Best Things to Do in Cinque Terre (2026 Guide)

Cinque Terre is small enough to walk across in a day and distinctive enough to justify spending a week. The things to do in Cinque Terre are definitively coastal: hiking between the five villages on the Sentiero Azzurro (Blue Trail), swimming in the harbour coves of Monterosso and Vernazza, taking boat tours between the villages in summer, and eating pesto on focaccia in a harborside chair while watching fishing boats come in. The villages are each distinct: Monterosso is the largest and most beach-oriented; Vernazza has the most dramatic harbour; Corniglia sits on a cliff above the railway and has no harbour access; Manarola has the most-photographed evening reflection; Riomaggiore is the easiest entry point by train from La Spezia.

Best time to visit

April through June and September through October are the best months: the hiking trails are open and uncrowded, the sea is warm enough for swimming, and accommodation is available without booking a year ahead. July and August are the peak months: the villages reach maximum capacity with day-trippers, the hiking trails can feel like crowded corridors, and accommodation books out early. The Cinque Terre Card (required for trail access) is sold at the train stations. Winter (November-March) sees many restaurants and hotels close; the trails can be closed after storms. Spring wildflowers on the terraced hillsides in April-May are spectacular.

Getting around

The regional train between La Spezia, Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso runs every 30 minutes and is the most practical way to move between villages. Cinque Terre Express tickets cover all five villages. The Sentiero Azzurro hiking trail connects all five villages (12km total); the section between Vernazza and Monterosso is the most dramatic and most strenuous. In summer, passenger ferries run between all villages (no cars). The villages themselves are car-free; parking is at the periphery. A day pass for the Cinque Terre National Park (Cinque Terre Card) is required for trail access.

What to eat and drink

Cinque Terre’s food is Ligurian: pesto (made from Genovese basil, Ligurian olive oil, pine nuts, and Pecorino) is on every menu and genuinely excellent. Focaccia — thicker and more olive-oil-soaked than its name suggests — is bought at bakeries throughout the villages for 1-2 euros a slice. Fried anchovies (acciughe fritte) and stuffed anchovies with herbs are the local seafood staple; the anchovies from the Ligurian coast are prized throughout Italy. Sciacchetra, a local dessert wine made from partially-dried grapes on Cinque Terre’s steep terraces, is the most distinctive regional drink. For the best pesto tasting, Vernazza’s harborfront restaurants are more consistent than the tourist-facing trattorie of Riomaggiore.

Neighborhoods to explore

Vernazza — The most photographed of the five villages: a natural harbour enclosed by a promontory with a Genoese watchtower, the finest restaurants of the five villages, and the best swimming cove (the harbour beach, accessible by steps from the main piazza).

Monterosso al Mare — The largest village and the only one with a real sandy beach: beach clubs with umbrellas and sun loungers, and the most tourist infrastructure of all five villages.

Manarola — The village most photographed from the Via dell’Amore above: colourful fishing houses reflected in the harbour, the easiest swimming access in the entire Cinque Terre, and the best introductory walk to Riomaggiore (15 minutes).

Riomaggiore — The southern gateway: the train station from La Spezia, the most bars and restaurants relative to its size, and the most manageable village for families with pushchairs (elevators from the station).

Corniglia — The only village without sea access (it sits 100 metres above the water on a headland): 382 steps up from the station (or a shuttle bus), a village piazza, and arguably the most authentic daily life of the five.

Portovenere (nearby) — The sixth Cinque Terre village that UNESCO included but most visitors skip: a walled medieval town at the entrance to the Gulf of La Spezia, with Byron’s Cave and the Church of St. Peter on the clifftop.