Genoa and the Cinque Terre
Liguria, Italy
April 17th - 23rd, 2026
After dropping Rosie off at Malpensa Airport I had one more night in Milan by myself. Before meeting up with my friend Mark, who flew in from Hong Kong the next day, I managed to get a last-minute ticket to visit one of the greatest artworks ever created:
I met Mark at the smaller Linate airport, where we picked up a car and drove two hours to Genoa. We had three nights in Genoa, which is one of those Italian cities that usually doesn't make it onto the standard tourist itinerary, and is overshadowed by the more glamorous destinations like Florence, Venice and Rome. It is however a very interesting and authentic city, and historically one of the most important cities in Europe. It is also a city of big contrasts, boasting grand Renaissance palaces, beautiful churches, as well as narrow and dark alleyways of the medieval city center, all located right next to the fairly gritty and rough industrial port area.
Genoa's origins go back several millenia, as Ligurian tribes settled this area long before the Romans arrived. The city's natural deep-water harbor made it a strategically important port during Roman times. After Rome's fall, the city was occupied by the Ostrogoths, Byzantines and Lombards, but developed into a self-governing republic by the 11th century. The Republic of Genoa, which lasted from 1005 until 1797, was the city's golden age, as it became one of the dominant naval and commercial powers in Europe. Genoese merchants and bankers established trading colonies across the Mediterranean, the Black Sea and far into Asia, competing with its great rival, the Republic of Venice. The republic finally fell in 1797 when Napoleon invaded and abolished it. The area was first absorbed into the French Empire, and after Napoleon's defeat, the Congress of Vienna handed Genoa to the Kingdom of Sardinia in 1815.
One of the main attractions in Genoa are the Palazzi dei Rolli, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site consisting of a collection of around 40 aristocratic palaces, all built during the 16th and 17th centuries along the Via Garibaldi and Via Balbi. The extraordinary wealth required to build these palaces, was created by Genoese banking families, which became the primary financiers of the Spanish Crown and its American silver trade, effectively making Genoa the financial capital of Europe for much of the 16th and early 17th centuries.
Several of the palaces are now museums. We visited the Palazzo Rosso, which boasts an impressive collection of Flemish, German and Italian paintings, with masterpieces like these by Albrecht Dürer and Caravaggio.
In the center of the medieval city stands the beautiful black and white striped Cattedrale di San Lorenzo. First consecrated in 1118, its construction lasted from the 12th to the 14th century.
Genoa's most famous son was Christopher Columbus, who was born here around 1451. You can visit, what is touted as his birthplace, which contains a small museum, but the building is really a 19th century reconstruction, and the exact location of his birth is somewhat disputed.
The center of the new part of town is the Piazza De Ferrari, with a beautiful fountain at the center surrounded by elegant 19th century buildings, which mostly house financial institutions, including the Genoa stock exchange. We had dinner overlooking the plaza on our first night. The food was fantastic everywhere in Genoa, specifically the very addictive local focaccia and any pasta with Pesto Genovese.
On our last day we took the long walk out along the harbor to La Laterna, which is the 112 meter high historic lighthouse, overlooking the port of Genoa. The first lighthouse here was built in the 12th century, but was badly damaged during a siege in the 16th century. The current building was constructed in 1543, which makes it the 4th oldest lighthouse in the world today. We climbed a lot of stairs to reach the top to enjoy the view over the port, the city and the mountains behind it.
The next morning we got back in the car and drove south along the coast towards La Spezia, with one beautiful stop along the way. Located about 35 kilometers southeast of Genoa lies the tiny but gorgeous town of Portofino. The town has been a summer destination for the wealthy and the famous, as well as writers and painters since the 19th century. Portofino has been a particularly popular destination for British and German aristocrats during their grand tours of Italy.
We were there on a rather rainy April day, which was actually the perfect time to visit. Apparently the place is completely overrun by tourists in the summer. We did the short hike up to the 16th century Castello Brown, from which you have the best views of the town and its natural harbor, as well as the some of the grand mansion along the hillside.
From Portofino, we drove south for another hour to our base for the next three days, the city of La Spezia. There isn't that much to see in La Spezia, which is a busy port town and Italy's primary naval base, but the city is the perfect place to stay in order to visit the Cinque Terre. The next day we met up with Mark's Italian friend Michele and his girlfriend Diletta, and the four of us drove a short distance south to the town of Porto Venere.
Porto Venere is another beautiful and ancient little town overlooked by a medieval castle. The city is not technically part of the Cinque Terre, but it is included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site - "Portovenere, Cinque Terre, and the Islands". We took a small ferry from Porto Venere across to the island of Palmaria, where we went on a hike along the steep cliffs, while enjoying these beautiful views of Porto Venere. The hike then continued through a wooded area past the huge 19th century Fort Count of Cavour.
We returned back to the dock and instead of waiting for the next ferry, Mark persuaded a random guy with a boat to take us across the bay back into town. We had a lovely lunch by the harbor and then climbed up to see the castle and church sitting on the steep promontory overlooking the sea.
The next day we embarked on what would be one of the highlights of the whole trip for me. The Cinque Terre had been on my bucket list for a long time, and I finally had a chance to do see it. Since car traffic and parking is very restricted along the narrow road and in the tiny towns, they built a very convenient train line, which connects La Spezia with all five towns along the coast. The Cinque Terre Express trains leave about every 30 minutes from the main station in La Spezia. We took it all the way to the end and got out at the village of Monterosso.
The Cinque Terre is one of the most spectacular and famous stretches of coastline you will find anywhere in the world. The ancient and colorful five villages of the Cinque Terre - Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore - cling to the steep coastal cliffs above some of the clearest water anywhere in the Mediterranean. The villages were founded in the early medieval period, between the 11th and 13th centuries. Their precarious locations along the cliffside were chosen to be more easily defensible against Arab pirates who frequently raided the Ligurian coast. Above the villages are steep terraced fields, which reminded me a bit of Madeira.
All five villages are connected by the coastal trail hiking path. The whole trail is about 15 kilometers long, but you can do any of the sections separately and then take the train back. We started in Monterosso and headed south to Vernazza.
Here are two more incredible views of Vernazza.
We had a lovely lunch in Vernazza and then continued one more stage to Corniglia. In Corniglia we got back on the train for the short ride to La Spezia.
The region of Liguria covers the entire north-western coastal area of Italy, stretching from the border with France, including Genoa and the Cinque Terre, all the way down to La Spezia. A few kilometers south La Spezia is the border between Liguria and Tuscany, where we would be heading next.
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