Cinque Terre
 

We'll be heading to Italy this spring and using Florence as our base for a couple of weeks. While there we plan on going to Cinque Terre and would appreciate any hotel recommendations in Cinque Terre. We'd also like your thoughts on how many nights we may need to get a good feel of the place. (We were thinking two.) Thanks

We stayed here and loved it. Hotel Porto Roca : Official website - book here : Monterosso al mare - Cinque Terre - Italy We did the half board. the food was excellent. We walked the trail starting at the opposite end from Monterosso. I would advise starting right out the the hotel in Monterosso, as it goes hardest to easiest. We did easiest to hardest and were exhausted. Of course, you can visit each village by train or by ferry.

The hotel is on a cliff overlooking the sea. I understand that now Italy is limiting the number of tourists to Cinque Terre to reduce damage. You must apply for a permit.

When we went a number of the paths were closed after heavy rains had washed parts away, so best check the website as they are fun to walk.

Also... you can get off the Roman road at any of the towns. Corniglia, in the middle has 370+ steps to get up to from the path, but the others are pretty much a straight shot.


So you could do part of the path and take a train or ferry to the rest of them. The easiest part of the path is at Riomaggiore, the farthest town from Monterosso.

We did Cinque Terre three years ago. Paths were closed due to rain. Each town is unique. The sights are beautiful. If you are into walking and have the time, I would recommend more than two days. Basically, the only transport is by train.(Boat yes but not for two days) If you are limited in time to two days, you will be seeing more trains and ferrys than towns.


Speaking of trains in Italy. We trained from Rome to Orvieto, Firenze, Lucca, Cinque Terre and then Milan. In hindsight , several funny experiences due to our lack of knowledge. In Rome, we did a dry run from our lodging to the central train station using subway. Piece of cake getting there and checking out ticketing process to Orvieto and train location for departure. Next day not so easy with luggage and steps and escalators not working. Also, one simple mistake after getting our ticket (About 5 Euros each). We did not know about the validation required before entering train. The conductor reminded us with a $25 Euro fine per ticket. It started out at $50 Euro each but we "negotiated " it down. Next trip, we thought we knew all but got on the train to Firenze with validated tickets for sure, but the train was about 10 minutes early. Checked with conductors and found that we were on the express train. Had to get off at next stop prior to Conductor ticket check and wait for our non express train to come by. Also found that some tickets expire a set time after purchase (Especially Rome Subway).

Lessons learned - Know when to use local transport, Validate, Verify right train, Don't let ticket expire, have fun!

Also, speaking of Florence... we took a bus from our vacation apartment to a restaurant recommended to us. That was fine. We came out of the restaurant and were waiting for the bus to go back home, when a native told us the bus quit running at 7:00 pm (1900 hours). Huh. We walked to a hotel and asked them to call us a taxi.

and don't cross the binari :-)

Italian railways usually make announcements in Italian and English, and many of the staff (in major towns, anyway) speak good English, so don't be shy to ask for help.

Thanks everyone - your experience and suggestions are very much appreciated.