By Boat

By Boat

With so much coastline—350 km (217 mi)—and so many pretty little harbors, Liguria is a great place to get around by boat. A busy network of local ferry lines, such as Servizio Marittimo del Tigullio (Via Palestro 8/1b, Santa Margherita Ligure. 0185/284670. www.traghettiportofino.it) and Alimar (Calata Zingari, Molo, Genoa. 010/256775) , connects many of the resorts. Golfo Paradiso (Via Scalo 3, Camogli. 0185/772091. www.golfoparadiso.it) lines run between Camogli, San Fruttuoso (on the Portofino promontory), and Recco, and in summer from the port of Genoa and Nervi to Portofino, the Cinque Terre, and Portovenere, stopping in Recco and Camogli. Navigazione Golfo dei Poeti (Viale Mazzini 21, La Spezia. 0187/732987. www.navigazionegolfodeipoeti.it) runs regular ferry services between Lerici, Portovenere, the Cinque Terre, Santa Margherita, and Genoa.

But you can have as much fun (or more) negotiating a price with a boat owner at one of the smaller ports such as Camogli, Portovenere, and Lerici. You're likely to deal with someone who has a rudimentary command of English at best, but that's all you need to discuss price, time, and destination. For smaller groups (8 or less) interested in seeing the Cinque Terre by sea, local fisherman Angelo Benvenuto (Monterosso. 333/3182967) offers a variety of boating excursions. A private half day costs approximately EUR 240.