Cinque Terre

Old Jul 25th, 2015, 10:33 AM
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Cinque Terre

We have a 19 day trip scheduled leaving California on September 23. We are landing in Genoa, renting a car and heading to Corsica by ferry from Livorno. We are planning on visiting the Cinque Terre area either on the way to or the way from Corsica.

We are in our early 70's but do not do stairs or hills. We realize that the towns in Cinque Terre are not on flat ground. We have looked at taking the train but it looks like the train stations are all near sea level so it is a vertical hike to the towns. Is there transportation from the train stations up to the towns? Or would it be better to take a bus between the towns?

Also how many of the towns is it realistic to visit in a 6 hour time frame?

Any other suggestions on visiting Cinque Terre will be appreciated.
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Old Jul 25th, 2015, 11:17 AM
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Park in Monterrosso and I'd hit just Manarola and Vernazza by train. They are the prettiest ones IMO. No need for big walk up hills to town.
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Old Jul 25th, 2015, 12:56 PM
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No buses between towns. Only trains and boats.

This is way I would do your trip:

Land in Genova, get a taxi to either Santa Margherita Ligure or Rapallo (both utterly flat). Stay there for the night. From there, you have two options:

A) Go by train to Riomaggiore on a sunny, not-windy day and take a boat from Riomaggiore to Monterosso al Mare, so you can see the towns from the water, and then take a train back to Rapallo. Rent a car in Rapallo (Europcar/AutoEurope) and continue on to Livorno

or

B) Rent a car in Rapallo and park in Montrosso al Mare. Take a boat to Riomaggiore or La Spezia so you can see all the town and coast.. Then take a train back to Monterosso al Mare to retreive your car.

One of the virtues of staying in these other towns Rapallo is that if it rains and you don't want to go to le Cinque Terre you can find other things to do, like visit Chiavari, Nervi or even Genoa, or Portofino (which is also totally flat).
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Old Jul 25th, 2015, 01:04 PM
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Sorry for not being clear: there is a car rental office in Rapallo, but the town immeidately next to Rapallo -- 3 minutes away -- is Santa Margherita Ligure -- which is also a nice, flat town for an overnight or longer. So you can pick either town as a "base" for visiting le Cinque Terre, either by car or train. When you pick up the car rental is up to you, although the Rapallo office is closed Saturday afternoons and all day Sunday.

A taxi ride from Genova airport to either town will set you back about 80 euros. However, that will be offset by not having a car rental that day, and it might make for a less stressful arrival to take a taxi to your hotel.

By the way: Have you checked to make sure any car you rent in Italy is OK to take on a ferry to Corsica? Sometimes car rental companies suspend your insurance for the ferry ride, or forbid it. Double check. If you encounter those kind of difficulties, you don't need a car to do anything you want to do in Italy -- you can take trains and boats -- so you could wait until you actually get to Corsica to rent the car.
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Old Jul 25th, 2015, 03:36 PM
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donw
Thanks for relating your suggestion of Manarola and Vernazza.

sandralist
Thanks for suggesting renting in Rapallo. Europcar does have automatic cars. The rate returning to Rapallo is less than renting in the airport. However returning at the airport increased the rate by $68.

The one way boat trip at Cinque Terre has been added to our itinerary. Portofino has been on our agenda since we started planning this trip.

I had checked with Europcar and was told I could take it on the Ferry. When I checked today I was told we could not take the car on the ferry. So it paid to "double check". Need to do some more research and planning.
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Old Jul 25th, 2015, 03:59 PM
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You really don't need a car on the Italian Riviera -- in fact, it is rather an expensive nuisance, since paying to park it is a fortune, and none of the towns are "car-friendly." There are several trains a day leaving Rapallo for Livorno (or vice versa) that do not require changing trains at any point. If you can handle carrying your luggage inside train stations (which do have stairs), you may not need to rent a car until you get to Corsica. And you don't need one on the way back. Although paying for taxi rides from or to the airport sounds extravagant, the less-stress of it is worth the cost when there are 2 of you

You can get to Portofino and le Cinque Terre using public transportation, and I believe the boats to Portofino from Rapallo or Santa Margherita Ligure are still running until October, and while the tiny touristy town of Portofino can be a bit annoying (EVERYTHING is overpriced!), arriving or leaving the beautiful harbor by boat is a lovely thing to do. There are also buses you can take, which travel the short but pretty coastal road.

Just do NOT eat in Portofino. Go in the late afternoon to have a cocktail/gelato, or go first thing in the day for a morning coffee.
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Old Jul 25th, 2015, 04:04 PM
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One more tip: If it turns out you are picking up an automatic car in Rapallo, call the Rapallo office or call Europcar main office 48 hours ahead of time to confirm the automatic will be there for you, per your reservation. That gives them enough time to rustle one up if they don't have one right there. It's a very small office.
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Old Jul 25th, 2015, 08:14 PM
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My recollection is that the walk from the train into Manarola was rather steeply uphill. I could be wrong.
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Old Jul 26th, 2015, 07:13 PM
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Hi sandralist,

Thanks for both of your posts. We have not made a decision on the car rental yet. I did find the Budget allows the car on the ferry to Corsica. Where ever we rent a car I will confirm with the renting station a few days in advance to make sure the automatic is available.

Europcar first said that cars are not allowed on ferries. Then they said the car could be taken to England and Ireland. So I asked how can I take a car to Ireland and not use a ferry. The answer then came back that a person could not take a car to any of the Mediterranean.

Regarding Portofino you confirmed what I had figured out. It is a high priced tourist town. Spend your money some place else.
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Old Jul 26th, 2015, 07:39 PM
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Hi kja,

Thanks for the comment on Manarola. I think the train station is on the south side of a mountain and you walk through a tunnel to get to the main part of town. (I think Google Maps had the train station mislabeled.) Checking Goggle Earth it looks like most of the town is reachable without to much uphill.
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Old Jul 26th, 2015, 08:20 PM
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All I can tell you is that it was the first time in my life that I was glad to have help getting my wheeled suitcase up that hill. And I was still rather young and VERY fit at the time. But my lodging was high up, so maybe you wouldn't need or want to go as far. ;-)
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Old Jul 27th, 2015, 01:03 AM
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It has been a few years since I was briefly in Manarola, but my recollection is that most of it is steeply uphill. There are people who live in le Cinque Terre who post on the Tripadvisor forum for le Cinque Terre, and you might want to ask them for specifics.

Your description of Portofino is precisely correct, although it is very pretty. Be aware that while le Cinque Terre is not devoted to luxury tourism, the villages are nonetheless very crowded with foreign tourists. If you enjoy visiting places with only a minimal foreign tourist presence, then make a point of visiting utterly flat Chiavari. It is best at the cocktail hour and, if you go, be aware that the most interesting part of town is a 10 minute walk inland. The seaside areas are quite boring. So get off the train and walk directly toward the hills to find a very atmospheric town with delicious food. (Luchin is historic and cheap.)

The only car rental office in Rapallo is Europcar. I do not know where Budget has offices. If you have rented a car at the Genova airport and would prefer to stay closer to le Cinque Terre, then consider the town of Levanto, which is also a flat town. The excursion boats to le Cinque Terre also make a stop in Levanto, so that might work for you, since staying in Rapallo/Santa Margherita Ligure only makes sense if you are picking up a car there or visiting Portofino.
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Old Jul 28th, 2015, 10:22 AM
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Hi sandralist,
Thanks for the additional information. The only Budget office in this area is at the Genoa Airport.

Right now I booked an apartment in Rapallo for first 3 nights. I have added Chiavari to my list of places to consider. I also had Levanto on the list.

Thanks for the tip on Tripadvisor. I will hit that forum.
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Old Jul 28th, 2015, 12:19 PM
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For an apartment in Rapallo you really are spolied for choice when it comes to getting prepared food in the shops to assemble a great no-cook dinner. There are several good places with rotisserie chicken (I can supply addresses). There is also a fresh pasta shop that is absolutely outstanding for local ravioli or string pasta, and you can get the great local pasta sauces to go with it (basil pesto or walnut pesto or tomato-ey seafood). There are 2 excellent wine shops, a good bakery, a terrific cheese & salumi seller, an old-fashioned private coffee roaster and one of the best gelateria in Italy. Also two organic food stores. Just an altogether fun place to be and shop.
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Old Jul 29th, 2015, 05:06 AM
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Sandralist, Not to hijack the OP, but we will be staying in an apartment in Rapallo for 4 days in September, partly on your recommendation from months ago. I'd love to have the names/addresses of the prepared food shops you mentioned in your last post. I like to cook on vacation, but if we are weary from our day it's really nice to have something that just needs to be put on a plate! Thank you so much.
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Old Jul 29th, 2015, 05:54 AM
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Happy to do it. They are all in the historic center:

For pasta fresca, be sure to go to Dasso in the piazza Venezia. They have some of the most exquisite pansotti alla salsa di noce on the coast. You will have to boil water (ask them how long to cook whatever pasta you buy) but that's it.

Pretty much next door to Dasso is the local coffee roaster. Wonderful coffee plus no end of regional cookies like amaretti, canestrelli, etc and Italian brand chocolate.

For baked goods, head to Tossini on the via Roma (nearer to the train/bus). In the afternoons around 5pm they have both fresh farinata and foccacia col formaggio.

Also near Tossini (on the parking lot side, not the street side) is a huge frozen fish store. Not recommending you buy frozen fish, but I beleive they also sell locally salted anchovies. If not, don't buy other stuff, but ask around until you find some from one of the local cooperatives.

For cheese and sliced meats and gourmet delicacies, Parla come Mangi (they might have anchovies)

http://www.parlacomemangi.com

For roasted meats, I like the "forno a legno" (wood burring) joint that is a little bit tricky to find. Walk from the piazza Venezia toward the sea along an alleyway called 7, Vicolo Liceti. Another really excellent rosticerria is Macelleria Gianello Di Gianello Gian Franco in via Giuseppe Mazzini, 6.

The fab gelateria is Frigidarium, especially for their seasonal fruit gelati (try melon in September). It is directly oppoiste the short castle on the waterfront. They will also pack gelato to-go.

My favorite place to buy wine is Cantina du Pusu in the via Venezia 113,
http://www.cantinadupusu.com

but also great for a sit-down aperitivo or even a quick stand-up coffee is Enoteca Cantina d'Italia (you can't miss it on the via Mazzini, 59)

http://www.cantineditalia.com/home.htm

Those are my regular faves but there are a lot more shops I haven't tried, especially shops where you can by grilled vegetable, grain salads, local specialties like cima alls genovese or nervetti (I won't spoil the surprise).

Wish I could also offer you a restaurant recommendation, but I have never eaten dinner in Rapallo! It would just be too inconvenient to get back home after. Be aware of one quirky thing about Rapallo: It has its own style of basil pesto that mixes in a bit of local curd cheese, to produce a paler green pesto with a milkier taste. I much, much, much prefer the classic genovese pesto, so ask your apartment landlord for a source. (You might find it a Dasso. It should be intensely green and fine grained.)
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Old Jul 29th, 2015, 06:33 AM
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Sandralist, thank you. I can definitely deal with boiling water, no matter how tired I am! With a list like this I may not do any "real" cooking at all. Grazie Mille.
Cindy P
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Old Jul 29th, 2015, 02:48 PM
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HI sandralist and Cpelk,

The recommendations of the prepared food are appreciated. Thanks Cindy for asking the question.
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Old Jul 29th, 2015, 04:06 PM
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I went to Corsica and Sardinia by plane, from Nice and Rome respectively. I had to search a bit to find an automatic car in Corsica but didn't have problems finding one in Cagliari.

IIRC, the ferry took the better part of a day.

You can get down the Ligurian coast from Genova by train, through you'll have to transfer to the train station from the airport. Of course that would require lifting luggage on the train.

My second trip to Cinque Terre this past June, the trains were already packed. But the National Park office does offer some bus service in the towns, particularly in Corniglia, which has all the steps you have to walk up, unless you take the bus.

The buses are 2 Euro per ride if you buy the ticket on board or free with the Cinque Terre card. Not worth getting the CT card unless you plan to hike a lot.

Some of the most beautiful views in CT are from the villages above the CT villages, such as Volastra or one of the Sanctuaries. Alternatively, you can walk about half a mile west of the Monterosso train station and then look back to the SE to see all the other villages on a clear day.

Portofino is beautiful but the best views do require climbing upwards, such as the Castello Brown (€5 admission) or the Chiesa San Giorgio. The Chiesa doesn't require as much walk uphill as the Castello Brown but the time I went, there was a wedding and the elderly guests were being ported uphill on those little 3-wheeled trucks.

Portovenere is the furthest from Genoa but to my eyes, as pretty as Portofino or any sight in Corsica. You can actually take the ferry from Monterosso by 10-11 AM for €26-28, arrive in Portovenere around Noon and then take the 45 minute boat tour around Palmaria island which is included in the fare to Portovenere and then walk around Portovenere a little. The jaunt from the Portovenere port to Chiesa San Pietro, which is at the tip, isn't too steep or arduous to reach. There is a fort overlooking the town that requires a bit of climb but even that doesn't take a lot of effort. But it could be skipped too.
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 10:08 AM
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scrb11
Thanks for your reply. We know we can make the trip to Livorno without a car but our type of traveling is hitting some spots along the way for photographs.

I was able to find Volastra on the map. But what are you referring to by "one of the Sanctuaries"?

Is the walk in Monterosso to the small boat harbor or further? Thanks for the info on Portofino.

We have looked at the ferry trip to Portovenere. But you input was the first we have seen about the tour around Palmaria Island. We have now added that to the list of things we might do.
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