Where should I stay in Cinque Terra?

[repeater]

Will be in Italy for a couple of weeks at the beginning of April and I'm looking for recommendations on accomodations in the Cinque Terra. I will be there with my wife, so I'm looking for something romantic, but that doesn't cost a fortune.

It will be around Easter weekend, so I'm a bit concerned about my ability to just walk up and book a place without reservations. Should I be?

Also recommendations for places in Sienna and Lucca would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[HornInDub]

The Link

I use it all the time and there's great reviews on there.

In Cinque Terre, I can't recommend specific accomodation but I would stay in Rio Maggiore, the smallest of the cities. Very quaint and the other 4 cities are only a couple minutes away by train if you wanted to go visit.

In Siena, I stayed in a B&B recommended on the Tripadvisor website. Accomodation in Siena is expensive, so prepare yourself...

 

[repeater]

Yeah, I would like to stay at least one night in Siena, but it might become a day trip out of Florence if good accomodations within my budget are hard to come by.

 

[Ineedtix]

My wife and I went to Cinque Terre about a year and a half ago. We actually stayed about 30 minutes away from Vernazza in Santa Margherita. I highly recommend that town if you're looking for something more resort-y.

While I can't comment on accommodations, I'd recommend staying in either RioMaggiore or Vernazza. Make sure you do the five city hike. It takes about six hours but it's well worth it.

 

[Grasshopper]

Mrs. Grasshopper and I have stayed in Riomaggiore 3 times and Montorosso al Mare once... highly recommend Riomaggiore. We rented a room overlooking the ocean/harbor from a guy named Edi. The room was up many stairs, had a fridge and small bathrooom (toilet and shower). The bed was big and nice and the view was awesome. I think it cost about 50 or 60 bucks a night.

We got Edi's name from a Rick Steves book. (In our opinion, Rick Steves is very good for places to see, but not so much on lodging and food. However, we did like Edi and his rooms).

We've taken day trips to Portovenere, Portifino, S.Margarita from Riomaggiore, as well as the 5 village hike each time we're there.

We made the arrangements with Edi via email. There is a really good place to eat that overlooks the harbor in Riomaggiore, as well, but you'll need reservations if you eat after 715pm or so. We went there a few times and the last night we were there, they gave us a lot of free drinks/food bc (I guess) they recognized us. Not sure why else. Nice family run place with great seafood, pesto, and wine.

If you need emails for these places, just let me know.

Hookem

Grasshopper

 

[XYZ]

I probably stayed in the same room that Grasshopper mentioned. Absolutely stunning and cheap. Edi is the guy you want so make sure you ask for a room that overlooks the harbor. He will know what you are talking about. Grab a good bottle of wine and sit in the balcony to watch an Italian sunset. Life doesn't get any better.

 

[4thGeneration]

I would go with that Edi person... We talked to some lady from the train station (before realizing there are signs warning against it) and got slightly ripped off on our room - had a great location overlooking the central street (near the grocery store and restaurants) but the bed was broken and the price was higher than advertized.

 

[doylehargraves]

The Cinque Terre is about as close to paradise as it gets. Breathtaking stuff.