When is the off season in the Cinque Terre? Mid-September to mid-June, excluding Easter. What to expect in the off season: In the summer, this group of five tiny, seaside towns is overwhelmed by foreign visitors.
Though it does not happen every year, Liguria and the Cinque Terre, like the rest of Italy, has seen increasingly intense and frequent autumn thunderstorms, with violent wind and heavy rain.
We recommend hiking the Cinque Terre in April, May, September or October. That's when temperatures are milder, so it's much more comfortable. These months also attract fewer tourists; at the peak of summer, the narrower sections of trail #2 in particular can get extremely crowded.
Vernazza: Located to the north of the Cinque Terre, Vernazza is probably the most beautiful and picturesque fishing village of Cinque Terre, where its colourful houses hang above the sea level on rugged cliffs. It has a charming natural port and an old castle, built to protect the area from pirates.
Visit some of the villagesChoose to visit two or three of the villages, for example Vernazza, Manarola and Riomaggiore. You have to skip Corniglia situated on top of a cliff 100 metres above sea level. If you are limited on time, take the train between the villages.
Corniglia is the only one of the five Cinque Terre towns that isn't a fishing town and you need to walk up around 365 steps to get there. That puts most people off and means that Corniglia is the Cinque Terre town with the fewest tourists.
Tap water is drinkable in all the Cinque Terre and in La Spezia. Do not use plastic and fill your bottles in safety! We do provide in each Cinque Terre Riviera property a Glass Water bottle to do our small part on the journey to Save our Planet!
Visitors to the Cinque Terre should expect frequent rains of short duration in the Spring and Fall, especially in October. The dryness of the summer months concentrates the flavor of the grapes that grow in the terraced hillsides that hikers traverse between the five villages.
Shopping and pricesThe Cinque Terre is not cheap. As everywhere in the world, tourism has raised prices. I often go to the market of La Spezia to shop for food, it's much cheaper than the stores of the villages. In restaurants, you have to expect Western European prices.
La Spezia is one of the best places to stay in the Cinque Terre if you're looking for a larger base, with a cobbled old town, and museums and sights of its own. The first of the towns you reach from La Spezia is Riomaggiore, the largest town, and a great base for walkers.
That said, Corniglia is by far the quietest of the Cinque Terre towns. Corniglia is located on top of a hill, far from the sea. While that makes for some seriously stunning views, it makes it harder to go for a swim in the sea and doesn't have the same maritime feeling as the other towns.
The accommodations are cheaper in La Spezia than if you were to stay in Cinque Terre, and the roads are a lot easier to navigate with luggage! La Spezia makes a great home base for your northern Italy / Cinque Terre adventures!