Best town to stay in for Cinque Terra
 

We are going to Italy in September and want to spend 2 or 3 days on the Ligurian coast in or near the Cinque Terra. I know this question will bring many different answers, but what is the best place to stay to have quick/easy access to the coast from Genoa to the CT? We will have a rental car.

Thank you all in advance.

If you want easy access to the Cinque Terre towns, you need to plan to take the train. One spot I like that is only a short distance away from the CT, and right on the rail line, is Lavagna, just north of the CT on the coast. The Hotel Valentino, with a view over the Med, is a nice family-operated hotel, and the owners speak good English.

thank you Wayne

Hi we stayed in Moneglia just north of CT about a 15 min train ride but very convenient. We stayed at hotel edera which was 2 blocks from the train station. We had a car but it is more convenient to park it and take the train.

ttt

We drove to the CT in October and stayed at I Limone http://www.limonicamere.it/
in Riomaggiore. There is parking available for 10 euros/ night if you ask to have a spot reserved. Nice rooms. YO
You are on your own for breakfast but the rooms have a small refrigerator. They can accomodate about 8 -10 people. I have it all reserved for two days this coming September. The Palermo family owns it and it is their home. The son, Alessandro, will answer the phones not listed as "Italian Only" Alessandro's parents live at the property but don't speak English. His mother, Graziella, is very friendly.

You can walk down to the train station and get a Cinque Terre card and travel back and forth to all the towns all day with the card (about 6 euros).

Thank you for the infi. How far in advancce did you book your rooms for September?

topping

Interesting--all the varied opinions.

With a car I would stay in either Levanto or Portovenere and never use the trains. I would either drive to Monterosso to park and then take the ferry to the villages, or just take it diretly from Portovenere. The CT is best seen from the water--why take trains if weather is good?

Bob, is there a parking lot in Monterroso?

I agree with Bob about Levanto. We have stayed there twice and it is just a short train ride (a few minutes) to first Cinque Terre town (Monterrosso). By trails, train or boat, you can go to all the towns.

I enjoy Levanto. To me, not as touristy with nice restaurants. Not all agree, but it makes a great base to see the CT in my opinion.
((H))

We plan to take the ferry from Portovenere to Monterosso, the train back to Vernazza and then walk back to Riomaggiore . We are staying in La Grazie which is very near to Portovenere.

Another vote for Levanto. Just minutes by train (or a long scenic hike) into the Cinque Terre Nat'l Park (the CT is designated as a Park now). Agree w/ maitaitom (hi!) re: restaurants etc. Nice little bars, too, and a pretty waterfront.

Stayed at the Europa hotel. Our second-floor room was fine -- not fancy but very comfortable with a large bathroom. The Europa is well-located and has a good breakfast.

My friends' little girls sold me on Levanto when, on returning from a trip several years ago, they informed me that "Levanto has the best gelato (gelati?) in Italy."

glad to hear the good things about levanto. we are staying there 6 nights end of june so that we can not only hike CT, but take day trips to portovenere, genoa, SML/Camogli/Portofino, pisa/lucca, etc. We are staying at Garden Hotel in one of newly-refurbished rooms with terrace with sea view. This hotel has been well-reviewed on trip advisor. Any suggestions for restaurants? good ways to do these day trips? anything else we should know for our stay in levanto that wouldn't have shown up in my research? many thanks for all your continued advice.

topping for alison

Another vote for Levanto, which is a small Riviera resort type town with very few non-Italians. We stayed at the Serafina, which is a very bare bones hotel in a residential neighborhood a few blocks from the water,with lots of free parking nearby. The whole town is actually fairly car friendly. The best meal we had in Italy was at a local trattoria a block or so from the Levanto train station. Levanto doesn't have the funky charm of the other CQ towns, but it's a fun place to stay, and it has by far the nicest beach.

Yes, there is a large lot at the north end of town on the water. It is a :10 walk from there to the ferry dock along a promenade on the beach.

September is a nice time to visit, there are still a lot of tourists (but not as much as summer) and the weather is very warm. Of the 5 Cinque Terre towns, I like Monterosso al Mare and Riomaggiore the best. I am very familiar with all the towns so it is not a rigid bias. All the 5 Cinque Terre towns are connected via train and boat (as well as hiking the trails) so you can certainly get to wherever you need to go easily. For that reason, a rental car is not needed and would IMO, be a waste of money. Parking is limited and costs daily, gas prices are high, and the car would just be sitting there for 3 days.

Monterosso is the most northernmost of the 5 towns and is a tad closer to getting to Portofino, Camogli, Sestri Levante up the coast, etc. From Genoa, you can take one of the many daily trains down to the CT, stopping at towns along the way. Once in the CT town of your choice, you can usually walk from the train station to the hotel (or some hotels even offer a shuttle bus to pick you up).

Have a great trip and buon viaggio!

zootsi, do you remember the name of the restaurant near the levanto train station, or can you give some idea of directions? sounds great! what kind of specialty food? expensive?

third try at topping this for alison