We asked our local expert Giorgia for some insider tips to our hiking tour in Cinque Terre and she blew us away with all the good info that follows below. What does she say about the hiking? “All the hikes are quite easy and with stunning views. While you walk you are surrounded by olives trees, terraces and gardens. You have mountains in a side and blue sea in the other. The local food is gorgeous and genuine… Lemons, local olive oil, fish and vegetables.”
Here some great “ street foods” or dishes they can’t miss:
Focaccia ligure: It’s simply flatbread with olive oil and salt. The baker roughs up the dough with finger holes, then bakes it. Focaccia comes plain or with onions, sage, and olive bits, and is a local favorite for a snack on the beach. Bakeries sell it in rounds or slices by the weight.
Farinata: This fried bread snack — made from chickpea meal, water, oil, and pepper — is baked on a copper tray in a wood-burning stove. Farinata is sold at pizza and focaccia places.
Both focaccia and farinata are perfect for a picnic on the beach!
Pesto: This region is the birthplace of pesto. Basil, which loves the temperate Ligurian climate, is ground with cheese (half Parmigiano cow cheese and half pecorino sheep cheese), garlic, olive oil, and pine nuts, and then poured over pasta. The best match is with spaghetti or trofie (made of flour with a bit of potato, designed specifically for pesto).
Accuighe : In english anchovies, a local specialty , ideally served the day they’re caught. Try them fresh or under salt . Tegame alla Vernazza is the most typical main course in Vernazza: anchovies, potatoes, tomatoes, white wine, oil, and herbs. The anchovies of Monterosso are famous all over Italy. The fishermen of the Cinque Terre have been experts in anchovy fishing for centuries. They really know the sea around the Cinque Terre and cleverly use a traditional technique. Anchovy fishing takes place at night, in the dark, with the use of a lamp. The well-equipped boats stop in the best spot. The sea is illuminated, the light attracts the anchovies and the fishermen surround them with their nets.
Don’t miss the local wines and we suggest to drink their fresh and dry white wines perfect with local seafood. The wine of Cinque Terre is a small DOC ,primarily a white wine. These wines are made from the grapes of the vineyards along the slopes of the mountains. Most of the vineyards are still being cultivated with Bosco, Albarola and Vermentino grapes. The specialty is the Sciacchetrà : liquored wine with 18% of alcohol. It is made by drying the grapes for a few months in a very dry place. It is perfect with dry biscuits and cheese.
Regards the villages, imagine 5 small towns located in small coves and steep valleys. A mix of simple , tiny and colored houses that from the distance remember the nativity scene. Once peaceful fishing villages whose clever residents even managed to devise a way to grow wine grapes on almost vertical slopes. Now relies almost entirely on tourism.
I really recommend the village of Volastra, a lovely jewel outside the touristic route. They will reach it on day 4th of our program. It is located above Manarola and offers a great view of the village and the coastline.
Vernazza is considered one of the hundred most beautiful village of Italy and it preserves its maritime vocation. We suggest a visit to the Sanctuary of Nostra Signora di Reggio that will invite to meditation and relax.
To reach it , hikers need to follow along a nice path among the nature.
Another place that worth the trip is the Abbay of San Fruttuoso , also known as the “Cathedral of the Sea” , located on the shores of a deep-set cove on the rugged Monte di Portofino coast. The legend says that the bishop of Tarragona, fleeing Arab invaded Spain, chose the bay for shelter and built a church where he buried the relics of the martyr San Fruttuoso. An angel had, in fact, instructed him to find a place where a natural spring was protected by a dragon, the story of whom was reported by the fishermen, who, together with monks were the only dwellers of the bay. It seems that the legend helped the fishermen in preserving their inheritance of the place as they have remained the only native presence here: colourful gozzos are stored under the abbey foundations, together with long picturesque nets.
Least but not last…some good slow food restaurants and local shops to buy some specialities. ( “I can guarantee for them!” – Giorgia).
Riomaggiore: Ristorante Ripa del Sole address Via De Gasperi 282
Levanto: Enoteca La Compera address Piazza Della Compera. Lovely and quite place, perfect for a good glass of wine and local cheese. A good selection of local food.
Levanto: Laboratorio del Pesto di Luigina address Via Dante,16. The best place to buy local delicatessen.
Monterosso: Da Eraldo address Piazza Matteotti.
Vernazza: Ristorante Il Gambero Rosso address Piazza Marconi, 7
Vernazza: Vernazza wine experience address Via San Giovanni Battista, 41. The best aperitivo with a great view!
Vernazza: Vineria Santa Marta address Via Roma 44. Lovely and small winebar perfect for a wine tasting .
For the best focaccia …
Camogli : Bakery Revello address via Garibaldi 183. Famous the one with local olives and onions.
Monterosso: Fornaio di Monterosso (via Fegina 110)
Santa Margherita Ligure: Panificio Pinamonti address via dell’Arco 24
Related Tour: this post is for hiking Cinque Terre on our self guided 7 night hiking tour of Cinque Terre.