Portovenere, shhh…. it´s a secret!

Portovenere. Could this be Italy´s best kept secret town?

I found this little gem to be just as beautiful as any of the Cinque Terre towns. Just as colorful but without the masses of tourist.

It was a windy day in Cinque Terre. In the heat of Monterosso we wanted to do something new and opted for a boat ride to see the colorful Cinque Terre towns from the ocean. Initially we wanted to head for Portofino but felt it was to far for a boat ride. Instead we headed south towards La Spetzia and the little town of Portovenere.

We were staying in Monterosso at the time and boarded there. The boat ride takes approximately 1 hour. Depending on whether you stop in every town or go directly. It is a beautiful ride. One I would highly recommend.

Portovenere sits hidden from the open ocean as it sits (literary) hanging in the rock. Tall colorful buildings called the Palazzata with “tunnels of  stairs that connects to the main street and the seafront.

We ate some amazing seafood here. Restaurants and cafés are spread along the main street. And the majority of food served are fresh delicious seafood. With the typical Italian dishes of course.

[supsystic-gallery id=5 position=center]

The first thing you spot arriving by boat is the church of San Pietro along with Doria Castle. A pretty majestic sight. It made me WOW´ed.

The town is small and you don´t need a lot of time to get around. One day is sufficient enough to get around and explore the sights. But if you would like some more time here. Make sure you get out to the Island by boat and that you have time to take a bath and linger along the ocean of Liguria.

I for one know that I will be back. Back to this Unesco World Heritage site. Next time, I will then have more than just a few hours like we did. Portovenere deserve to be highlighted as the pretty town it is… then again. This is just what made me fall for this hidden gem.. the fact that it has not quite been discovered by the masses of tourist!

A Presto Portovenere! Until me meet again 💝, Read more about my Italian escape here.