Cinque Terre is one of the most famous Mediterranean coastal locations famous for it's beauty and one of the most important tourist destination of the region. Being relatively
close to Florence, a little over 2 hours by bus, it's a very famous day tour destination and one of our most recommended tours when visiting Florence.
Cinque Terre are a collection of five villages, starting from the North to South:
Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola i Riomaggiore. Durring the 1000 year long history of the five villages, the inhabitants built their houses on the rough and steep terrain closer and closer to the sea. This led to a beautiful display of layered terraces and small paths connecting all the houses and villages. The biggest part of its charm is that the villages remained seemingly untouched by modern technology. There are not roads to reach the villages by car but the only way to go around the villages is by foot, by train and by boat. The houses are also very colorful which makes this place look like it came from a fairytale.
There are lots of amazing walking paths connecting the villages and one of the most popular walking paths is called
"The Path of Love" or in Italian (Via dell'Amore), which is connecting the two south most villages Riomaggiore and Manarola. It's told that a lot of young lovers used to enjoy walks along this route to enjoy the beautiful panoramas and that is how the path got it's name. Unfortunately due to an accident in 2012 the main part of this trail is closed and it's expected to be opened in 2021.
When taking a tour to Cinque Terre from Florence note that you will spend quite some time in the bus to reach this amazing place.
The tours are quite long, lasting about 12 hours, 5 hours driving and 7 hours enjoying Cinque Terre. Please also note that Florence and Cinque Terre are very crowded places and traffic can sometimes delay the tours, not by much, but still have some patience :) Regardless of which tour you choose, they have mostly similar itineraries.
You will visit all of the 5 villages using the
local train and have some free time in each village. If the weather permits it one of the trips from one village to the next will be organized by a
panoramic boat ride. Both the train and boat rides are organized by the local administration of the national park so very similar services will be provided. Please note that Cinque Terre is quite popular especially during summer and expect it to be crowded. We consider the boat ride the best part of the tour but don't let the sometimes very crowded boat influence your mood.
Some tours include a lunch which is mostly organized in one of the restaurants in Vernazza. It's a good idea to book a lunch beforehand so that you will spend less time searching for a good restaurant and waiting for food and have more time to walk around the amazing villages.
Cinque Terre is a great location to visit and we highly recommend it. You will definitely never forget this amazing place!