Where to Stay in Cinque Terre: La Torretta Lodge

To date, we have made three trips to Cinque Terre, three trips to La Torretta Lodge.  Figuring out where to stay in Cinque Terre can be difficult, especially if you don’t plan in advance.  Cinque Terre hotels don’t typically have a lot of rooms.  In some hotels, private bathrooms can be a luxury.  Many close for the low and shoulder seasons. They tend to book up in advance for shoulder and high season.  When I started planning our first trip to Cinque Terre, I was surprised at how few options there were.  Everything I knew about Cinque Terre pointed to it being a destination with significant tourism, beautiful coastlines, and one of THE places to see in Italy.  Why couldn’t I find a good Cinque Terre hotel?  It took two trips to Cinque Terre to understand the answer to that question.

Disclosure:  This post contains affiliate links for tours and products I love at no additional cost to you.  You can read my full disclosure policy here.

Understanding Cinque Terre Tourism

I don’t typically preface my travel posts with comments about tourism, but we’ve made three trips to Cinque Terre and I think there are some important thing to understand about the Cinque Terre villages.  On our second trip, I booked a wine tasting tour in Manarola and we spent the morning with Alessandro, a Manarola local.  In addition to helping us understand the economic challenges faced by the villages when it comes to day trippers, he also explained how increased tourism has significantly impacted the local housing market.  You can read more about our Cinque Terre wine tour on the blog.

The increased demand for apartment-style accommodations has priced many young people out of the housing market.  Young people are having to move further and further out of the area to be able to find a place to live due to the rise of short-term rentals.  Today, there are less than 300 local residents.  If this trend continues, Cinque Terre will soon just be a pretty place to take pictures (more so than it already is).  Like Venice, it’s in danger of becoming a living museum, rather than an authentic Italian village.

His words are not limited to Cinque Terre, but they resonate with me.  The rise of short-term rentals is changing many of my favorite cities and contributing to an inauthentic experience.  That is not something I want to be a part of.  I like hotels.  Hotels provide jobs.  They can contribute to sustainable tourism flow.  They are not the reason that cities become empty shells.  Going forward, I will only be booking hotels.  While everyone’s experience might be different, I live in a place where affordable housing is drying up at an alarming rate, though our problem isn’t related to tourism or short-term rentals.  I don’t want to contribute to that problem in other communities.

Getting to Cinque Terre // Manarola // La Torretta Lodge

It was difficult for me to fathom what Cinque Terre would be like.  Similar to Venice, there are no(t many) cars allowed.  I read about the winding stairs, the cautionary messages of not bringing too much luggage, and the importance of being in shape.  Without knowing what to expect, I requested luggage transfer from the Manarola train station to the hotel for our first visit.  When we emerged from the tunnel, La Torretta was waiting with a golf cart to whisk us (and our luggage) up the hillside.

On our second trip to Manarola, our British Airways flight was scheduled to arrive in Pisa at 5:00pm.  It was highly unlikely that we would be able to catch an early enough airport shuttle to connect to La Spezia in order to arrive in Manarola before the 7:30pm transportation cut off.  We dragged our bags up the hillside, stopping a few times to catch our breath, and soon arrived at the piazza in front of the hotel.  The hardest part of our journey being over, I scampered to check-in, leaving Tom to handle the bags – at his request, of course!  We were so excited to be back in Cinque Terre that nothing else mattered.

Our third trip to Cinque Terre was the most challenging.  Our flight from the United States was delayed 7 hours, which meant that we would certainly arrive after check-in.  As soon as we picked up our rental car from Hertz, I emailed the hotel (thank goodness for TEP!) and they offered to wait for us.  (Side note: the hotel is incredibly responsive.  If you need anything, don’t hesitate to reach out to them using the email address on your booking confirmation!)  By the time we arrived in Cinque Terre, it was pouring rain!  Thankfully, the small private parking lot is only a short walk from the hotel.  Unfortunately, it’s downhill and it can be a little slick when wet and with luggage!  (Thank goodness for these waterproof flats!  They are a great option for traveling to Italy.)

La Torretta Lodge

When I first started trying to figure out where to stay in Cinque Terre, I was looking for creature comforts.  I didn’t know how warm it would be, so I wanted to make sure had air conditioning.  This Italian Riviera travel guide said La Torretta would fit the bill, and after combing the property reviews, I decided to book it.  After three visits, I can confidently say that this is the best place to stay in Manarola – from both a comfort and sustainable tourism perspective.

BONUS: the hotel is within easy walking distance of one of the best restaurants in Cinque Terre, Trattoria dal Billy.

La Torretta Lodge Arrival Experience

Regardless of weather, the staff will immediately run to help with the bags.  If they know you are coming, they will meet you at the start of Vico Volto and carry the bags down to your room.  In every instance, they took our passports, escorted us to the terrace (or the breakfast room), provided us a glass of prosecco, and ushered us to relax while they prepared our room.  The arrival experience is designed for you to know that vacation is officially starting. La Torretta does check-in especially well; it’s a great reminder that one of beautiful parts of Cinque Terre is the ability to just slow down.

La Torretta Lodge Rooms and Suites

As I said above, this is not a large hotel.  There are 11 rooms and suites most of which offering a partial ocean view.  While my original goal was to stay in as many of their rooms as possible, the truth is, I take what I can get!  The first year I booked the classic room. The second year, I booked the superior junior suite.  The third year, we ended up back in the classic room.  The biggest difference is the room size.  The classic room is tight for two adults; I recommend booking a larger room if you have small children.

I find the classic room pretty cozy and romantic, especially in the rain. The bathrooms are pretty small, especially the showers. That being said, the water pressure is good and it’s easy to control the temperature.  Both get the job done.  If you have an option, the one thing I would advise is to book a room with a terrace.  We enjoyed spending our afternoons on it, enjoying fresh air (and prosecco).  The breakfast terrace is always available to you, as well, but I know Tom spent a lot of time on our terrace.  He really loves the view from this hotel.

All rooms include free wifi, a complimentary mini-bar, breakfast, happy hour, and access the on-site jacuzzi.  Note: There are no smoking rooms available as the entire property, including common areas, is non-smoking.

La Torretta Lodge Classic Room (L)

• Classic Room with Mountain View
• Private terrace with a sea view
• Queen bed
• Small traditional closet
• In-room safe
• Nespresso coffee machine
• Free minibar, including complimentary soft drinks
• Free breakfast
• Rainhead shower
• Bottle of Prosecco

La Torretta Lodge Junior Suite (R)

• Junior Garden View Suite with small sitting area
• HUGE terrace with lounge chairs, perfect for afternoon naps
• Queen bed
• Armoire for closet
• In-room safe
• Nespresso coffee machine
• Free minibar, including complimentary soft drinks
• iPod docking station
• Free breakfast
• Rainhead shower
• Bottle of prosecco

Free Breakfast is Delicious Breakfast!

Typically, we aren’t into breakfast.  Our health habits include intermittent fasting, which includes skipping breakfast. When we are in Cinque Terre, however, we burn so much glycogen that it is important to supplement our protein.  La Torretta breakfast is perfect for that.  In addition to hot dishes, including eggs and quiche, there are also cold cuts and cheeses, fresh fruit, pastries and more.  Sweet or savory, everyone is covered.  Tom enjoys breakfast on the terrace while I prefer to stay in the room for breakfast.  Every morning before we would head out, the staff would offer to make me anything I wanted.  While I wouldn’t take them up on it, the service really is exceptional in that way.

Why We Stay in Manarola

After our trip to Cinque Terre, we thought we might want to stay in another one of the five towns.  However, after our second year, my husband declared that this is his top pick.  He finds the location, particularly with its views of the wine terraces, to be one of the most stunning views and prefers it to the sea views offered by Vernazza or Riomaggiore.  (If you are looking for beach access, you may want to stay in Monterosso al Mare.  My travel agent friend recommends the Hotel Porto Roca.)

Simply put, life in Manarola is easy.

Well, the hike up the hill isn’t necessarily easy… but it’s not the end of the world either.  Manarola harbor is gorgeous in the morning.  It’s absolutely stunning at blue hour.  And, it’s pretty magical at night, too.  Manarola is a quiet village – there aren’t a lot of things that stay open really late. The only village that imight be quieter is Corniglia.  (I find Cinque Terre collectively to be pretty quiet, at least in April when we’re there).

Once you leave the Manarola harbor, the crowds thin out – even in the midday.  The wine terraces are the best maintained in the region. You can even walk around the village through them!  (There are great walks in this Cinque Terre travel guide!)  We think Manarola has the best views of all the Cinque Terre village.  You can see all parts of the village.  Most of the villages offer distinct views over the harbor or are best seen from a single vantage point, but no matter where you are in Manarola, you can appreciate everything it has to offer.

So – it’s Manarola (and La Torretta) for us!  (Also, here’s some awkward photos of us enjoying the Terrace.  Next time I’ll use the tripod.)