Cinque Terre Itinerary: Check Which Trails Are Open Before You Plan

The five villages of the Cinque Terre sit on a single railway line along the Italian Riviera, and the train between the two end villages takes about twenty minutes.

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So a Cinque Terre itinerary is not about distance. It is about which walking sections are open.

The Sentiero Azzurro, the blue trail linking the villages of the Cinque Terre, runs along an unstable cliff. Sections close after landslides and stay closed for years at a time. The stretch between Riomaggiore and Manarola — the famous Via dell’Amore — was shut for more than a decade after a rockfall in 2012. It is open again, one way only from Riomaggiore to Manarola, and you have to book a time slot.

That changes the plan, not just a detail of it. If the trail sections you wanted are shut, the day becomes a train day, and the direction you walk matters because one way is downhill.

The 3 day itinerary below is built to work either way, whether you are here for one full day or for Cinque Terre for 3 days. Check the current trail status on the national park site before you fix anything. Train frequencies, card coverage and village layouts checked 9 September 2026.

The 5 villages of Cinque Terre, north to south

Corniglia is the one people underestimate. It sits on a headland a hundred metres above the sea, and from the train station you climb 382 steps or wait for the shuttle bus. It is also the quietest of the five for exactly that reason.

The 3 day Cinque Terre itinerary: how to spend 3 days

Three days is the number that works, and this 3-day Cinque Terre itinerary assumes you sleep inside the park rather than day-tripping in.

Day 1: arrive, and Riomaggiore to Manarola

• Take the train to La Spezia and change at La Spezia Centrale railway station for the local Cinque Terre Express. Levanto, Liguria is the equivalent gateway at the northern end, and the line runs between La Spezia and Levanto all day.
• Riomaggiore in the afternoon — one steep main street running down to a rock harbour, and the best of the five for an evening drink on the water.
• Walk or take the train to Manarola for sunset. If the Via dell’Amore is open this is a twenty-minute stroll; if not, it is a four-minute train.
• Manarola at dusk from the Punta Bonfiglio path above the harbour is one of the most beautiful views in Italy, and the photograph everyone comes for.

Day 2: Corniglia, Vernazza and the high trail

The main walking day. Go north to south or south to north depending on which way is downhill from your base.

• Corniglia in the morning, up the Lardarina staircase or by shuttle.
• Corniglia to Vernazza on the Sentiero Azzurro — about ninety minutes of hiking when open, and the best section of the walk. Expect stairs, in both directions.
• If it is closed, take the high route via San Bernardino, which is longer and harder and rarely shut, or ride the train and walk the Vernazza to Monterosso stretch instead.
• Vernazza for lunch on the harbour and the climb up to the Doria castle tower, La Torre, for the view back down.

Day 3: Monterosso, the beach, and Vernazza again

• Monterosso al Mare in the morning — the only village in Cinque Terre with a proper sandy beach, split into an old town and a newer beach quarter, with rows of umbrellas along the front.
• Vernazza to Monterosso on foot if you have not walked it, roughly two hours with a steep start.
• Swim, then a slow last evening. The villages empty after about six when the day trippers leave, and that is when they are worth being in.

Cinque Terre in a day, and how many days to spend

• 1 day — ride the train from end to end, stop in three of the five towns of Cinque Terre, walk one short section if it is open. You will see the place and not feel it. This is what a day trip to the Cinque Terre from Florence or Pisa gives you.
• Two days — enough to explore the Cinque Terre properly: all five villages, one long trail section, and one evening inside the park. The realistic minimum.
• At least three days — the version above, with a spare day for weather or a trail closure. Three days in Cinque Terre is enough for the villages, the trail and a swim.
• Four or five — adds Portovenere, Levanto and the high trails. This is the perfect Cinque Terre trip if you have the time, and what people do on a second visit.

Where to stay in the Cinque Terre: the best place to stay in Cinque Terre

The single decision that changes a trip to the Cinque Terre most is whether you sleep inside the national park or outside it.

• Stay in one of the five villages and you get the mornings and the evenings, which is when the place is quiet and worth the journey. Rooms are small, expensive and mostly up stairs.
• Stay in La Spezia or Levanto, at either end of the line, and you get more choice, lower prices and a five to fifteen minute train ride in. You lose the empty village at eight in the morning.
• Monterosso al Mare has the most accommodation and the only flat approach, so it is the practical place to stay in Cinque Terre with luggage or with children.
• Vernazza and Manarola are the most atmospheric places to stay in the Cinque Terre and the hardest to reach with a suitcase.
• Corniglia is the cheapest of the 5 villages to sleep in, for the obvious reason that it is 382 steps above its own station. Cinque Terre wine from the terraces above it is worth trying while you catch your breath.

The best place to stay for a first visit is Monterosso or Vernazza. If you stay a few days and want a favourite Cinque Terre village to come back to in the evening, pick one of those two and treat the others as day stops. Doing the Cinque Terre as a day trip is the one approach that never quite works.

The full breakdown is in our guide to where to stay in Cinque Terre.

How to get to Cinque Terre

• By train from La Spezia — the standard route. La Spezia Centrale connects to Pisa, Florence, Genoa and Milan.
• From the north, Levanto is the equivalent gateway and is quieter.
• Nearest airports are Pisa International Airport (PSA), about an hour and a half away, and Genoa. Milan Malpensa (MXP) and Florence both work with a longer train.
• Do not drive in. The villages are closed to non-resident traffic and parking is scarce and expensive above the towns. Leave the car in La Spezia or Levanto.
• Ferries run between four of the villages in summer, skipping Corniglia which has no harbour, and they give you the coastline from the water.

Getting around: the Cinque Terre train card and park pass

The park sells two versions and the difference matters.

• The Cinque Terre Trekking Card covers the paid trail sections and the park shuttle buses, but not the train.
• Purchase the Cinque Terre Treno Card and you get the same plus unlimited train travel on the Cinque Terre Express between Levanto and La Spezia. Train travel is not included in the Cinque Terre Trekking Card, which catches people out.
• If you are walking the paid trail anyway, the Treno card beats the Trekking Card plus single tickets from the third train ride of the day, which a normal day here easily reaches.
• Buy it at any station in the park, or online in advance in high season.
• You need the Cinque Terre card to walk the coastal sections of the Sentiero Azzurro; the higher inland trails are free.
• Trains run every 15 to 30 minutes in season and are often standing room only in the middle of the day.

Which towns of Cinque Terre to visit or skip

None, honestly — the whole point is that they are twenty minutes apart. But if you are short of time:

• Prioritise Vernazza and Manarola. They are the two most photographed and the two most worth an evening. If you can only pick one town in Cinque Terre, make it Vernazza.
• Corniglia if you want the quiet one and do not mind the steps.
• Monterosso if you want to swim, or if you are travelling with people who need flat ground.
• Riomaggiore is the easiest to reach from La Spezia and the liveliest at night.

Things to do in Cinque Terre beyond the trail

• The ferry along the coast, which shows you the villages the way they were meant to be seen — from the sea.
• Portovenere, just outside the park south of Riomaggiore, with a church on a rock promontory. Reachable by ferry or bus from La Spezia.
• The vineyard terraces above the villages, held by dry stone walls built over centuries. The local white wine, Sciacchetrà, comes from them.
• Eating — this is Liguria, so pesto, trofie pasta, focaccia and anchovies from Monterosso. Seafood and gelato everywhere.
• Swimming from the rocks at Manarola, which locals do and most visitors miss. Dinner afterwards on a terrace over the Mediterranean Sea is the best thing to do in the whole park.

A day itinerary in Cinque Terre: one day in each village

If you would rather build your own day itinerary in Cinque Terre than follow a route, this is what each town in Cinque Terre gives you.

Village	Give it	Do this
Monterosso al Mare	Half a day	Swim, walk the old town, eat anchovies
Vernazza	Half a day	Harbour, castle tower, lunch on the water
Corniglia	2 hours	The steps, the terrace views, a quiet drink
Manarola	Half a day	Sunset from Punta Bonfiglio, swim off the rocks
Riomaggiore	Half a day	The main street down to the harbour, evening bars

Add it up and the entire Cinque Terre is about two full days of sightseeing. You cannot walk the whole trail in one day and you cannot see Cinque Terre in a single morning. Everything past that is walking, swimming and sitting still — which is the actual reason to stay rather than day trip.

Practical notes for planning a trip

• Cinque Terre is a national park, and that is not a formality: the coastal trails are ticketed, patrolled and closed when unsafe. You need to show your Cinque Terre card at the trail entrances.
• Trains between La Spezia and Levanto stop at all five villages. The Cinque Terre train pass is the Treno Card described above.
• Prices are in euro and the villages are expensive for Liguria; La Spezia is noticeably cheaper for dinner.
• Wear real shoes on the trails. The paths are stone, root and stairs, and sandals are the most common cause of trouble.
• Book restaurants for dinner in Vernazza and Manarola in season, or eat early.
• Pesto in Cinque Terre is the local one, made in Liguria with Genovese basil, and it is genuinely different from what you get elsewhere.
• An umbrella is worth carrying in spring and autumn; a wet trail is a closed trail.

Fitting Cinque Terre into an Italy trip itinerary

Almost nobody comes here alone — it is a leg of something larger, and where it sits changes how long you need.

• Florence or Pisa — two to three hours by train, which makes a day trip to the Cinque Terre possible and unsatisfying.
• Milan and Milan Malpensa Airport — about three hours, and the usual arrival point from outside Europe.
• Rome — four hours by train, so it works as a stop between Rome and the north rather than a detour.
• Genoa and the Italian Riviera — an hour and a half, and the natural pairing if you want more coast.
• Portofino — further up the same coast and a different, glossier world.

Plan your Cinque Terre itinerary as two or three nights inside a longer Italian route, not as a destination on its own. On your next trip to Cinque Terre you can slow it down.

When to visit Cinque Terre

• May, June and September are the best months. Warm, walkable, and the trails open.
• July and August are extremely crowded and hot, and the middle of the day on the trail is hard work.
• April and October are quieter and cheaper, with a real chance of rain closing trail sections.
• November to March — many restaurants and hotels close, ferries stop, and trail closures are common after winter storms.
• Weather closes trails at short notice in any season. Check on the day, not the week before.

Cinque Terre or the Amalfi Coast?

• Cinque Terre is smaller, walkable, car-free and connected by train. Five villages in 18 kilometres, and you need no vehicle at all.
• The Amalfi Coast is longer, grander and harder to move around, with buses on a cliff road and higher prices.
• Cinque Terre is easier for a first trip to Italy and for anyone without a car.
• The Amalfi Coast is more spectacular and better for a longer, slower stay.
• Both are crowded in summer. Neither is a secret.

Our Amalfi Coast itinerary covers the other side of that comparison, and the 10 day Italy itinerary shows where Cinque Terre fits in a wider route.

Check hotels in the Cinque Terre →

Not sure which area to book? See where to stay in Positano.

Frequently asked questions

How many days are enough in Cinque Terre?

Three days is the comfortable answer, and two is the realistic minimum. Three lets you visit all five villages, walk one or two trail sections, and keep a spare day in case a trail is closed or the weather turns. One day is only enough to ride the train and stop in three villages.

What is the best way to get around Cinque Terre?

The train. The Cinque Terre Express runs between Levanto and La Spezia every 15 to 30 minutes in season and takes about four minutes between villages. Buy the Cinque Terre Treno Card, which covers unlimited train travel plus the paid trail sections, and comes out ahead from the third train ride of the day.

Do I need the Cinque Terre card?

Yes, if you plan to walk the coastal Sentiero Azzurro, which is a paid section of the national park. The Trekking Card covers the trails and shuttle buses; the Treno Card adds unlimited train travel between Levanto and La Spezia. The higher inland trails are free but longer and steeper.

Which towns should you visit or skip in Cinque Terre?

Visit all five — they are minutes apart by train. If you are short of time, prioritise Vernazza for its harbour and Manarola for the classic view. Corniglia is the quietest because it sits on a clifftop with 382 steps up from the station, and Monterosso is the only one with a sandy beach.

Is Cinque Terre or the Amalfi Coast better?

Cinque Terre is easier: five villages within 18 kilometres, linked by train, with no car needed at all. The Amalfi Coast is more spectacular but harder to move around, with a single cliff road and higher prices. For a first trip to Italy or a trip without a car, Cinque Terre wins.

When is the best time to visit Cinque Terre?

May, June and September. The weather is warm, the trails are generally open and the villages are busy rather than overwhelming. July and August are crowded and hot. From November to March many places close and winter storms frequently shut trail sections.

Can you do Cinque Terre in one day?

You can see it in a day — ride the train end to end, stop in three villages and walk one short section. That is what a day trip from Florence or Pisa delivers. What you miss is the evening, when the day trippers leave after about six and the villages become quiet, which is the best part of being there.