Le Giare” looking forward to the day. As they don’t serve breakfast at this guest house, we popped out for breakfast at one of the cafés down at Via Colombo.
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After breakfast we were ready to start the adventures of the day. We went to the train station and took the train to Monterosso, the last of the Cinque Terre villages from La Spezia.
We always book train tickets with Omio as they are a very easy to use and reliable platform. You can also book buses, flights and ferries with them. To book you tickets use this link.
We were travelling independently as we are confident travellers and speak a bit of the language. However, if you prefer to be part of a tour and to have everything organised for you, I advise you to book a complete tour with Tourradar.
They have different kinds of tours that will fit your time and budget. If you book it via my links you can get a discount by using this code: RoseG50.
Below is a map showing the places we went to on our Day 2 in the Cinque Terre:
SENTIERO AZZURO
On that day we wanted to walk the Sentiero Azzuro (Blue Trail) from Monterosso to Vernazza. We didn’t visit Monterosso at that time, we just walked from the train station and looked for the start of the trail that is alongside the beach at the end of Via Corone where the Hotel Porto Roca is located.
The start of the trail is very challenging in the first half mile ascending about 500 feet in a stone walkway. It starts levelling up after that and we pass through verdant vineyards and incredible views from the sea and mountains.
Once we spotted Vernazza, the trail started descending, and more sweeping views appeared in front of us.
The distance to Vernazza is 3.7 Km (2.3 miles) and it took us 2 hours to get there. Although the first part was difficult, it was very enjoyable and manageable. The trail takes you directly into the village via the narrow streets and soon you are in the heart of Vernazza.
VERNAZZA
After we arrived, we just wanted to sit down somewhere and drink a couple of beers to compensate for the hot hiking. We also bought a seafood cone that is very typical in the area. It was filled with freshly fried seafood including, fish, calamari, prawns etc. It was perfect at that time of the day.
Vernazza is another gorgeous village with its colourful houses and its small beach and harbour.
There is an 11th century castle to visit in Vernazza, assessed by a steep staircase by the harbour. We were too tired to go up there so didn’t go, but heard that it is an interesting thing to do specially if you are staying longer in Vernazza.
In the harbour area you can also visit the Santa Marguerita d’Antiochia Church that dates from the 14th century but received many restorations. Today it is in a Romanesque style from the last restoration done between 1964 and 1970.
There is a tiny stone chapel on the main street, on Via Roma that looks very cute and deserves a good look too. It is the Chapel of Santa Marta.
We wondered around the old town and sat on a bench in front of the beach admiring the picturesque buildings, people watching and eating our fish cones.
The initial plan was to continue the trail from Vernazza to Corniglia, but after the previous trail, we gave up.
After exploring the old town, we decided to press on and take the train to Corniglia, the next village.
CORNIGLIA
The trail from Vernazza to Corniglia is supposed to be another lovely scenic route. It is 3.5 Km (2.1 miles) and another 2 hours of ascending climbing. We just took the train and that was a good move, because when we arrived at Corniglia station we realised that we needed to climb a long set of stairs to get to the village at the top of the mountain.
Even though we were quite tired we still managed to climb all the stairs and visit the village. It is another lovely village that can only be assessed from land.
Corniglia being the smallest of the villages can be explored quite quickly. We strolled around the narrow streets and admired the beautiful views of the sea while sitting and enjoying another beer.
There is a trail linking Corniglia to Manarola which is 2.7 Km (1.7 miles). Apparently, it is the easiest of the trails, but we were not going to face another one, at least not on that day! Again, after we were happy that we’d seen everything at Corniglia, we went down the stairs back to the train station.
We arrived at the station and as soon as we arrived, the trains stopped running. There was an accident at La Spezia and the tracks were closed because a man had jumped in front of a train.
The station started filling up with people until it was completely crowded. We waited at least 1 hour until the trains started running again. When the train finally arrived, we were compacted inside like in a tin of sardines, but luckily, we just needed to go one station to Manarola.
MANAROLA
Some people think that Manarola is the most beautiful of the 5 villages. It is beautiful and picturesque like the other ones in our opinion. It is very difficult to pick one as the most beautiful because all of them really are. We explored the old town with its little shops and harbour and soon it was time to go to our reservation for the evening.
TIP: While we were in Corniglia I booked a table at Nessun Dorma, in Manarola, a famous restaurant on a cliff facing the village. I booked the table via their application and strategically chose a time that we could watch the sunset from there.
Nessun Dorma only serves different types of bruschetta and some cold meats as well as drinks. It was bliz and perfect for such a hot day.
We had a lovely evening there enjoying delicious food and drinks and watching the most amazing sunset on the village and on the Mediterranean Sea. That will be in my memory forever.
You can have a private trekking tour with an experienced local guide that will take you from Riomaggiore to Manarola. with stops for visiting. You will get the train to visit the other villages and the return to Riomaggiore is by ferry completing the tour that will last the whole day. Book this tour HERE.
You can also visit the 5 villages by taking a boat tour with a stop for swimming. They will take you to the 5 villages via the sea. You can book this tour HERE.
At the end of the evening, we took the train to Riomaggiore for our last night at “Affittacamere Le Giare”. We would still have another day in the Cinque Terre visiting Monterosso al Mare but would move on and stay at La Spezia from that night.
I hope this post will give you some idea of what can be done in the Cinque Terre in one day and will help you plan your own visit there.
HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR TRIP
Below you will find a list of what to visit, where to stay and where to eat in Vernazza, Corniglia and Manarola. I classified each place as follows:
BOLD – Visited, tried and recommended
NOT BOLD – Not visited or tried, but planning to visit or try and heard very good reviews
RED – Visited and tried but do not recommend, avoid or be cautious
*** – Excellent
** – Good
* – OK
£££ – Expensive
££ – Fair and affordable
£ – Cheap
WHAT TO SEE
ATTRACTIONS
1 – Sentiero Azzuro– ***
2 – Vernazza Old Town – ***
3 – Vernazza beach – ***
4 – Santa Marta Chapel , in Vernazza– ***
5 – Harbour viewpoint in Vernazza – ***
6 – Doria Castle – Vernazza
7 – Santa Marguerita D’Antiochia Church – Vernazza
8 – Corniglia Old Town – ***
9 – Corniglia Viewpoints– ***
10 – Manarola Old Town and harbour – ***
11 – Manarola Viewpoint – ***
WHERE TO STAY
1 – MADA Charm Apartments Piazza – 4* – £££ – Vernazza
2 – Casa Catò – 3* – £££ – Vernazza
3 – Affittacamere Arbasia De Ma – 4* – £££ – Corniglia
4 – Amare Il Mare – 3* – £££ – Corniglia
5 – Affittacamere San Giorgio – 3* – £££ – Manarola
6 – Hotel Marina Picola – 3* – £££ – Manarola
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WHERE TO EAT
1 – Ristorante Luca Vernazza – £££ – Vernazza
2 – Ristorante Belforte – £££ – Vernazza
3 – La Posada Ristorante – £££ – Corniglia
4 – Osteria La Cantina de Mananan – ££ – Corniglia
5 – Nessun Dorma – ££ – Manarola (We ate here)
6 – Trattoria dal Billy – ££ – Manarola
If you tried any of my recommendations above, please send me a message and tell me about your experience good or bad, so I can update the list accordingly. Thanks!
If you enjoyed reading this post you might also like to read:
On this trip to Italy:
1 – Pisa
2 – Lucca
3 – Florence – Day 1
4 – Florence – Day 2
5 – Siena
6 – Riomaggiore – Cinque Terre
7 – Sentiero Azzuro, Vernassa, Coniglia & Manarola – Cinque Terre
8 – Monterosso al Mare – Cinque Terre
9 – Portofino
10 – La Spezia
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