“The Cinque Terre is five small towns—beautifully isolated in the most seductive corner of the Italian Riviera. Each is gently and steadily carving a good life out of the difficult terrain.

For me, the best bits of Italy are traffic free-and in this unique mix of Italian culture and nature, there’s not a Fiat in sight. This six-mile stretch of the Italian Riviera is the rugged alternative to the glitzy Riviera resorts nearby. The traffic-free charm is a happy result of its natural isolation. There’s not a museum in sight—just sun, sea, sand (well, pebbles, wine, and pure, unadulterated Italy.” –Rick Steves

Riomaggiore

Vernazza

Monterosso al Mare - Old Town

And RS’s overview is spot on, except the details keep one gawking. We had seen back roads in Umbria and Tuscany we thought were steep and winding but the road to Monterosso outdid them all, with hairpin after switchback on a narrow road that afforded wonderful views if the driver can take his eyes off the road.
          The train, of course, is the easy way, and one that we learned to use regularly. And there are the hiking trails that CT is famed for, and we availed ourselves to the Vernazza-Monterosso trail. Still, the steep, sometimes terraced, hillsides gave testimony to people make the most of what they have.
          The Rick Steve’s effect, of drawing thousands of tourists to once quiet spots, is both enjoyed and bemoaned, bemoaned by those who knew CT before Rick Steves.

Bountiful lemons in Riomaggiore

Each town, despite all the similarities, was just different enough to be distinctive,
with the  best of each painting a palette of memories to be remembered for a long time.
            We stayed in Monterosso al Mare for three nights, in between our week in Siena and
our three nights in Piemonte. A serviceable apartment, with the
much appreciated parking spot next to it, became a reliable, even if echo-y, home base.

view of Monterosso - New Town, beyond rock; from Riomaggiore - across bay; Corniglia - high above water

Views of vertical terraces of Manarola; Riomaggiore's entry into the sea; view of Monterosso from northwest - opposite of above photos

train stop at Vernazza, soon to disappear in tunnel

passenger tunnel into Riomaggiore from train

Tim in passenger tunnel into Manarola from train; Vernazza train station below; a view high above Vernazza

a look back from Corniglia

beach at Monterosso - only real beach in CT

street scenes: Judy in Corniglia; natural use of bedrock in Vernazza; a picturesque junction in Vernazza

seafood dominates the menu - a change from Tuscany and Umbria

along the Vernazza-Monterosso trail: an automated climber for people and crops; olive tree nets; a precipitous hill close

Corniglia views: the 400 step climb from the train into town! and the customary rock holding the slate chimney cap

old style power in Manarola; part of trail in Vernazza; and gelato in a small cafe in Corniglia

picturesque church in Riomaggiore

another town where stones hold down the roof from high winds