cinqueterre recommendations!

birdie119

we're going to be spending a few days in cinqueterre for part of our honeymoon (also doing florence and rome).  i was wondering if anyone has any restaurant/hotel recommendations for us.  we are leaning towards staying in monterosso, but we're not 100% set on that.

thanks!

AmoroAgain

Well, we didn't stay overnight there, just have been for day trips.  I also don't remember any of the restaurants (gee, I'm helpful!)  But I think part of the fun is just wandering until you find something, or getting recs from the hotel or BB that you stay at.

LaFemmeRousse

Hi from the Pittsburgh board

I visited Cinque Terre about two years ago.  We stayed in Monterosso and loved the whole experience.  It was my favorite part of Italy!  There, we stayed at the Albergo Marina and really loved it.  (There's another hotel nearby with a similar name, but this exact wording is the one where we stayed.)  It was quirky and cute, the staff spoke English, and there was a free small plates happy hour thing every day in the restaurant part with wine and great food. 

Another nice thing about staying in Monterosso is that if you want to do the whole cliffside trail in one day, starting in Monterosso and walking south to Riommagiore puts the toughest part of the trail at the beginning and leaves the easy part until the end.

Restaurants: we went to Ciak in the older (not the side by the train station) side of town, which is great for seafood.  I also really enjoyed Miky, in the new side of town and right on the beach- also great for seafood.  You can't go wrong with the local gelateria, of course!  Up by the black-and-white church in the older section of town, there is a wine store that will let you do free tastings of local wine.  Also, the lemon is a major crop in the Cinque Terre area, so if you have the opportunity to try desserts, limoncello, etc. with local lemons in it, do it!  So delicious.

birdie119

thanks for the tips!  these are great!

txex1996

I honeymooned there last summer and stayed in Monterosso as well. The best bit of staying in this village is that it is the only proper beach. Although, in Italy beach also means rocks leading all the way into the water. Make sure you have tough feet or shoes you don't mind getting wet.

We stayed in Villa Adriana which was simple and lovely, but had no airconditioner. That was fairly unpleasant.

I see that Miky was recommended. We ate there as well as it is one of the only Michilen star restaurants in this area. That being said, it was mediocre at best. Check out the trip advisor reviews and you see a very mixed bag. Best bets are to wander until you see something good. The food was wonderful.

One thing I would recommend is Angelo's boat tour.  (angelosboattours@yahoo.com). We did the day trip with a lunch. It was blissful.  

AmoroAgain

The free plate of food thing is called apperitivo and it happens at every bar, every night, as long as you have a drink.

romastylist

I have traveled to cinque terre a few times and stayed twice in Manarola. I prefer Manarola more as it is smaller and more quaint than Monterosso. With that said, Monterosso has more stores, hotels and restaurants as it is the largest. I have never had a bad food experience in cinque terre, seafood is a must if you like it. One of my favorite restaurants is Trattoria Dal Billy in Manarola. It is off a little side street and they make pasta in house.

kpasc

Thought I would let you know just in case your plans are somewhat open.

I was in Cinque Terro last year (Monterosso, Manorola, and Vernazza.)

They are nice, quaint, very small towns.  You can hike between them all which is probably the best part about it.

Honestly though, I think you should try the Amalfi Coast instead.  My Dad and I went to both last year on our trip to Italy.  We stayed on the Amalfi Coast first, for several days, and he loved it!  We stayed in Atrani, but travelled also to Amalfi, Positano, Sorrento and Capri, but Pompei is also on the coast if you are a history buff.

When we got to Cinque Terre we were hugely disappointed, it just doesn't compare at all in beauty or atmosphere, in my opinion.  If we had seen Cinque Terre first, it would have been okay, but really, it does not compare at all once you have seen them both. 

The Amalfi Coast is very easy to get to as well.  From Roma Termini (train station) you would go to Napoli (Garibaldi station).  Get off the train and find the lower platforms that will drive you out to Sorrento.  If you choose to stay further down the coast it is an easy bus ride (and you get to look out at the beautiful sparkling sea, and lemon groves - simply amazing!) 

You can bus hop along the coast the same as you can in Cinque Terre, and each town has its own flavour.  Positano is probably the most picturesque place to stay on the mainland.  Sorrento is the most lively.  The island of Capri is the most upscale, with all of the designer stores and high class shopping.  

Hope this helps!