Portofino is tiny: about 350 residents and only a few dozen places to stay, mostly luxury hotels and apartments, so rooms are scarce and expensive in summer. If your budget allows, sleeping in the village gives you the Piazzetta at dawn and after the day-trippers leave. Otherwise the smart choice is Santa Margherita Ligure, about 5 km away, with far more hotels, a railway station and buses and boats to Portofino. Rapallo and Camogli are good alternatives.
- Sleep in Portofino: for a special trip, if you book well ahead and accept luxury prices
- Best base: Santa Margherita Ligure, 20 minutes by bus or a short boat ride
- More choice and lower prices: Rapallo, linked to Portofino by boat
- Most charming alternative: Camogli, with seasonal boats to San Fruttuoso and Portofino
- Car: not needed; the road to Portofino is narrow and parking is limited
Hotels in Portofino on Booking Hotels in Santa Margherita
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Staying in Portofino
Booking lists only about seventy places in Portofino and its immediate surroundings, including apartments and a handful of famous five-star hotels. Sleeping here means having the harbour almost to yourself in the evening and early morning, when day-trippers and cruise groups have gone. The downsides: high prices, especially from May to September, very few rooms, and no train station.
Book months ahead for summer and check exactly where the property is: some “Portofino” listings are actually on the hill above the village or towards Paraggi, a walk or bus ride from the Piazzetta.
See places to stay in Portofino
Santa Margherita Ligure: the best base
Santa Margherita Ligure has around three hundred places to stay, from grand seafront hotels to family-run guesthouses. Its station is called Santa Margherita Ligure-Portofino and has trains to Genoa and the Cinque Terre. To Portofino you can take the AMT 782 bus from the station (about 20 minutes), the ferry, or walk along the seafront road past Paraggi bay in just over an hour.
Hotel ★★★★★
Grand Hotel Miramare
Santa Margherita Ligure
Excellent
Located in Santa Margherita Ligure, Grand Hotel Miramare offers a sun terrace, a saltwater swimming pool immersed in the tropical garden, and views of the Tigullio Gulf.
Check availabilityHotel ★★★★
Hotel Helios
Santa Margherita Ligure
Fabulous
Located directly on the seafront in Santa Margherita Ligure, Hotel Helios offers a private beach, restaurant and professional service. The rooms are equipped with LCD TV and free Wi-Fi. Most…
Check availabilityHotel ★★★★
Hotel Continental
Santa Margherita Ligure
Fabulous
Overlooking the Bay of Santa Margherita Ligure and the Portofino Promontory, and surrounded by a garden leading to the beach, Hotel Continental features a fitness and wellness center, and 2…
Check availabilityHotel ★★★
Albergo Minerva
Santa Margherita Ligure
Fabulous
Located 200 meters from the coast, Albergo Minerva surrounded by a garden offers free Wi-Fi, a panoramic terrace and a sauna. Modernly furnished, the spacious rooms have private bathrooms, air…
Check availabilityHotel ★★★
Hotel Villa Anita
Santa Margherita Ligure
Fabulous
Located in a quiet area of Santa Margherita Ligure, Hotel Villa Anita offers a free heated outdoor pool, a furnished private garden, classic-style rooms with air conditioning, and free WiFi…
Check availabilityAll places to stay in Santa Margherita
Rapallo: more choice, lower prices
Rapallo is the largest town in the area, with around eight hundred places on Booking, a long seafront and a station on the main line. Prices are usually lower than in Santa Margherita. The Tigullio ferry runs from Rapallo to Santa Margherita, Portofino and San Fruttuoso all year, with seasonal timetables and weather permitting.
Camogli: the most charming alternative
On the other side of the Portofino promontory, Camogli is a colourful fishing village with a pebble beach and a station. From spring to autumn boats sail from Camogli to San Fruttuoso and Portofino; by road you have to go round via Santa Margherita. A good choice if you want atmosphere and quieter evenings.
Getting to Portofino from your base
- Bus: AMT line 782 from Santa Margherita station to Portofino, about 20 minutes, frequent during the day.
- Ferry: Servizio Marittimo del Tigullio, line from Rapallo and Santa Margherita to Portofino and San Fruttuoso, all year with seasonal timetables. Seasonal boats also run from Camogli, Recco and Genoa.
- On foot: from Santa Margherita about 5 km along the coast road, just over an hour, with stops at Paraggi.
- By car: motorway A12 exit Rapallo, then the narrow coast road. In season traffic is filtered towards Portofino and the covered car park in Piazza della Libertà, about 300 m from the Piazzetta, fills up fast.
To see the best of the area, read our guides to Portofino and to the walk to San Fruttuoso.
Frequently asked questions
Is it worth staying in Portofino?
Yes, for a special trip: in the evening and early morning the village is quiet and magical. But rooms are few and expensive, so many travellers stay in Santa Margherita Ligure and visit Portofino by bus or boat.
What is the best town to stay near Portofino?
Santa Margherita Ligure: it has many more hotels, a railway station and buses and ferries to Portofino. Rapallo is cheaper, Camogli more atmospheric.
How do I get from Santa Margherita to Portofino?
By AMT bus 782 in about 20 minutes, by ferry, or on foot along the coast in just over an hour.
Do I need a car to stay near Portofino?
No. Trains reach Santa Margherita and Rapallo, and buses and ferries connect them to Portofino. The road is narrow and parking in Portofino is limited.