Camogli, Italy
 

It‘s my first night here in lovely Camogli. The town is divine, with terra cotta painted historical buildings contrasted by green shuttered windows and ornate designs. It‘s largely car free and presently exempt from crowds. The pebble beaches were serene last night while the many bars on the waterfront were partially filled with mellow guests enjoying the Ligurian atmosphere.

Is there a downside here? Well, many apartments are located on upper floors in 8 story buildings without lifts so fitness becomes an automatic daily regime but there is another darker side that isn’t often mentioned. The annoying squawking seagulls. Their menacing taunting laughter outside of your closed window throughout night will make you wish you had a BB gun.

By the way, my friends just came back from Levanto, which they used as a base to explore the Cinque Terre. They praised the beach town and highly recommend it as a perfect hub to explore the area.

Now off to find more sleep before another mocking seagull decides to begin squawking.

Very interesting, Klee. Will be following for sure.
I am done. the Hitchcock film

PS Eight stories?! Sweet Mother of God.

Also huge fans of Camogli and its vibrant colours, we visited while on the Ligurian coast last summer. Looking forward to hear more about your trip.

Our Ligurian walk last fall ended in Camogli. The town retains its fishing port cred, despite the accommodation of tourists. It's lovely.

Thanks for this report; I went to school with a lad with last name of Camogli and was started to first see the name on a map! It sounds charming, despite the stair-climbing regimen.

Love Camogli and coming soon...in a few weeks, cannot wait. No climbing 8 floors for me though. Staying at Cenobio dei Dogi.

That’s where I stayed in astonishingly beautiful Camogli.

Rainycitygirl, if not too much trouble, would you determine whether or not they heat the pool?? It was too cold to swim when I was there during one late September but in answer to my query they told me that they now heat the pool during shoulder months. I wish you a marvelous stay!!

Thank you ekscrunchy, I am so looking forward to being there again.
On their website it says pool heated from October to May at 28 degrees Celsius. But I will ask while there.

Still in Camogli and enjoying the area immensely.

We took the train today to Santa Margherita for 2.70 Euros one way and walked to Porto Fino. What a day. The walk on the sidewalk along the road was divine with multiple stops to jump in the sea to cool down. We adored Paraggi, where the cove is boat free and the water is turquoise and inviting. The Gods had smiled on that speck of sea and created a paradise for bathers. We walked past Paraggi to the small sandy cove that was free for swimming and perfect for a stopover for our packed lunch. From there we took a shady trail above the narrow road that took us into ritzy Porto Fino.

Porto Fino itself looks much like Camogli and even a bit like Ascona, Switzerland, with its colourful pastel painted but weather worn buildings. In fact, the only indicators that it is a playground for the wealthy are the yachts in the harbor and the designer clothing stores that line a short shopping mile.

We’ve stayed in Camolgi a couple of times and loved it. First visit we stayed at Villa Rosemaria and second time at Cenobio dei Dogi. There’s a nice monastery a cove over that we visited on the ferry and a great restaurant that was up on the hill that I can’t find the name of. I think we walked up and then took a taxi back to town. Also ferried down to Manarola in the CT and had a lovely lunch at Trattoria Billy. Camolgi is one of my favorite towns in Italy and when we went in May both times I liked that it seemed to have more Italian and European tourists than other Americans.

Porto Fino Post continued…

And of course the visitors clothing are fashion statements. So what to do in Porto Fino? People watching, of course, and eat gelato. But the best thing we found was to walk to the lighthouse on a point looking over the vast Mediterranean Sea and chill at the local bar called La Faro, located at the front part of the building. What views! What atmosphere! The coolest sound and just a real chill vibe. I truly wish we could have stayed longer but we had to catch the last ferry back at 18.00.

We took the ferry back to Santa Margherita for E 11, then took the train back to Camogli, had dinner, swam in the sea and ended our perfect day with drinks on the square near the castle while watching the sun set and the last fishermen come in.

man, we love this place.

It‘s Friday and our last day here. We have no where to store our luggage so we‘ve found a cozy table near the harbor and are enjoying the local vibe while sitting in the shade. We were going to hire a deck chair and umbrella but they wanted 150 euros for 5 people. The prices double at the weekend.

So some of us are relaxing. I am exploring the area. After a magnificent walk to the the largest grocery store in the area, Gulliver‘s, I continued my exploration and am now sitting high above the town under the shady trees at the Chiesa Monastica di San Prospero church. The views are stunning and I am sitting in solitude. No tourists, no crowds, just the chirping birds, the local residents on their phones and me.
The ascent was made on small ancient pedestrian pathways (I passed an unpretentious 1600 ad chapel) while breathing in the blooming honeysuckle. Magnifico. There‘s a shrine inside the church here honoring a local priest who recently died, along with a photo of the priest in conversation with the late pope.

I think I’ll just sit here a while in the shade of an ancient gnarly tree while enjoying the soothing navy blue Mediterranean Sea, the sights of the colourful buildings, the sounds, the vegetation and the gentle breeze in my face.

That sounds perfect kleeblatt.

Indeed.
I am done. the Kleeligurian

We descended all those stairways at the end of a 15k walk. They start at the very top of the town and meander pretty much to the waterfront. I can only imagine that locals have powerful hearts and lungs from the ascents and magnificent quads from the descents. :)

I have a stay planned at Cenobio dei doge for sept. As well as a couple nights in SML. It’s been a dream to go but I needed linger than I could be away from my cat (who is gone now) plan in Portofino and Rapallo too. Flights were with points but I land in nice. Will spend night there before the train ride to Camogli.

Lovely report! That is such a glorious part of Italy!
RainyCity, thank you, about the pool!! I'm such a swimming fanatic and I do love to swim in pools, but they are to be heated, and it's difficult to find those in Italy (although Palazzo Tafuri in Nardo has one!!)

I think I had the worst room at the Cenobio when I stayed there--a single overlooking the parking lot! But I loved the hotel!! I want to go back, soon!!

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...e274ca58dc.jpg
Single room at Cenobio dei Dogi



There is a cemetery above Portofino that I found very atmospheric, and it has a great view of the town, below.



https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...9239f3a1dd.jpg
Plaques in Portofino
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Panteon of Portofino
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I had not heard of her before this trip


https://www.scotsman.com/whats-on/arts-and-entertainment/the-glaswegian-who-saved-an-italian-village-from-the-nazis-1464472


(How can I make my links clickable??)

Leely2 once posted a great photo of Camogli in Isabel's looooong 'Images of Italy' covid-era thread here.
I am done. the gleeful Kleeful

It’s been fun reading your experiences. Camogli, as in many of the popular coastal towns, are far busier at the weekends. We enjoyed our time immensely. Here are some more experiences and observations:

The apartment we booked had no wifi. The owner told us he couldn’t remember the password but I’m not sure if that was true. My cot had a broken slat so we used cutting boards to keep me from falling through. The kitchen and the bathroom were tiny. The towels needed replacing. The whole place needed a renovation but it was quiet, most clean and a bedroom view was phenomenal. It was also well located. This was a case of you get for what you pay for, especially if book a month in advance.
Luckily, we all had a sense of humour and two of us had a data package for our phones.

The beaches are clean, the water is delightful but the beaches usually consist of pebbles.

My favorite restaurant was a pizza place located next to the harbor called Civico 32. Great food and a delightful place to sit and enjoy the sights.

We also were able to watch a wedding at the church. The guests walked down the long promenade to get to the church but the bride arrived by car. It was fun to see the fashion choices and see the lovely bride.

Camogli is highly recommended and I would go again.

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https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...120f53950.jpeg

Hi ekscrunchy, I'm back. I asked about the pool and they said yes it was heated now during shoulder months. My friend and I each had a tiny single room (but the beds were comfy doubles), mine had 2 windows so I had a side view which looked over the street/passageway that leads to the village where all the kayaks are stored and another window with a view of a bit of the sea and the castle down the other end. I loved my room-#28.
We were supremely lazy there as it was super hot and we were tired from our very intense Champagne tour, we took the ferry to Portofino one day for lunch at Stella, people watching and a bit of shopping. We mooched around Camogli village a few times and then we mostly spent our days in the pool or the sea and flopped on our loungers until it was aperitvo and then dinner time always finishing up back at the bar for nightcaps...the barmen were sad to see us go ha ha ha.