Nisheet and I have hiked some pretty incredible trails. We have hiked the Beehive Trail in Acadia National Park, Angels Landing in Zion National Park, and Chapel Loop in Picture Rocks National Lakeshore. And today, we were going to add to that list of epic hikes. We were going to hike the Cinque Terre. Ok, maybe not the entire Cinque Terre, but we were going to hike between Manarola and Corniglia.  

Hiking in the Cinque Terre is extremely popular, but it has changed somewhat in the past few years. The most popular (and easiest) trails were right along the sea’s edge. I’ve heard they made for a lovely stroll between the towns. But these trails are, for the most part, now closed because of crazy storms that hit the area in 2011 creating landslides and wiping out part of the paths. Supposedly, they will open sometime in the future, but who knows when that will be. Until then, you are left with the more challenging hiking trails that take you high into the hills and present you with such incredible views. You’ll likely be happy you were forced to take these longer trails. 

But first, coffee. 

And then we were off! 

Almost immediately, the trail takes a vertical turn and goes straight up the hill. We huffed and puffed our way up. The steep hills we had been walking up the past couple days hadn’t quite prepared us for the steepness of this trail. But we persevered and made it to the top of the hill. It deserved a mini celebratory dance from Nisheet. We were rewarded with awesome views of the coastline, vineyard, and our little town of Manarola. We could also see Corniglia, our destination, way off in the distance. 

One of the coolest things about this hiking trail was how it cut through the vineyards. And to make it even cooler, we actually got to see some locals collecting the grapes! They have these metal tracks that go up and down the hills for tiny little trains to carry the buckets of grapes. The locals we saw weren’t collecting very many grapes though, so they just carried them. They must have been in crazy good shape because I was panting without carrying such a load! 

That’s our little town down there in the picture! 

The trail flattened out and meandered around the curves of the mountain providing breathtaking views. But then, suddenly, it was going up again through a forest. Where did this come from? When would we ever reach the top? It was a much harder climb than I was anticipating, and I started second guessing the outfit I was wearing. I really should have taken the advice of others and worn sneakers or even hiking shoes. But, I was on my honeymoon so I was determined to look somewhat fashionable! 

We eventually reached a little town (Volastra), and most of the other hikers we had passed were stopping for a lunch break or a gelato, but we pressed on. We still had a lot of adventures on our list for the day. 

Quick tip: If you want to hike but don’t want to have to endure the steep trail between Manarola and Volastra, then you can take a bus and start at Volastra. 

The sweeping vistas became even more beautiful after Volastra, and the trail became easier being mostly flat or downhill from this point on. It was such an amazing hike with the views of the coastline and being able to walk through the vineyards. I had never experienced anything quite like it, and I felt like I was in dream. Real life could not possibly be this stunning, could it?

After the 2-3 hour hike, we made it to Corniglia. It is the smallest of the 5 towns and set high above the sea unlike the others. But, like the other towns, it was full of narrow alleyways and amazing views. We walked around for a little bit taking in the sites, and then we had to sample some gelato, of course. The best in town is from Alberto Gelateria. Such a fun place! 

After exploring Corniglia, we headed on to our last stop in the Cinque Terre, Vernazza. We could have hiked there, but we decided to be lazy and take the train. Plus, we were going to quickly run out of time. 

To get to the train station at Corniglia, there are approximately 380 steps. Good luck if you are trying to walk up them! Luckily we were going down. 

Vernazza is one of the more popular towns. The hills aren’t quite so steep, and the harbor area is charming and picturesque. This town was also one of the hardest hit by the storms a few years back and it was quite evident by the weather worn buildings. That just added to the ambiance though.

We grabbed a bottle of local beer and prosecco, headed to the harbor, and soaked in the views. There were tons of little fishing boats, and I was captivated watching local families with kids come in from a day out on sea, tying up their colorful boats, unloading the catch of the day, and being greeted by other family members. Such a simple adventurous life!

I could have sat there watching the Vernazza life for days, but eventually decided to head back to Manarola and catch one more sunset from our balcony. Tomorrow we were headed to Florence.

On the way back to the train station, we came across this little offshoot from the main pathway with huge signs saying “Danger” and “Keep out”. I don’t know about you, but when I see that, I get this urge to see what the fuss is all about. So, we hopped over the bright orange fence, walked through a dark, damp tunnel, and were lead out to the cutest little rocky beach ever. 

After wading in the water for a while, we finally caught the train back to Manarola just in time for sunset. We then had a quick dip in the water and got take out (lasagna, seafood, and a bottle of local white wine) to enjoy on our balcony. We sat there for a long time into the night listening to the sound of the waves and peacefulness of the town we had grown so fond of. Maybe we should stay here forever.