Cinque Terre

The Cinque Terre (five lands) of Italy's Ligurian coast is a group of tiny Medieval towns which defiantly grasp the inhospitably rugged coastline as protection from Turkish pirates, who regarded the area as easy pickings. Strung along the edge of the sea, at the feet of mountains covered in ancient terraced vineyards the area has been admired for its white wine since Roman times and the hand-built terraces would be as long, laid end-to-end, as the Great Wall of China - there are, as the name suggests, five of them in total: (from north-east to south-west) Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore; sandwiched between Levanto to the north and Portonovere to the south.

The thrall of this arresting terrain lies in the isolation in which it passed the last thousand years: a road wasn't built until the 1960s and, largely poverty-stricken until National Park and UNESCO status transformed the economy into a tourist one, much of the towns' architecture and atmosphere has remained pretty much unchanged since they were built. The disadvantage is that the Cinque Terre's exquisite beauty is not a very well-kept secret: the lower (azzuro) trail has never been a spot for those dedicated to solitude, and the upper (rosso) trail is soon to become greatly more populous, courtesy of a cable car from Riomaggiore.

Each town has its own distinct personality. Monterosso is the most developed resort town, split into old and new, with functionall hotels, beach umbrellas and car parking concealing, beyond a tunnel, a huddle of medieval crookedness: tiny alleyways, a 16th-century Capucchin monastery with some fine paintings, an ancient castle and harbour. Vernazza rises straight out of the water and is dominated by its castle, with defensive views of the other towns. It is family-friendly and life centres around the large natural harbour and beach. The locals are much admired locally for having put up a barricade to stop an encroaching road; the town remains car-free to this day. Corniglia, a slightly gut-wrenching 400-rock-step climb up from the coast, has been the area's most celebrated vineyard since Roman times. Manorala is a tiny, straggly and peaceful fishing village, straddling a ravine. Riomaggiore, on first sight, is dull. However, stroll through the railside tunnel (or take the lift), under blousy washing lines and up through higgledy-piggedly alleyways, and it transforms into a fairytale of ancient pastel houses haphazardly piled up above the horseshoe-shaped dock.

As a roadless economy, communication between the villages was by foot until very recently, resulting in a magical network of footpaths between the villages that provide walking opportunities for pretty well everyone from toddlers to troopers. Walks vary from a paved 20-minute ramble (Manarola to Riomaggiore) known as the Via dell'Amore, to a full-on 40km hike on high, strenuous paths.

Hiking the Cinque Terre is an excellent opportunity to explore Ligurian marine life and five idiosyncratic models of age-old regional agriculture and industry, passing through abundant fragrant shrubbery, pine groves and flowering cacti and enjoying frequent and magnificent views of the sea, coast and its settlements.

Riviera di Levante tourist offices supply maps of the sentieri (paths), most of which are very well-marked and serviced. It might just be an idea to ask about the current status of the trail you choose, as they are regularly closed for improvements. The treks can be as relaxed or demanding as you wish, as the towns provide welcome watering-holes between steep climbs and gruelling steps. For those who wish to ramble over several days or take daily sojourns to Levanto, Portovenere or Lerici or the restored oil mill in Groppo (above Manarola) the towns provide an ample variety of accommodation.