Lerici or Portovenere?
Mar 10th, 2003, 12:43 AM
#1
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Lerici or Portovenere?
Ok.....You've all be very helpful in our trip planning. Guess we'll pass on sleeping in Vernazza and opt for one of these two cities. Then we'll daytrip around for a couple of days via launch or foot. Thus which would you suggest as the better village?
Once again our qualifications are....
reachable by auto
nice evening dining and strolling after area
nice beach
quaint city
Thanks!
Once again our qualifications are....
reachable by auto
nice evening dining and strolling after area
nice beach
quaint city
Thanks!
Mar 10th, 2003, 08:32 AM
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Michael, Well, I keep trying to help--let me try again. Between those 2 there is no question--Portovenere. However, forget the beach. If you want a beach then stay in Levanto--just north of the CT. However, we have stayed in Porto. 3 times and have taken the ferry boat to all of the villages and used the beach in Monterosso during the day trip. You may find the Med to be cooler than you think. I would not decide based on a beach.
Mar 10th, 2003, 08:45 AM
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I strongly recommend Lerici, it sounds perfect for what you're looking for.
We stayed there 2 years ago for 3 nights and we're pleased to say that we were the only American's in town (or real tourists for that matter).
It's a quaint, little seaside town that probably gets only Italian tourists in the summertime and very little tourist traffic "off-peak" (we were there in late March).
I highly recommend Hotel Florida. It's a very comfortable, 3 star hotel and each room has a balcony overlooking the Gulf of Poets. A beautiful view from every room, quiet...(at least when we were there, although it overlooks the street, as do all the main hotels), parking right out front, across from a nice but typically rocky beach and the service/breakfast was very good.
It's about 10-15 minute walk into town, along the beach promenade/sidewalk, very pleasant walk! Of course, you can drive into town, but parking's a hassle.
There is regular "ferry" service to Portovenere and the Cinque Terre, it's about $15-20 pp, with maybe 6 boats a day. You buy a r/t ticket and can choose your dep/arrival time at your discretion. The only thing that you should know is if it is quite windy, they may NOT go to ALL 5 Cinque Terre towns (because of difficulty docking). We were able to go to 3 of the 5. A very nice way to spend a day and beautiful views!
So, if you're looking for a nice, ITALIAN seaside village, Lerici is the place (again, it may be quite different in the middle of the summer).
Good Luck!
PS: we liked Lerici so much, we're going back during our honeymoon this Fall.
We stayed there 2 years ago for 3 nights and we're pleased to say that we were the only American's in town (or real tourists for that matter).
It's a quaint, little seaside town that probably gets only Italian tourists in the summertime and very little tourist traffic "off-peak" (we were there in late March).
I highly recommend Hotel Florida. It's a very comfortable, 3 star hotel and each room has a balcony overlooking the Gulf of Poets. A beautiful view from every room, quiet...(at least when we were there, although it overlooks the street, as do all the main hotels), parking right out front, across from a nice but typically rocky beach and the service/breakfast was very good.
It's about 10-15 minute walk into town, along the beach promenade/sidewalk, very pleasant walk! Of course, you can drive into town, but parking's a hassle.
There is regular "ferry" service to Portovenere and the Cinque Terre, it's about $15-20 pp, with maybe 6 boats a day. You buy a r/t ticket and can choose your dep/arrival time at your discretion. The only thing that you should know is if it is quite windy, they may NOT go to ALL 5 Cinque Terre towns (because of difficulty docking). We were able to go to 3 of the 5. A very nice way to spend a day and beautiful views!
So, if you're looking for a nice, ITALIAN seaside village, Lerici is the place (again, it may be quite different in the middle of the summer).
Good Luck!
PS: we liked Lerici so much, we're going back during our honeymoon this Fall.
Mar 10th, 2003, 08:52 AM
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I'll add one more thing.
We visited Portovenere for a couple of hours and it was completely over-run with tourists. I know it's a jump-off point for Cinque Terre, but you are much more likely to see tourists than the "real Italy" that you may be looking for.
The shops, restaurants, etc are pretty much all tourist driven. Although the town is beautiful, we couldn't wait to get out of there.
Lerici is our choice, it seems much less known and it certainly has less "tour traffic".
BTW, I'm told that you can drive to La Spezia and easily take the train into Cinque Terre, although parking is supposed to be a hassle. We vote for the ferry from Lerici.
I hope this helps.
PS: When choosing a hotel, other than Hotel Florida in Lerici, make sure your view is not blocked by trees. There's one hotel that looks great, but the view is spoiled by tree's across the street (we looked first, then chose the Florida).
We visited Portovenere for a couple of hours and it was completely over-run with tourists. I know it's a jump-off point for Cinque Terre, but you are much more likely to see tourists than the "real Italy" that you may be looking for.
The shops, restaurants, etc are pretty much all tourist driven. Although the town is beautiful, we couldn't wait to get out of there.
Lerici is our choice, it seems much less known and it certainly has less "tour traffic".
BTW, I'm told that you can drive to La Spezia and easily take the train into Cinque Terre, although parking is supposed to be a hassle. We vote for the ferry from Lerici.
I hope this helps.
PS: When choosing a hotel, other than Hotel Florida in Lerici, make sure your view is not blocked by trees. There's one hotel that looks great, but the view is spoiled by tree's across the street (we looked first, then chose the Florida).
