Marcia,
We are going back to CT in July and staying in Manarola. We tried to get into Casa Capellini, www.casacapellini-5terre.it however it is booked, stayed there in 2001 and although basic they do have an apartment for rent with a view that is unbelievable. We are staying this time at www.carugiu.com which is a B&B had good reviews from the searches I did. Hope this helps.

I've stayed at in Riomaggiore at http://www.limonicamere.it/ twice and would again.

You could always try "Villa Argentina" http://www.emmeti.it/Welcome/Liguria.../index.it.html in Riomaggiore (Via A. de Gasperi, 37 011 39 0187 920 345 tel/fax). Aside from their hotel property (singles starting at 77 euros/night) that all come with continental breakfast each morning, they also rent out lots of apts, villas, rooms throughout Riomaggiore. Check them out (I am biased as my family friends own it!)

SRS,

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you for posting about Apaiu and La Mala. Both places look exactly like the lodging we're looking for in the CT region. We're headed to CT in October (our first trip) and were challenged by not finding an inn which boasts the charming simplistic elegance that we prefer.

Which would you recommend....Manarola or Vernazza for a town to stay at?

Grazie!

adventureseeker,

Sounds like we have similar tastes in hotels!

We personally liked Vernazza a little more than Manarola (by little, I mean just a touch) but both are fantastic.

We choose Manarola for our trip last year because I thought Vernazza would be overrun with tourists (which it was not). Also I found Arpaiu and it looked so nice online, that I wanted to stay there.

Either location is totally fine and as I said in this thread, we are staying in Manarola again at Arpaiu this summer as I couldn't justify paying more when I knew how perfect Arpaiu is. However, as you haven't gotten an attachment to either yet, I would email both places and see if they have availability. And I wouldn't hesitate with either one. The towns are so near each other and with such regular train service, you aren't limited by which town you stay in!

You might find my trip report helpful as I wrote about Arpaiu and CT generally.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34864603

Have a great trip and if you have any others questions, please ask!

Sally

Sally,

Thx for link...I'll check it out.

We're also traveling to Venice (Locanda Orseolo), Tuscany (Siena & Montepulciano for home bases) and Florence....do you have any recommendations in those areas?

Grazie!

Here's a recommendation for a nice little hotel in Florence, from my trip report of May 2006:

"We took a short cab ride to the Relais Cavalcanti. a very charming little 'hotel', at Via Pellicceria, 2. It occupies one floor of a building located near the Uffizi gallery, in a very good central location. Because my daughter had just finished her semester in Florence, she was able to recommend her favorite location in town for lodging.

The Relais Cavalcanti building has been in the same family's ownership for 100+ years. The owner/manager of the Relais is Francesca. She said she inherited this one floor of the building, so she recently renovated it to create a little hotel. It's relatively new, with beautiful tile bathrooms, showers, etc. The rooms are very charming, and good-sized. Our rate for a double/twin was 120EUR, which included an extra 10EUR/day for the better view. Francesca also offered a 5 percent discount for payment in cash.

You have the feeling of entering a very nice, private Italian home, when you unlock the Relais door and smell the potpourri set out on the beautiful tables in the hallway and entry way. It has a small elevator and a/c, too. No breakfast is served, but even better I think is that they have a beautiful little dining room/kitchen that is open 24/7 for guests. You have always available the makings for coffee, hot chocolate and tea, plus containers of pre-wrapped pastries and dessert cakes. That's about as much as you get in any Italian B&B for breakfast, and this way you can serve yourself whenever. One evening we bought wine, cheese, bread, and fruit and enjoyed our own private time in this beautiful room.

The only thing to be aware of at Relais Cavalcanti is that the first floor of the building is the Old Stove Irish pub. The good news is that it's a decent little place for panini, and has free wi-fi. However, it attracts a lot of students and young people, so it is quite noisy into the early morning hours. Our room window was directly above the pub's patio, with a nice view of adjoining rooftops. The double windows, plus the wooden shutters, blocked out most of the noise from the pub below. I found that I could also turn on the a/c fan in our room, which would then totally cover any outside noise.

Francesca also cautions her prospective guests that she does not staff a 24/7 front desk. She is there during posted hours, mostly till 6 p.m., and has an emergency number on the door. But she is careful to tell guests that hers is not a hotel with full-services at night-time. I highly recommend the Relais Cavalcanti."
:)>-

adventureseeker,

We really enjoyed staying at the Tourist House Ghiberti.

Other ones that I have bookmarked because they looked special are:

Hotel Cestelli: http://www.hotelcestelli.com/

Sorry somehow I posted before I had finished writing....

We really enjoyed the Tourist House Ghiberti. I think that it is a perfect place, particulary when you take into account how lovely the rooms are and the rather not too high price. I would stay there again without hesitation. www.touristhouseghiberti.com.

A couple others that I have bookmarked to consider in the future are:

Residence Hilda: http://www.residencehilda.com
Hotel Cestelli: http://www.hotelcestelli.com

Both of these look fantastic too, although admittedly I haven't stayed at either, but they look so good, it seems like it would be hard to go wrong.

I also bookmarked Relais Cavalcanti - perhaps it was Maureen's rave review?!

Hope these help!

Sally

Only one caveat re Residence Hilda and Hotel Cestelli. I haven't double-checked their precise locations. You would definitely want to do that! I *think* they are centrally located or else I wouldn't have bookmarked them, but just in case....

The Tourist House Ghiberti is in a great location, by the way.

Another vote for Tourist House Ghiberti. We loved it (stayed 2005).

Sally,

Thx for all the info. I have Cestelli bookmarked also...looks great and the prices are right. I'll check on the location and the others you mentioned.

Thx again!

Sally,

FYI: I checked out the Tourist House Ghiberti online, read reviews on Tripadvisor and then emailed to book our stay.

Thank you once again for finding our perfect home away from home!