Riviera Towns

In the southeast of France, yacht-strewn shores, cliffside towns, and sleepy fishing villages simmer underneath the Mediterranean sun.
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The French riviera is beautiful. This is a great read and the article has reaffirmed the fact that I need to take another trip to Nice to experience Mardi Gras! We love St Tropez — it feels like home, in fact, one day it will be! So many good restaurants and the beaches and local scenery are great. You can also explore some great local vineyards down the road.

After seeing this post I miss The French Riviera more than anything. Use to live in beautiful Nice, cant wait to go back now, this post brought some good memories back. Name required Your actual name, not your online persona, website name, company name or keywords, otherwise your comment won't be published. Email required will not be published. Comment required Please do not advertise and make sure your comment adds value, otherwise we regret that it won't be published. Links are not allowed here - if you would like to advertise, please contact us for details.

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As we arrived at a tiny picturesque harbour we were wondering how in the world we would keep ourselves and the kids busy here the whole day…. It turned out that Portovenere had so much more to offer than it looked at first sight.


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We visited the 12th century castle, the 13th century church of San Pietro, walked along the cliffs and saw the nearby grottos, climbed countless staircases and explored the narrow streets of this medieval town… There are plenty of restaurants, gelaterias, and little shops… Our time in Portovenere flew by. It was such an enjoyable visit with so much history, stunning vistas over the Mediterranean, and very few tourists compared to Cinque Terre. Palmaria, Tino, and Tinetto. And in summer there are many more options to hire boats, visit beaches, go swimming, snorkelling or diving… Here you can read more about the best things to do in Portovenere.

Destinations

If you are visiting Italian Riviera in high season, I would strongly consider staying in Portovenere and using it as a base town for excursions. You can find the best deals for Portovenere accommodation here. Camogli was a completely unexpected find for us, so we consider it to be a true hidden gem of Liguria. We passed it without realising that there was a turn to the town centre and ended up in the next village. Five minutes turned into several hours and we never wanted to leave… Camogli is without doubt one of the most beautiful coastal towns of the Italian Riviera!

We walked down to the beach without having a slightest idea of what to expect. And the moment we saw it, we had a WOW moment. One of those moments you travel for.

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The kids loved looking for colourful stones and could have played on the beach for days…. Just as with the other nearby towns, there is plenty to see and do in and near Camogli, especially in high season. Here you can find the best deals for Camogli accommodation. Manarola is one of the five Cinque Terre villages and if I were to visit just one town there, this would be it.

With colored houses leaning against a mountain overlooking the Mediterranean, Manarola is as picturesque in reality as it is in the pictures. We only visited Manarola shortly, for sunset, and despite it being very busy, it was one of the most special experiences of our day in Cinque Terre. We had dinner at restaurant Nesun Dorma and it became one of my favourites spots for sunset.

Portofino is probably the most picturesque town of the Italian Riviera. Maybe even the whole of Italy. Surrounded by mountains and spectacular coastline, Portofino Peninsula is not to be missed in Liguria.

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The narrow coastal road leading to Portofino is incredibly scenic, just as the whole surrounding area. We truly enjoyed the walk leading to Castello Brown and the lighthouse of Portofino. A boat trip to the nearby 10th century San Fruttuoso Abbey is also not to be missed. Overpriced restaurants with snobbish personnel ruin this small picture-perfect village. Portofino is now the place for the rich and the famous. The place to stay in Portofino is the beautiful Belmond Hotel Splendido. I would recommend to have lunch or a drink there. The prices can hardly be worse than in the harbour where they charge over 8 EUR for a soda , and the views are said to be the best in town.

A nice alternative is also Belmond Splendido Mare. For cheaper options, check the best Portofino accommodation offers here. One of the bigger towns of Portofino Peninsula and the biggest of this selection, Santa Margherita Ligure is probably the most lively and local town of them all. With a good mix of local residents and vacationers, Santa Margherita Ligure is a town that seems to be one of the most popular options among those vacationing on the Italian Riviera. Beautiful beaches, a big variety of accommodation , plenty of dining and shopping options, and easy access make it one of the best towns along the Ligurian Coast.

We enjoyed walking around the harbour area and checking out the local food stores selling wine, cheese, and local pastry specialties. Santa Margherita Ligure is located just a few kilometres from Portofino, but what a difference! Vernazza is one more really picturesque little village along the Cinque Terre coast. I strongly recommend to make an effort and hike a part of the Vernazza — Monterosso trail for some of the best views of Cinque Terre.

Lerici is another beautiful town of Italian Riviera, situated in a picturesque inlet of Golfo di Poeti, close to La Spezia and the above mentioned Portovenere.

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Lerici, also called The Pearl of The Gulf Perla del Golfo , is a charming coastal town with a small marina, a 13th century castle and a church from the same period. So here it is, the secret is out — you can still find a real Italian beach town on the Italian Riviera, one that somehow managed to escape the crowds from the huge cruise ships docking just a few kilometres away.

And indeed, it was really worth a visit. You can also get there by bus and in summer also by boat. The best view over this little colourful town can be found down at the harbour.

So, this is my short guide to the most beautiful small coastal towns of the Italian Rivera. Did I miss any of your favourites? Please leave a comment and share your experience and the most special places along the Ligurian coast. If you enjoyed reading this post, please share it with your friends. Are you on Pinterest? Good to hear that you found some new inspiration for your trip. Parking is really difficult anywhere in that area and there are restricted traffic zones as well just driving past those will get you a big fine as there are cameras everywhere.


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Believe me, it will save you lots of headaches and probably lots of time as well. Enjoy it and feel free to come back and tell us your experience after your visit. Camogli ir Portovenere pati susiradau, bet Tellaro ir Fiacherino — tikras siurprizas.

Hi, love this post. We are planning a 2 week trip in June of Road trips are our style and visiting small coastal towns and beaches are our priority. Is it possible to do our first week here and then do our second week in the Amalfi Coast? What would be the distance from Liguria to the Amalfi Coast? Where would you recommend flying into and flying out of, if this is possible? Thanks so much for your advice. If you have a week at each place Liguria and Amalfi , you can visit quite many places. You could break the drive in two and spend some time half way.