Cinque Terre (Manarola), Cinque Terre, Italy

Our day started off with breakfast in the community room at our Hotel La Spiaggia in Monterosso. Hearty and filling, just what we needed before a full day of hiking.

Our original plan was to start our day by taking the boat from Monterosso to Riomaggiore, thus having the opportunity to see all five villages of Cinque Terre from the water. Unfortunately, the sea conditions were too rough and the ferry was suspended for the entire three days we were in Cinque Terre.

So instead we took the train from Monterosso to Manarola, the smallest of the five villages that make up Cinque Terre and explore that town.

Trains between the five villages run every 30 minutes or so in both directions for €4. Tickets can be purchased at the time of the ride but with the additional step of having to validate these single ride tickets we opted to buy ahead of time.

We purchased the Cinque Terre Card + Train before we left the US for €29 per person good for two days. This gave us unlimited train rides, and was also our required pass to hike from village to village. An added bonus, this pass could also be used as a free toilet pass. Flash this ticket at most public toilets in Cinque Terre and you get behind the turnstile for free. That is a saving of €1 per pee! Bottom line, getting the card ahead of time saved us time and money!  ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).