The best time to visit Cinque Terre
Spring and early autumn are best for the paths; the sea is warm for swimming from June, and July and August are the busiest.
- Best
- Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct
- Via dell'Amore
- 29 Mar–24 Oct 2026
The best time to go is Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct. The month decides here how crowded the paths are and whether the sea is warm, and from the end of October the Via dell'Amore hours change.
If you only pick one month — September. Temperature is the mean over the whole day (not the daily high), and a rainy day has at least 1 mm of rain; averages for 2021–2024.
September is the compromise: the July and August crowds have eased, and the sea is still warm from the summer.
The paths
From April to June and September to October the paths are calmest. That is also the time for two days with the Monterosso–Vernazza path and the Via dell'Amore, with a slot booked in advance.
Sea and crowds
June to September is the time for swimming, but July and August are also the time of the biggest crowds on the paths and in the trains. Whoever comes then sleeps in a village and sets out before the day visitors.
Shorter hours
From the end of October the Via dell'Amore keeps shorter hours, 29 Mar–24 Oct 2026: 9:00–21:00 (last entry 20:30); 25 Oct 2026–27 Mar 2027: 9:00–18:00, so the walk goes in the morning. The closed section Manarola–Corniglia stays closed whatever the month.
Before you go
Short answers to what people ask most before setting out.
When is the best time to visit Cinque Terre?
Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct.
When are the crowds biggest?
In July and August, on the paths and in the trains.
What are the Via dell'Amore hours?
29 Mar–24 Oct 2026: 9:00–21:00 (last entry 20:30); 25 Oct 2026–27 Mar 2027: 9:00–18:00.
Ready for Cinque Terre?
Where to next
Getting around Cinque Terre
→From Pisa by train to La Spezia, then the local train through all five villages; the car stays out of the…
Genoa · 63 km
→A port and an old town squeezed between the sea and the hills, with a lift up to a lookout and a fishing village of pastel façades right at the waterline.
How well does Cinque Terre suit you?
→Six questions: a score for this place and others like it.
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