One train ticket, five Italian villages and whole lot of gelato

Christopher Columbus in Genoa
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Cinque Terra is a stretch of coastline to the east of Genoa. Made up of five charming villages; Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore, this little piece of Italy encompasses a Unesco World Heritage site including a national park and protected marine area. The area is famous for its walking tracks which wind along the coastline between the villages and up into the steep coastal mountains. The beaches are a mix of coarse sand and smooth pebbles/stones with clear deep water rushing to shore in a stunning mix of greens and blues.

Sunset from the beach in Riomaggiore
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We were in Cinque Terra for a little under 2 days, which is by no means anywhere near enough time to take advantage of what this little piece of heaven has to offer. The villagers are friendly, the food is sumptuous and the scenery is breathtaking. Unfortunately due to its fame it is a little tourist heavy, which means you have to be a little bit savvy with where you choose to eat, stay and of course, how you want to get around. Trains run between the towns, as do a number of different walk ways. Each manner of town-hopping will cost you money but it is worth the investment.

They were simply, Italy.

Riomaggiore
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We based ourselves out of Riomaggiore, solely because it made sense to our travel plans. We spent our first day here looking about the town, shopping, and eating our way through the towns gelato supplies. The next day we would be up bright and early ready to explore the other four towns before heading to Rome. Each town along the Cinque Terra region has something a little different to offer. Monterosso has huge statues carved out of the cliffs and rocks which overlook its long stretch of beach. Vernazza is insanely quaint, brooded over by an 11th century castle. Corniglia was my favorite. Though not as cute as the others it had a gorgeous Lord of the Rings style zig zag stair case you need to climb to get up into the village, that alone puts it on my highlight reel. And Manarola is village of grapes, with more vineyards grown around this village then anywhere else in the region.

Mmm gelato
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As you can see from my poor attempts at photography, the words charming and quaint just don't do these little gems any kind of justice. They were simply, Italy.