The Riviera di Levante and the Cinque Terre
Liguria can be found in north-west Italy. It is a long, narrow coastal region running from the tuscan border
all the way to France. Its setting is stunning, it lies between the Ligurian Sea and the mountains (Maritime Alps and the Apennines).
The whole region is like a huge green terrace with breathtaking sea view.
The Ligurian Riviera - also called Italian Riviera - is divided into 2 main parts by its capital city, Genova:
the Riviera di Ponente - the coast of the setting sun - to the west, and the Riviera di Levante - the coast of the rising sun - to the east.
The Riviera di Ponente is elegant, full of nice holiday resorts, sandy beaches and bigger towns.
The Riviera di Levante is my kind of place. It is wilder, more rugged and rustic, full of promontories, hidden bays and colourful seaside villages:
the Cinque Terre, Tellaro, Portovenere, Portofino, Camogli… just a few names to mention.
This website is about the Riviera di Levante and above all the Cinque Terre, the most beautiful gem of this coastline.
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What's new
Watch the movie Luca, then enjoy swimming with the mermaids.
Rent a private villa or luxury villa in the Cinque Terre area or in Tuscany, and enjoy privacy in your Italian vacation home.
Rent a motorboat or luxury yacht in Portofino and cruise around the beautiful peninsula.
If you are staying in the Portofino area, take a look at these private tours.
Accommodation
For the most authentic experience, stay in a private room or apartment in one of the Cinque Terre villages. Live like a local in one of the
historical houses, with that lovely Italian lady next door. Buy your groceries at the local market, hang your clothes on your private balcony,
have breakfast in the bar down the street, imagine what it feels like to be a Cinque Terre resident.
There is a solution for every budget, from cheap rooms to luxury apartments and private villas. Many places have a terrace with breathtaking views
of the Ligurian Sea, the green hills and the colourful houses.
Please note that the accommodations listed on my page are only a sample of all the accommodations available in the Cinque Terre villages.
For inquiry and booking, please use the booking form or write to info@cinqueterre-travel.com.
I will send you a detailed description and photos of the rooms and apartments available for your chosen dates.
Below you can see the most popular apartments.
If you are travelling to other areas of Italy as well, please let me know.
I can help you book accommodation and tours in several other areas of Italy, like Tuscany, Umbria, Piemonte, Le Marche, Amalfi coast, Procida,
Puglia, Calabria, Sardinia, Abruzzo, just to mention a few.
Stay in this house with 5 apartments and enjoy the hospitality of its wonderful owners.
Choose one of the high quality luxury apartments with stunning terrace and view.
Check out one of my favourite balconies to relax with a glass of Cinque Terre wine.
Book this house for 10 people if you are travelling with a big family or a group of friends.
This design B&B is my favourite new accommodation. Also accessible by wheelchair.
This ligurian-style villa is immersed in nature and offers unbeatable seaview.
This unique loft apartment is the dream of any artist, and now you can spend your holiday here.
Enjoy the view of the stunning main square of Vernazza from the terrace of this apartment.
Rent this cosy apartment in the heart of Riomaggiore with breathtaking view.
Discover the Riviera di Ponente and stay in this central farmhouse run by a wonderful family.
Book a comfortable double room and enjoy the sunset from your terrace after your day out hiking.
Stay in this beautiful farmhouse amidst olive groves and relax by the swimming pool.
Boat rental
You haven't seen the Cinque Terre until you see it from the sea as well. The villages look stunning from the water.
For the best experience, rent a private boat for your family or friends and spend an unforgettable day on the sea.
Enjoy the amazing views and don't forget your bathing suit. I personally love swimming on tiny beaches that can only
be reached by sea or diving into the crystal water straight from the boat. After a refreshing dip in the sea, just relax
on board with a cold drink in your hand. And don't forget: this is the best way to beat the crowds!
Renting a private boat from La Spezia is also a great solution for those arriving by cruise ship in La Spezia.
You can rent a boat with or without skipper. There are different kinds of boats available: sailboat, sail yacht,
motorboat, gozzo boat, ligurian motorboat, motor yacht, luxury motor yacht, rubber boat, catamaran, fishing boat...
You can rent a boat not only in the Cinque Terre area, but also from Portofino, Santa Margherita Ligure and Rapallo.
To see the list of boats available in the Cinque Terre area, please visit my
boat rental in Cinque Terre page, while the boats available in the Portofino area are listed on my
boat rental in Portofino page.
Sail around the Gulf of La Spezia, Portovenere and the Cinque Terre with this small, friendly sailboat.
Pamper yourself, your family and friends, and spend an unforgettable day on this traditional gozzo boat.
Enjoy a day trip to the Cinque Terre, Portofino or Tuscany with this stylish sailboat up to 35 people.
You'll love this traditional fishing boat, the wonderful skipper and the wine and snacks he will offer you.
Feel like a movie star on this luxury yacht while cruising around Portofino and the Cinque Terre.
Rent this luxury motor yacht from Rapallo and see Portofino and the Cinque Terre villages in one day.
Rent this fast motorboat from Portofino and enjoy speed out on the open sea.
Enjoy the high life around Portofino on an exclusive yacht, with champagne and oysters on board.
Drive this motorboat around the Portofino Peninsula and enjoy snorkeling in the stunning bays.
Drive this fast motorboat yourself and enjoy the fantastic coastline between Lerici and Tellaro.
Charter a luxury yacht for a splendid trip to Portofino.
Book this big boat for up to 70 people to see Portovenere and the 5 villages from the sea.
Tours
I have been reading several articles about new travel trends, and it's all about active travel and authentic experiences.
Instead of sitting on the beach all day, take some local tours in the Cinque Terre, La Spezia or some other areas of Liguria, and
I am sure it will be the highlight of your trip. It's the best way to meet local people and it's nice to meet other travellers as well.
During a tour you can learn so much about the history of the area, local life and the people who live here. If you'd like to spend a day
out on the sea, rent a boat, do a sailing trip or a kayak tour, or discover underwater life during the diving
tour. If you'd like to spend time in the surrounding hills, take a guided hike or an ebike tour. For the most adventurous, there
is paragliding, rock climbing and wild water river trekking.
Don't forget about the gastronomy of the Cinque Terre. Choose a cooking class or a pesto course, learn to make pizza and focaccia,
join a wine tour or an olive oil tasting. Below you can see some of the most popular tours last year. To see the list of all tours available, please
visit my Tours page.
Choose the morning tour or the sunset cruise, and enjoy some drinks or even great food on board.
Book this fantastic sailing tour for a really relaxing day out on the dark blue water.
The kayak tour is your best choice if you'd like to spend an active day on the sea.
Learn to make pizza and focaccia from an Italian pizzaiolo.
Visit the fantastic market of La Spezia with a local chef and prepare some seafood dishes together.
Meet the winegrower in his breathtaking vertical vineyard and taste his Triple A wines.
Visit an organic vineyard above Bonassola with beautiful seaview and taste the local wines, together with some snacks.
Visit an olive farm in La Spezia and learn about olive oil with the help of an olive oil expert.
This is really popular! We make it easy for you, you just need to enjoy your hike.
Make the most of your stay in the Cinque Terre with the help of a professional local guide.
This rock climbing adventure will be fun for beginners and experienced climbers as well.
Choose from several different itineraries and discover the area from an ebike.
Other services
Over the past decade I've been receiving thousands of emails from all over the world. I feel grateful and honoured that so many
people trust me and ask me to organise their holiday in the Cinque Terre and some other parts of Italy. I've been booking hundreds of
apartments, rooms, boats and different tours for these people. Then once in a while I get an email from a traveller with a special
request: he wants to propose his girlfriend on a sailboat, they want to get married with seaview, they'd like to have their luggage
transferred while hiking or a company is planning an incentive tour or team building in the Cinque Terre. Well, I have done all of these now,
and that's why I have created this section. You can write me with the craziest ideas, and I'll do my best to help you.
Have a special wedding with seaview in a picture perfect village of the Italian Riviera.
Let me help you organise a surprise birthday or a marriage proposal in this stunning location.
Travel in a comfortable way, rent a private transfer or get a luggage transfer while you are hiking.
The Cinque Terre is the ideal destination for an incentive tour or team building, with so many activities to choose from.
Book accommodation
Tuscany
The Cinque Terre is only a few kilometers away from the Tuscan border, so many travellers visit Tuscany before or after the Cinque Terre.
As I have travelled around Tuscany many times and know it very well, I can help you plan your itinerary and
book a room, apartment or entire farmhouse (agriturismo) for you.
Tuscany is one of Italy's most beautiful regions, with a great variety of landscapes and uncountable treasures.
Rolling hills with cypresses, vineyards, silver olive groves, poppy fields, sunflowers, medieval villages, stone farmhouses,
sandy beaches, small islands, rocky mountain peaks, skihills, world famous Renaissance pieces of art, Michelangelo, Leonardo,
Giotto, simple dishes of the countryside, delicious red wine, golden olive oil… Tuscany is all of this, and so much more.
Read more about Tuscany
Riviera di Ponente
For about ten years, I've been travelling around the Riviera di Levante and the Cinque Terre. I have discovered
basically every village and town along the coast, all the way from Tuscany to Genova. I was always wondering, what's on
the other side of Genova, in the western part of Liguria. So I have started to visit this area as well, the Riviera di
Ponente, which starts around Genova and goes all the way to the French border.
As I am really passionate about the Riviera di Levante, I was curious to see the other side. Am I going to like it?
Or is it going to disappoint me? Well, I have to admit that it is much nicer than I expected. It is true that the coast is
more built up so it is not so wildly beautiful, there are
many bigger towns, some of them without much character, but there
are many hidden gems around.
Read more about the Riviera di Ponente
Procida
If you love the Cinque Terre, you will also love the Island of Procida.
Procida is still a well-kept secret, most people outside of Italy have no idea where it is.
Unlike its sister islands in the Bay of Naples, glamorous Capri and green Ischia, Procida is still under the radar of most travellers.
With its colourful houses painted with pastel hues of yellow, pink, white, blue and green, tiny fishing boats, lush vegetation and the sea all around,
this tiny island looks like a painting. Procida has a very unique atmosphere, a truly south italian vibe: feels like downtown Naples was dropped
on a piece of paradise in the Tyrrhenian sea. So full of life!
Read more about Procida on my italy-slowtravel.com website and send me an e-mail if you would like to book an apartment,
tour or boat in Procida.
