As the name goes, Cinque Terre means “five lands”. You might think you HAVE to see all five towns to get the full experience of this coastal land, but I’m here to tell you, you don’t!
This is actually great news! Now you can make the decision for yourself to perhaps prioritize spending more time at a couple of the great towns.
What are the 5 Towns in Cinque Terre?
The five main land formations of Cinque Terre are home to a string of small, quaint coastal towns. The five towns that make up Cinque Terre are (northernmost) Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore (southernmost).
Do you have to see all 5 Towns of Cinque Terre?
My short answer – no! In fact I think you would benefit from skipping a couple!
I was surprised to learn that the general consensus of the other travelers was that they wanted to see all five towns in the one day we had to explore. This is possible – thanks to the hiking trails and the train – but do you really need to see all five??
If you’re only in town for one day, I would suggest you skip some of the towns and focus more on having meaningful experiences in the towns you do make stops at, or even better get in a hike or two.
Here are my extremely brief distillations of each of the five towns:
Monterosso al Mare
Pros: Best beach, largest town
Cons: Town isn’t that picturesque
Must-see? No
Vernazza
Pros: Most colorful town, plenty of seating by the water, good food/snack options
Cons: None
Must-see? Yes!
Corniglia
Pros: Quaint shops that are less touristy
Cons: Most difficult climb from the train station, hard to navigate, small, difficult to find water/views.
Must-see? No
Manarola
Pros: Most picturesque, best view access, best deep water swimming
Cons: None
Must-see? Yes!
Riomaggiore
Pros: Some hidden bars/restaurants
Cons: Quietest, least picturesque, and most difficult to navigate.
Must-see? Definitely not
How to Hike the 5 Villages of Cinque Terre
The Cinque Terre coastline features 48 hiking trails over 120 km. Sound overwhelming? Don’t worry. A simple way to start is hiking from town-to-town along the coast, from Riomaggiore to Monterosso (about a 6 hour hike one-way).
However, if you would like to hike Cinque Terre, you will have to have good shoes (it’s the law!!) and a bit of luck. Oftentimes sections of the trail will be closed due to washout.
But no fear! Just make sure to check cinqueterre.eu.com before you go, and then find a Cinque Terre tourist information point upon arrival to get the latest information about footpath conditions.
How to see all 5 Villages of Cinque Terre in One Day
It is possible to see all five villages in one day – I would just recommend you get an unlimited day pass for the train. Make sure you don’t get lost!!
Is it worth visiting Cinque Terre, Italy?
Absolutely! Cinque Terre is one of the most picturesque places I’ve ever been to. Make sure you bring your camera!
Honestly it was probably in my top 3 favorite destinations in Italy – and it lived up to it! If you’ve been in the cities for a good part of your Italy trip, having the chance to hike in lush green cliff sides and overlook the crystal blue sea is a chance you won’t want to miss!
I don’t in any way mean to “diss” any of these gorgeous towns! They’re all objectively so beautiful, however…I think Vernazza and Manarola are really the must-sees of this great region!
I know the first time I visited Cinque Terre I only had around 6 hours to explore, which was way too tight to really enjoy the towns while seeing all of them! I made the mistake of rushing to see all 5 and ended up disappointed.
What do you think? Do you know of more pros to some of these towns? Or even cons? If so, comment below and I’ll look into making another article about Cinque Terre 🙂
Want to learn more about my Italy trip? Check out these articles from The Monthly Migrant Blog:
