{"id":53880,"date":"2026-09-30T17:20:36","date_gmt":"2026-09-30T17:20:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/darkseagreen-rook-345411.hostingersite.com\/liguria\/manarola\/"},"modified":"2026-10-08T07:01:41","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T07:01:41","slug":"manarola","status":"publish","type":"localita","link":"https:\/\/italian-riviera.com\/en\/cinque-terre\/manarola\/","title":{"rendered":"Manarola"},"content":{"rendered":"

Manarola is the second of the Cinque Terre villages if you come from La Spezia, sitting between Riomaggiore and Corniglia. It is tiny: about 350 residents, one main street running down to the sea and tall, narrow houses painted pink, yellow and ochre, clinging to a spur of dark rock. Officially it is part of the municipality of Riomaggiore.<\/p>\n

This is the village behind the most famous Cinque Terre photo, the one of coloured houses stacked above the water, and of the illuminated nativity scene that lights up the hill above town every December. It is also wine country: terraced vineyards climb all around, producing Sciacchetr\u00e0, the sweet passito of the Cinque Terre, and trails lead up to Volastra and on to Corniglia. Since 1997 it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site together with Portovenere, the other Cinque Terre villages and the islands.<\/p>\n

Two things to know before you go. Manarola has no beach: you swim off the rocks by the harbour. And from May to October the village fills up with day-trippers, so arrive early in the morning or stay the night to see it before and after the crowds.<\/p>\n

What to see in Manarola<\/h2>\n
\"View<\/figure>\n

You can see the village on foot in two or three hours, but every route is either uphill or downhill. From the station a pedestrian tunnel takes you straight onto the main street; from there head down to the harbour, up to the church of San Lorenzo, then out along the path to Punta Bonfiglio. Wear proper shoes, not flip-flops.<\/p>\n

Punta Bonfiglio and the classic photo<\/h3>\n
\"Colourful<\/figure>\n

Punta Bonfiglio is the headland on the north side of the harbour. A seafront walkway, opened in 1968, starts from the little square above the boats and curves around the rock. After a few minutes, turn around: that is the postcard view, with the coloured houses piled on the cliff, the harbour below and the open sea. Almost every picture of Manarola you have seen was taken from here.<\/p>\n

Sunset is the best time, when low light warms the fa\u00e7ades and then the village lights come on. At the top of the headland there is a rest area with benches and a children’s playground, and higher up the village cemetery looking out to sea. On summer evenings it gets busy: come half an hour early if you want a spot on the wall.<\/p>\n

The harbour and the slipway<\/h3>\n
\"Boats<\/figure>\n

Manarola’s harbour is a cove between the rocks, with no piers or quays. Fishing boats are hauled up the slipway and into the small square at the bottom of the main street, which turns into a car park for colourful wooden boats. This is the heart of the village: everyone ends up here, sits on the rocks to watch the sea, and sets off for Punta Bonfiglio.<\/p>\n

In summer the rocks around the harbour become the village lido: people sunbathe on the flat rocks and jump in. More on that in the swimming section below.<\/p>\n

Via Discovolo, the main street<\/h3>\n
\"Main<\/figure>\n

The village grew along a single street, Via Discovolo, which follows the Groppo stream, now covered over. The lower part is lined with caf\u00e9s and shops; higher up it gets quieter. Steps and covered passages branch off towards the higher houses, and it is worth getting a little lost among the arches and stone walls, especially on the Riomaggiore side.<\/p>\n

Church of San Lorenzo<\/h3>\n
\"Church<\/figure>\n

At the top of the main street is the square with the parish church, officially dedicated to the Nativity of Mary but known to everyone as San Lorenzo, after the patron saint. A plaque on the fa\u00e7ade gives the date of construction: 1338. It is a fine example of Ligurian Gothic: a sandstone fa\u00e7ade, a pointed doorway with the martyrdom of St Lawrence in the lunette, and a white marble rose window from 1375, with twelve small columns and a ring of human and lion heads.<\/p>\n

The three-aisled interior was remodelled in Baroque style and partly brought back to its Gothic look by a late 20th-century restoration. Look for the two triptychs attributed to the “Master of the Cinque Terre”: one on the high altar, the other, on a gold background, brought from the sanctuary at Volastra. The feast of San Lorenzo is on 10 August.<\/p>\n

The bell tower and the Oratory of the Disciplinati<\/h3>\n
\"Oratory<\/figure>\n

The bell tower stands on its own in the same square, separate from the church. It started life as a watchtower and was raised and topped with a spire in the 14th century. Opposite is the 15th-century Oratory of the Disciplinati of the Santissima Annunziata, known as the “Azzurri”. On the corner with the main street you can still make out the old San Rocco hospital. The square gives a good view down over the village and, in December, across to the nativity scene.<\/p>\n

The bastion<\/h3>\n

Almost nothing is left of Manarola’s castle. What you can still see are the remains of the bastion, probably older than the 13th century, built into the walls of the houses facing the cliff. They are private homes: spot them from the seafront path by looking at the base of the most exposed houses.<\/p>\n

The illuminated nativity on the Tre Croci hill<\/h3>\n
\"The<\/figure>\n

In 1961 Mario Andreoli, a railway worker from Manarola, first put lights on the Tre Croci hill facing the village. Over the years the display grew to hundreds of figures made from recycled materials: the Holy Family and the Magi, but also fishermen and farmers. Andreoli died in 2022 aged 94; today the nativity is looked after by a village association together with the Italian Alpine Club (CAI) of La Spezia.<\/p>\n

It is switched on in early December, usually around the 8th (Immaculate Conception), with a torchlight procession and a small celebration, and stays lit every evening until January. The exact 2026 dates have not been published yet, so check in November. The church square is a good viewpoint; the widest view is from the Via Beccara, the unlit footpath towards Riomaggiore (bring a torch). Dates, times and how to get there are in our guide to the Manarola nativity scene<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Via dell’Amore<\/h3>\n
\"Via<\/figure>\n

The cliff path between Riomaggiore and Manarola has reopened after twelve years of closure due to a landslide. Today you need a ticket with a pre-booked time slot, and you can only walk it one way: in at Riomaggiore, out at Manarola. Rules, 2026 opening times and tips are in our guide to the Via dell’Amore<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Volastra and the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Health<\/h3>\n
\"Volastra<\/figure>\n

Above Manarola, among vineyards and olive groves, sits the hamlet of Volastra, whose name probably comes from the Latin “vicus oleaster”, the village of olive trees. Get there on foot on trail 506 or on the Park bus, which takes about ten minutes via Groppo. The sanctuary of Nostra Signora della Salute is a single-nave Romanesque church with a pointed doorway and a Gothic mullioned window; its feast day is 8 September. The view over the terraces and the sea from Volastra is one of the widest in the Cinque Terre.<\/p>\n

Things to do in Manarola<\/h2>\n

Swimming off the rocks<\/h3>\n
\"Rocks<\/figure>\n

At the harbour you get into the water from flat rocks or from a small platform with a metal ladder. The water is clear but deep straight away: fine for confident swimmers, less so for young children. Bring water shoes and a towel you don’t mind ruining. In July and August it is crowded by late morning; skip it when the sea is rough. For a real beach with sand and facilities, the nearest is at Monterosso<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Sciacchetr\u00e0 and the terraced vineyards<\/h3>\n
\"Trail<\/figure>\n

The vineyards around Manarola are among the steepest in Italy. The terraces are held up by dry-stone walls and served by small monorail tracks that carry grapes and tools where no vehicle can go. They produce Cinque Terre DOC white wine and, above all, Sciacchetr\u00e0, an amber passito made from Bosco, Albarola and Vermentino grapes dried for weeks. Very little is made, usually in small bottles. Try it with aged cheese or a dry biscuit, and buy a bottle straight from a producer if you find one open.<\/p>\n

Walks and hikes<\/h2>\n

Manarola to Volastra (trail 506)<\/h3>\n

Trail 506 starts from the upper part of the village and climbs stone steps through the vines to Volastra: a good hour of steep uphill with no shade. From the top you can ride the Park bus back down or carry on towards Corniglia.<\/p>\n

Manarola to Corniglia<\/h3>\n

The coastal stretch of the Sentiero Azzurro between Manarola and Corniglia has been closed for years because of landslides and won’t reopen soon. The alternative is the high route: trail 506 to Volastra, then 586 through pine woods and terraces, and 587 down to Corniglia<\/a>. It is about 5.5 km with a lot of climbing: allow a good three hours and carry plenty of water. Before setting off, check trail status on the Cinque Terre National Park website<\/a>; some paths require the Cinque Terre Card.<\/p>\n

The Via Beccara to Riomaggiore<\/h3>\n

The old mule track between the two villages is the Via Beccara (trail 531): about a kilometre and a half with roughly 200 metres of up and down, an hour’s walk. It is the only way to walk from Manarola to Riomaggiore, since the Via dell’Amore only runs the other way.<\/p>\n

Day trips from Manarola<\/h2>\n