Cinque Terre: terraces, cliffs and villages above the Ligurian Sea

Cinque Terre on the Ligurian coast near La Spezia is a compact stretch of seaside hills where terraces, cliffs and five small villages form a continuous cultural landscape above the Ligurian Sea. The area lies in Liguria in north?western Italy and has been recognised as part of a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1997, reflecting a long history of human settlement along this narrow band between rock and water.

Terraced slopes between Punta Mesco and the headlands near La Spezia

Cinque Terre occupies a section of the eastern Ligurian Riviera between Punta Mesco in the west and coastal headlands near La Spezia in the east, where steep slopes fall directly towards the sea and cultivated terraces climb high above the shore.Stretching 15 km along the eastern Ligurian coast between Levanto and La Spezia describes the broader coastal band in which the villages sit. This strip of land forms part of the province of La Spezia in Liguria, reaching along cliffs and small inlets that face the Ligurian Sea.The coastline, the five villages, and the surrounding hillsides are all part of the Cinque Terre National Park and lie within a protected landscape.

The terrain around the villages is mainly mountainous and hilly, a narrow band with cliffs above the water and slopes cut into terraces for agriculture.The geography of the Cinque Terre is described as a narrow strip of land with cliffs overlooking the sea, secondary reliefs and terracing, and the coast is largely rocky with coves and few beaches. The hills rise quickly from the shoreline, creating short but steep catchments where small watercourses run down towards the sea, and paths and tracks follow the contours above the villages.

Five coastal villages and a national park landscape

Cinque Terre takes its name from the five coastal villages aligned along this band of cliff and terrace, each occupying a small notch in the shoreline or a ledge on the slopes above. The villages from north to south are Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore, and together they form the inhabited heart of the area.Cinque Terre lies in the west of La Spezia Province and comprises these five villages, which are linked by routes along the coast and inland. Each village occupies its own small bay, slope or spur, and stone buildings rise in tight clusters above small harbours or along the hillside.

The surrounding hillsides, the coastline and the villages together are included in Cinque Terre National Park, which is described as Italy’s smallest national park by area and protects a band of terraced Mediterranean landscape along the Ligurian coast.Cinque Terre National Park encompasses the territory of the Cinque Terre towns and parts of the communes of Levanto and La Spezia, including headlands such as Punta Mesco. The villages and their slopes also form part of the wider UNESCO World Heritage property “Portovenere, Cinque Terre, and the Islands (Palmaria, Tino and Tinetto)”, which links small coastal towns, terraced hillsides and nearby islands into a single recognised cultural landscape.The World Heritage property covers Portovenere, Cinque Terre and the islands and was inscribed in 1997, reflecting a landscape shaped over many generations.

Dry?stone terraces, vineyards and a cultural landscape recognised by UNESCO

One of the defining features of Cinque Terre is the network of terraces that climbs the slopes above the villages, supported by dry?stone walls that hold narrow strips of cultivated ground against steep gradients. Over centuries, these terraces have been used to grow vines and olive trees along the contours, creating horizontal bands that step up from the sea towards the crest of the hills.The UNESCO description emphasises stone?walled terraces developed over centuries for the growing of vines and olive trees, and notes that the coastal landscape shows intensive human adaptation of jagged slopes. The terraces form continuous sequences above and between the villages, with paths and tracks crossing them and connecting small plots.

This combination of steep coastal topography, terraced agriculture and compact villages is described by UNESCO as a cultural landscape, meaning a landscape where human activity and natural forms are tightly interwoven.The property was enrolled under criteria including an important interchange of human values and a remarkable example of traditional human settlement and land use, and the coastline between Cinque Terre and Portovenere is highlighted as having great scenic and cultural value. Cinque Terre was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1997 as part of this wider coastal ensemble, and the presence of both a national park and a World Heritage designation underlines the importance of the terraces, villages and cliffs as a single coherent whole.

Visiting Cinque Terre: what travellers from Western Europe should know

• The villages lie on the Ligurian coast in the province of La Spezia in north?western Italy, reached by rail services along the Riviera di Levante and roads that follow the coastal hills.
• The terrain is steep and terraced, with paths, stairways and lanes that climb between the villages and across the slopes, and approaches on foot frequently involve staircases and gradients above the sea.
• The coastline forms part of Cinque Terre National Park in Liguria, and nearby headlands such as Punta Mesco and coastal sections towards Portovenere frame the area within a wider protected landscape.
• The official language is Italian and the currency is the euro.

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Frequently asked questions about Cinque Terre

Where is Cinque Terre located?

Cinque Terre is a section of the Ligurian coast in the province of La Spezia in north?western Italy, forming part of Cinque Terre National Park and a UNESCO coastal landscape.

What can visitors expect on a visit to Cinque Terre?

Visitors encounter compact coastal villages, steep terraced slopes and rocky shoreline, with paths and stairways linking settlements and agricultural terraces in a narrow band between hills and sea.

What makes Cinque Terre distinctive among coastal regions?

Cinque Terre is distinctive for its combination of dry?stone terraces for vines and olives, tightly clustered villages and cliffs above the Ligurian Sea, recognised together as a cultural landscape by UNESCO.