The 5 Terre are those small fishing villages located between Levanto and La Spezia within the 5 Terre National Park ; question of Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore.

Here it all: colorful houses attached to each other, small squares with a few trees, colorful boats scattered, narrow lanes with steep stairs that climb the hills covered with olive groves, vines and lemon trees, overlooking the Ligurian Sea trails . the value of these places is that they are been free to the wild speculation of the Italian coast, still retaining the old time flavors of the Mediterranean. Practically in these villages most of the streets are closed to traffic and the only links to move from village to village are the railroad or the paths. Today the 5 Terre is one of the main tourist destinations not only Italian, but worldwide; to cite one example, major international tourist guides include at least 2- 3 days in these places, as much as for Rome, Florence or Venice and this has created an overcrowding in the periods of greatest influx of tourists.






Monterosso , with its 1,600 inhabitants, is the largest resort in the 5 Terre, but does not possess the typical characteristics: is divided into two parts by a tunnel that connects the old with the new part (Fegina). Compared to other villages, however, It has advantages: you can count more than 70 hotels and guesthouses, restaurants, bars and shops and a beautiful sandy beach which is the only one in all the 5 Terre.






Vernazza instead is the image village of 5 Terre always reported on tourist guides: in high season, when the train stops in the small station in the country, hundreds of tourists flock to the track and, when the train is gone, begin to go down the stairs leading in the only street of the village where there are bars and shops until you reach the square with the marina. For Vernazza American tourists is as important as Florence, so much so that in the square sat at the bar is easier to feel the 'New York accent that Ligurian. the town's name is said to derive from the wine that was produced, the Vernaccia, a type of sweet wine comparable to today Sciacchetrà, one of the most famous wines from all over Europe and exported mainly to America.








Corniglia is the only of the five Lands that stands on a hill about 100m above sea level: the panorama from here is truly wonderful. Because of its geographical compliance, Corniglia is life when compared to other towns: the tourist who stops in Corniglia is usually in passing and for this reason in Corniglia there are no hotels but only houses or B & B. the name of the place comes from the Latin Cornu meaning headland.











Manarola , Riomaggiore together, are famous for the name of the road or path that connects them: the Way, the most famous promenade of Italy. Manarola The name is said to derive from the Latin rota magna or from the dialect manarea both with significance of large wheel and refer to the wheel of one of the many mills that once were therein and used for pressing the poplar leaves from which was extracted the cellulose for the Genoese paper industry. on the hills of Manarola there is produces most of the wine produced in the 5 Terre and Volastra village is the headquarters of the Cooperative Winegrowers of 5 Terre founded in 1982.








Riomaggiore is named after the stream that passes through it; and 'a set of houses that seem stacked one on top, with colorful colors that from the top of the village arrive until porticciolocreando a picturesque landscape.

In fact, the cube shape of these houses inspired many artists of the twentieth century, especially those belonging to the movement of Macchiaioli. It seems that Riomaggiore is the most ancient village of the 5 Terre and its origin is due to the Greek refugees. for more information on the 5 Terre villages you can see this site that will allow you to take a virtual tour of the 5 Terre.