Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Is the Cinque Terre too crowded?

So true what Rick Steves has done to this once pristine, unspoilt place - the Cinque Terre - as he has done in Paris and many others places. However, this tourism is a double-edged sword: it is dreadful that the 5 villages (especially Vernazza) are so over-run with tourists, yet at the same time it has brought floods of money into a once over-looked spot in Italy. The Cinque Terre Association (Co-op) has used the monies jointly among the towns to spruce up and in fact, rebuild their train stations (i.e. Manarola), adding tourist office booths, painting huge wall murals (Riomaggiore), repairing train tunnels (Riomaggiore, Manarola), I could go on and on....not to mention what the euros flooding in have done for the local economies in each town (restaurants, shopping, souvenirs, etc).

True enough, the CT has changed dramatically. The 5 villages are no longer just the secret of the Italians (and Mussolini!). I prefer the CT I first knew when I went there 8 years ago; however, I have been going back and forth over the last 4 years, several times a year, and still love it each and every time.

kaz11, no, you cannot swim in April. The weather is cool and crisp and (usually) windy. However, of all the seasons in the CT, that is my favorite. There are very few tourists at that time so you will, more or less, have the villages to yourself. I would definitely recommend making at least a 1 day stay there, if not longer so you can experience it.

Also, I would not stay so far away as Santa Margherita Ligure, Portofino, or even Nervi. I think in order to truly experience the CT, staying in one of the 5 towns, or in adjacent Levanto would be the best option. I like Riomaggiore the best, but of course I am biased as I have family friends there.....Villa Argentina is my choice (http://www.emmeti.it/Welcome/Liguria.../index.it.html). Singles are 70 euros, Doubles 94 euros and all come with a complete breakfast. Additionally, there is a shuttle bus at the base of Via Gasperi in town (at the bottom) that can bring you up the hill to the hotel.