THE CINQUE TERRE – INFO AND REFERENCES

Useful Information (based on our trip) if you’re visiting the Cinque Terre

Travel

We took a night train from Munich Hbf and changed at Bologna in the middle of the night. These tickets were bought in advance and we reserved the sleeping compartment (6 beds).Another change at Parma then took us to Monterosso al Mare. From Bologna we purchased tickets with cash from the machines at the station. We did the same thing on return. Italian trains are not as reliable as German trains and it’s a good idea to double check everything (and allow time for this) well in advance.

The 5 towns are

Monterosso al Mare
Vernazza
Corniglia
Manarola
Riomaggiore

The nearest ‘big’ town is Parma and further down the coast, La Spezia.

Three Good Blogs

This is the best all rounder I found – it includes information on the trails and hotels

http://www.cinqueterrehotels.com/en/index.php

This is useful for historical information on the different towns

http://wheretogowhattosee.com/italy/cinqueTerre/monterossoAlMare.php

And good old Rick Steve. I like this guy even if some members of our party did not!

https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/italy/cinque-terre

Accommodation

Can’t beat booking.com although see above

https://www.booking.com/region/it/lecinqueterre.en.html?aid=318615;label=New_English_EN_DE_21457878145-SA1LsJ8qRtrAwSSewwWaMQS99511065505:pl:ta:p1:p2:ac:ap1t1:neg:fi:tiaud-146342138710:dsa-64415538385:lp9042500:li:dec:dm;ws=&gclid=Cj0KEQjwo-XIBRCOycL7hsuI_NoBEiQAuS6HtA5ljiuIvQp_oYYclg541wB5aqnMezkR8rU3fxQzYewaAlOy8P8HAQ

Where we stayed:

Hotel Margherita 3 *

http://www.hotelmonterosso.it

Places of Interest

Chiesa di St Giovannni Battista (Monterosso church)

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g187820-d5213709-Reviews-Chiesa_di_San_Giovanni_Battista-Monterosso_al_Mare_Cinque_Terre_Italian_Riviera_L.html#photos;geo=187820&detail=5213709&ff=242139074&albumViewMode=hero&aggregationId=&albumid=103&baseMediaId=242139074&thumbnailMinWidth=50&cnt=30&offset=-1&filter=7

Chiesa di Giovannni Battista (Romaggiore church)

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g187821-d6352837-Reviews-Church_of_San_Giovanni_Battista-Riomaggiore_Cinque_Terre_Italian_Riviera_Liguria.html

Posh hotel – unfortunately I couldn’t find any information at all on the posh hotel. Basically you head for the beach at Monterosso and you can’t miss some steps leading up to the cliff above. The hotel is built into the rock, James Bond style……I WILL find it……