Overnight in Milan, and a three hour train ride later we arrived in Cinque Terre, a unique group of towns that are perched on the cliffs of the Mediterranean Sea. Trains easily connect the towns to each other and to major cities such as Genova in the north and Livorno in the south. I heard about Cinque Terre from a friend who raved about the place, so I thought we should check it out, too. There are five towns, thus the name ‘cinque’, that are nestled into the mountainous terrain each with it’s own stunning beauty. We stayed two days in Manarola at a cute B&B, and two days in Vernazza, but we explored all 5 of the towns. The towns were formerly farming and fishing towns, but have long since been catering to the American tourist.
Aside from the quaint towns, Cinque Terre boasts a national park that has many hiking trails, and mountain bike trails. On two separate days we hiked 4km; hiking between Monterosso al Mare to Vernazza on the first hike, and Vernazza to Corniglia the next day. In addition, we spent an afternoon lounging on the beach in Monterossa al Mare.
Even with the mobs of tourists, this is definitely a vacation spot to visit. And, yes, I know, it’s the pot calling the kettle black. And the food is definitely worth the carbs! Italy is quickly becoming my favorite country.