Manarola

The best way of entering Manarola is through one of the hiking routes from Corniglia. From this perspective, the houses simply cluster one into another, on the cliff, as if they were spawned by the rocks themselves.

At first glance, Manarola would be a fishing village, considering the large number of fishing boats in the harbor. However, the name – Manarola – tells us a different story. This word means actually something much more different – the path from the mill to the water. And, as a matter of fact, one of the more important architectural vestiges in this village is the old mill and the olive press, restored to their former glory by the National Park of Cinque Terre.

Besides that, Manarola is also the greatest wine producer from all the five villages of Cinque Terra.

Other places to visit would be the Church of San Lorenzo, built the 14th century, within the Papa Innocenzo IV Piazza, the bell tower which once served as a defense tower, the San Rocco historical hospital, the Our Lady of Health shrine – a church that visited by tourists and pilgrims as well.

As all the other villages in Cinque Terra, Manarola is also a very old settlement. The first year it is mentioned in a historical document is 1273, when – under Genovese rule – the village starts to progress, becoming one of the region’s best olive and wine suppliers.

However, it is not all about history in this small village. Besides restaurants and the best gelateria in all Cinque Terra, Manarola can also provide a very nice swimming area, where anyone can dive into the water from some big rocks – carefully placed there. And, if there are tourists interested in spelunking, there are also plenty of caves and underwater caves around. Accessible further on the Blue Path are even more swimming places.