A landscape like no other, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the villages of the Cinque Terre: are located to the east, almost on the very edge of the La Spezia area. Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso. These old fishing villages on the rugged coast, cling to the foot of rocky crests covered with vines and olive trees. Monterosso, the westernmost of them, is a popular tourist destination in the Cinque Terre, thanks to its beach, which is the largest of all the fishing villages. Vernazza stands on a small cape, in a natural bay and is one of Italy’s most beautiful villages. Corniglia is the only one of the five that does not directly look onto the sea, instead it overlooks a cape covered with typical vineyards in terraced strips. In Manarola, the turret houses looking out onto the main street, create a narrow pattern of “carrugi”, narrow streets connected to one another by slate steps. A splendid route, known as the “Via dell’Amore” [Lovers’ Lane] runs from Manarola to Riomaggiore, the southernmost of the Cinque Terre with its typical coloured houses looking out onto a small harbour. Halfway along the coast is a network of footpaths. The most famous of these is the one known as the Madonna del Soviore, with imposing bell tower, mainly in Romanesque style. The Cinque Terre can be reached easily from Lerici harbour, where there is a ferry service in operation from March to November, or by train, from the stations of Sarzana or La Spezia.