Best itinerary for Cinque Terre with a toddler?
Apr 14th, 2011, 04:41 PM
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Best itinerary for Cinque Terre with a toddler?
We will be stopping in La Spezia during our cruise this summer and have just decided to spend the day in Cinque Terre instead of taking our 21 month old on the 4 hour r/t drive to Florence. Since we won't be able to hike from village to village, I am wondering whether it makes more sense to just pick one village to stay in for the day (and if so, which one?) or if I should make a rough itinerary to visit more than one village (and if so, which ones and what is the best way to get from one to the other- boat or train?). Any advice would be appreciated!
Apr 14th, 2011, 07:01 PM
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If you want to go to Portovenere, fine -- but it would silly to take a bus or taxi to Portovenere to catch a ferry to le Cinque Terre, since you can catch a ferry to le Cinque Terre from La Spezia. (You can also catch one to Portovenere from La Spezia).
You have no guarantee any tourist boats will be running the day your cruise ship arrives, but you can take a train to le Cinque Terre more easily than a bus to Portovenere.
Personally, I think you should pick one of the le Cinque Terre towns and see how you and your daughter handle the steepness and the crowds and the heat -- and if you find yourselves wilting, take the train to either Levanto (5 minutes away) or Sestri Levante (30 minutes away) where you will find lovely flat sandy beaches and long promenades lined with cafes. Pack your swimsuits, stroll the towns, eat gelato and hang out in the shade of the cafe. Also have some euro-change in your pocket for the dozens of small and silly kiddie rides along the beachfront, and the cheap fun toys for sale at tiny shops. In other words, just enjoy the Riviera as the locals do.
You have no guarantee any tourist boats will be running the day your cruise ship arrives, but you can take a train to le Cinque Terre more easily than a bus to Portovenere.
Personally, I think you should pick one of the le Cinque Terre towns and see how you and your daughter handle the steepness and the crowds and the heat -- and if you find yourselves wilting, take the train to either Levanto (5 minutes away) or Sestri Levante (30 minutes away) where you will find lovely flat sandy beaches and long promenades lined with cafes. Pack your swimsuits, stroll the towns, eat gelato and hang out in the shade of the cafe. Also have some euro-change in your pocket for the dozens of small and silly kiddie rides along the beachfront, and the cheap fun toys for sale at tiny shops. In other words, just enjoy the Riviera as the locals do.
Apr 15th, 2011, 03:59 AM
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My wife and I were there for a few days last May with out then 15 month old. I have a backpack I put her in that makes getting around easy (though she is 2 now and starting to get heavy). We used it extensively while there. That said, while the walk between some of the CT towns are more difficult, the trip between Riomaggiore and Manarola is flat, paved and really beautiful. Yes it is more heavily travelled, but for a trip of a few hours I think you'd enjoy yourself between those two towns. Time and weather permitting you could also take a ferry or train to one of the other towns. Monterosso is the biggest, with an old and new part both of whcih have beaches you can swim from. Vernazza, in my opinion, has the most scenic waterfront.
Apr 16th, 2011, 04:50 AM
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Thanks for all of the advice!
Zeppole: I love your idea to go to Levanto or Sestri Levante if CT gets to be too much for us. Do the trains to those towns run frequently (and do they run from all of the towns in Cinque Terre)? If not, I'd prefer to base ourselves in one of the 5 towns that we know we can catch a train to Levanto or Sestri Levante from. Would it be easy for us to figure out the train schedule (neither of us speak Italian)? Is Sestri Levante worth the extra travel time (instead of Levanto)?
Uflecku: Do you remember any of the things that you did in those two towns that kept your daughter particularly entertained or that she really enjoyed?
Zeppole: I love your idea to go to Levanto or Sestri Levante if CT gets to be too much for us. Do the trains to those towns run frequently (and do they run from all of the towns in Cinque Terre)? If not, I'd prefer to base ourselves in one of the 5 towns that we know we can catch a train to Levanto or Sestri Levante from. Would it be easy for us to figure out the train schedule (neither of us speak Italian)? Is Sestri Levante worth the extra travel time (instead of Levanto)?
Uflecku: Do you remember any of the things that you did in those two towns that kept your daughter particularly entertained or that she really enjoyed?
