Anyone who has ever see a picture of the Cinque Terre will recognise the colorful buildings clustered around pretty, boat-filled harbours, steep cliffs, impossibly blue waters, and lush countryside and Vernazza fits this image to a tee. In fact, it's likely the exact village featured in those images that you are calling to mind. Perhaps the most beautiful and characteristic of villages of the Cinque Terre, it is a small fishing town that was founded around 1000AD and is a must-see for anyone who has found a vacation rental in the Cinque Terre.
In addition to being a pretty town that boasts a photogenic piazza on the seafront that is flanked by a church and castle on either side, plenty of restaurants, bars and other eateries, hiking trails among terraces covered in vineyards, olive groves and gardens, a pirate festival and more, Vernazza is home to two excellent beaches.
The first is busier and more popular, located right near the main square, a small sandy crescent at the core of the photogenic harbour of the town. It's pretty and the water is calm and the flat rocks scattered around are great for laying out and sunning on but you will likely find it difficult to get a spot.
The other beach, can be reached on the other side of town, through a passage carved in the rock near the main square, which can be a little treacherous, so be careful. This stony beach on the east side of the village is a little more rugged and a lot more private and was actually created by a flood and mudslides that happened just back in 2011. This is one of the less-frequented beaches in the area and a bit of a hidden gem, despite being a stone's throw from the town's more popular harbour-front beach.
No matter what you end up doing in Vernazza, however, you're sure to have a good time in this picture-perfect seaside town on the coast of Italy.
The first is busier and more popular, located right near the main square, a small sandy crescent at the core of the photogenic harbour of the town. It's pretty and the water is calm and the flat rocks scattered around are great for laying out and sunning on but you will likely find it difficult to get a spot.
The other beach, can be reached on the other side of town, through a passage carved in the rock near the main square, which can be a little treacherous, so be careful. This stony beach on the east side of the village is a little more rugged and a lot more private and was actually created by a flood and mudslides that happened just back in 2011. This is one of the less-frequented beaches in the area and a bit of a hidden gem, despite being a stone's throw from the town's more popular harbour-front beach.
No matter what you end up doing in Vernazza, however, you're sure to have a good time in this picture-perfect seaside town on the coast of Italy.
Photo credit: Med Cruise Guide / CC BY 2.0
