Well, I suppose it's time to haul out my video of summer crowds in the Cinque Terre.

http://genova.repubblica.it/cronaca/...ti_-123899365/

The article is in Italian, but the video has no voice.

Maybe it was a particularly bad day.

OMG, that is CRAZY, was not prepared for that! Now that I have booked all my tickets and room in Monterosso, there is no turning back but I'm glad you posted that, at least we will make sure to get to the train station extra early! And maybe abandon the idea of village hopping by train and just stay in Monterosso and maybe go to vernazza for dinner..

Are the ferries a better option to get to the other islands?

So I bought tickets for the 18.16 express train from La Spezia to Rome, mainly because there were only 3 left at 20 euros apiece and I figured at that price, we couldn't go wrong. Even if we do change things, it is not a lot of money to lose.
Had trouble with trenitalia so based on advise from Seat61, bought them on ItaliaRail, had no problems there.

Seems like from the posts above, I should buy the tickets from Pisa to CT and the return to La Spezia at the station?

Thanks all!

bvlenci has been trying to scare everybody from going to le Cinque Terre with her nuclear video for month after month on Fodor's. She hates the place because of the one time she went. If she can't scare people with the idea a train ride there is too difficult, or an overnight is not enough time, she has the video at the ready. At least this time she ended with "maybe it was a particularly bad day." Doh. Maybe it was. But I'll be she is so excited she got a bit rise out of you. She does the same thing for Lago di Como. She went & it was too crowded the day she went, and now she has a mission to make it sound like hell on earth.

Day trippers come in and out at certain hours at le Cinque Terre. Generally betewen 10 and 4. If you find it unpleasantly crowded, go to lunch in another town (Levanto? Bonassola), come back later. Get up early to take the boat ride. (Boats don't run if it is windy).

There are only so many hotels in le Cinque Terre, so evenings are not crowded. In July, the sun sets near 9pm. You might even enjoy a boat ride around 7pm if they are still running.

Maybe it will rain. Maybe you'll hate it as much as bvlenci. Good luck!

excited_confused: <i>Had trouble with trenitalia so based on advise from Seat61, bought them on ItaliaRail, had no problems there.</i>

Really - what kind of problems with the Trenitalia site? Besides using the Trenit app a few times, I used the Trenitalia website once to buy a ticket from Genoa to Nice without issues, using my standard American credit card. I wasn't aware people still had problems with the site, other than not being able to register (so having to book tickets as a guest each time).

<i>Seems like from the posts above, I should buy the tickets from Pisa to CT and the return to La Spezia at the station?</i>

Sure, that should work fine. Find a machine that takes cash or buy them from an agent at a time when you aren't in a rush, waiting for a train at the station or something. But I found the machines very easy to use; they have an English option for instructions.

I loved the Cinque Terre too - I hope it isn't too crowded for you! At least you know what to expect now.

For added perspective:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopi...a_Liguria.html

Supposedly, the recently upgraded train service within the CT (Cinque Terre Express) has decreased some of the overcrowding, at least at off-peak times.

My two great-nieces (20-somethings) were in Manarola about 10 days ago for 3 nights. They had a great time but also said it was too crowded for their liking. Their favorite thing was a group kayak paddle.

Are you saying, MassimoP, that the video is "fake news" filmed with thousands of extras? Surely it was taken on a day when there were cruise ships in port in Livorno, but that happens fairly often. And surely it's better in the early morning and late in the day, when the day trippers have gone.

You say I have personal motives. What motives could I have? It's not like I'm pushing some alternative destination in which I have an interest. I always say that I'm giving my own personal opinion when I say something negative about a destination. When I ask questions about a place I'm thinking of visiting, I like to hear personal opinions about it.

You, on the other hand, are firmly opposed to telling people anything negative about these places. Can you honestly assure excited_confused that she won't find conditions like those shown in the video, which was published by a respected Italian newspaper? She's going there in July, not April or October.

I've been to the Cinque Terre twice, not once, both times in the off season (once was in October), and both time before the new cruise port in Livorno was opened, which greatly increased the crowds. Both times it was already too crowded for my taste, and I remember saying to my husband, "I'd hate to be here in high season."

Both times, we took the boats to see the towns, and they weren't terribly crowded, but, as I said, it was the off season and the number of tourists was not what it is now, with the new cruise port. I can't say how crowded the boats are now in the summer, especially not in recent years, because I haven't been back in the past ten years.

I didn't hate the Cinque Terre at all, although I wouldn't have returned after seeing it once, except that we were traveling with friends who wanted to go there. The five towns are completely given over to tourism, and are not large enough to absorb the crowds gracefully. If it rains, as it did one of the times I was there, there was nothing to do indoors except browse souvenir shops.

Nor did I hate Lake Como, where I spent the better part of two days, that is, two nights, with an early morning arrival. I had originally planned three, but cut it back because of family obligations, and to be honest, I wasn't sorry, because we had already visited two towns, and two of the villas, and taken all of the boat trips available, including some of them twice. Other than that, there wasn't much to do there. We probably would have enjoyed hiking, but we were there during a heat wave. We did take a long walk along the lake front in Bellagio. I would have spent more time in the gardens of the villas if I had been there earlier in the spring, when they were in full bloom.

Both places have some very nice scenery, especially the Cinque Terre. However, I've seen scenery as beautiful, and more beautiful, in other parts of Italy, where you can enjoy nature without thousands of other people. And there are plenty of scenic hiking trails near where we live, in Le Marche. Rather than hating these two destinations, I just can't get terribly enthusiastic about them.

Since you're definitely going to the Cinque Terre, excited_confused, I suggest, as you say, going as early as possible. If the weather is pleasant, and if you don't mind a bit of a climb, try to hike some of the higher trails during the busiest part of the day. The lower trails are like a column of ants shuffling along; half the lower trails have been closed for several years because of the risk of landslides. If it's too hot, or if you're not interested in hiking, try to go to the upper part of whatever village you're staying in, and find a nice restaurant with outdoor seating, and preferably a good view, and take a long lunch.

And I hope you give us a trip report when you get back.

Hi, thanks for the input, yes we are definitely going at this point and I am not really interested in hiking in the heat so will chill! I doubt we will hate it, we are perfectly ok with doing most of what we want to do in the evening so we should be fine. We have no agenda, no must do's, that certainly helps. Just need to make sure we get on that train to Rome...!

Can we buy tickets for the boat for a single ride or is it only an all day ticket?

Since we are staying in Monterosso, am thinking we should head there first from La Spezia, leave our bags at the B&B, and maybe head to the beach for a bit? We can visit either Vernazza or the other towns in the evening and do whatever we did not see the next morning. We will head back to Monterosso to pick up our bags and head out for our 6.15pm train to Rome from La Spezia. What time do you think is a good time to leave Monterosso so we definitely have enough time to make the train?

Thanks for all your perspectives, I realize that every person is different and will like different things but it's still great to get different opinions!

You can buy tickets for a single boat ride - yes. I did that a few weeks ago: bought a ticket from Riomaggiore to Vernazza, just a few minutes before the boat left Riomaggiore.

If you stop in Riomaggiore, one favorite thing to do there - given that you plan not to hike - is to sit for a few minutes in the little town square (just above the main level of town) and eat a take-away lunch or something. Not many tourists are there, and if the kids are in school (maybe not in summer?) you might hear them in the adjacent school, practicing music or something. It makes me feel like I'm not in a super touristy place, at least for a few minutes.

Hi, thanks for the input, yes we are definitely going at this point and I am not really interested in hiking in the heat so will chill!>

But do do the boardwalk like flat short hike along the Viale d'Amour (sp?) from Riomaggiore a little bit at least - and then you can say you hiked the CT!

PalenQ: <i>But do do the boardwalk like flat short hike along the Viale d'Amour (sp?) from Riomaggiore a little bit at least - and then you can say you hiked the CT!</i>

Sadly, the Via dell'Amore is still closed due to a slide. I saw it from the boat when I was there recently - looks pretty bad. No wonder it has been closed for a while.

Two of the four lower trails have been closed, I think since 2011, when there was a very bad flood above the town. Apart from the one landslide, there is the risk of slides in other places. The higher trails are not affected, since there's not much land above them to slide.

I recently read that that the Via d'Amour trail had been reopened or part of it -not so? Me I don't know. But if opened it's a neat 1 km stroll to Manarola from Riomaggiore - maybe parts near Rio are open?

http://www.cinqueterre.eu.com/en/cin...via-dell-amore

Confusing info but Andrew has first-hand info.

I was in CT in July two years ago. Stayed in Riomaggiore for four nights.

Yes I found the towns a bit claustrophobic, but did not find the trails to be overrun.

We departed for our hikes about 8-8:30 am and it was surprisingly quiet. In fact, we didn't even have to pay the park fee at Monterosso because there was no one manning the booth! The first day we took the train from Riomaggiore to Monterosso and did the Monterosso to Vernazza hike and it was very quick (maybe 90 min?) so we had a drink in Vernazza and then found another hike behind Vernazza to some shrine.

One of the days we hiked from Riomaggiore to Porto Venere. That was a bit long (took us five hours) although there were a couple of places to stop. It was more challenging than the main trails between the 5 towns. After having a meal and walking around in Porto Venere we took the ferry back to Riomaggiore. That was a lovely view, and as we pulled into Riomaggiore there was a huge line of tourists waiting for the boat, so I'm glad we did it the way we did.

I would not recommend going to CT for the beaches - Monterosso was especially dirty and overcrowded. I am stopping overnight this year since we are passing by on our way to Elba, just so my husband can see it and maybe do one hike.

But my point is that I went in July during peak season and the trails were still pleasant. Some of us have no choice but to travel in peak tourist season unfortunately.

we didn't even have to pay the park fee at Monterosso because there was no one manning the booth>

Lucky they did not check on the way out as they did me once.

I hope you do a bit of hiking. My favorite hike ever. Just don't wait to use the bathroom at the Vernazza train station. It was a hole in the floor and very nasty.
We changed trains at Pisa. You can use the ferry for village hopping just check the times close.

PalenQ: <i>I recently read that that the Via d'Amour trail had been reopened or part of it -not so? Me I don't know. But if opened it's a neat 1 km stroll to Manarola from Riomaggiore - maybe parts near Rio are open?</i>

Not open as of three weeks ago. I asked, then I walked up to the gate on the Riomaggiore side, and the gate was shut and locked. I could also see the slide from the boat later.

Maybe some of it is open on the Manarola side, but I didn't stop in Manarola this time. And I doubt it. I didn't see a soul walking out there from the boat, not in any part of it.

Well that settles that -perhaps they will reopen some for the high tourist season to get some money but it has been opened and closed many times in past- never know until get there but Andrew's first-hand observation puts that in doubt.

Will definitely try and get in some hiking, just that hiking is not our reason for going there, nor is the beach but would like to experience both while we are there!
Was thinking of hiking from Monterosso to Vernazza, either the evening we get there or am the next day. Is that mostly a downhill or uphill hike? We can take the train the other way.

Andrew, thanks for the single boat ticket info, any recollection of how much that was?

I am still getting very nervous reading about train delays etc. What time should we be leaving Monterosso to make it in good time for the 6/15 train from La Spezia?