AETAS VIAGGI – TEL. + 39 06 71 58 40 64 – [email protected] – www.aetasviaggi.com GENOA AND THE CINQUE TERRE The Cinque Terre is a rugged portion of coast on the Italian Riviera. It is in the Liguria region of Italy, to the west of the city of La Spezia, and comprises five villages: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore. The coastline, the five villages, and the surrounding hillsides are all part of the Cinque Terre National Park and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Over the centuries, people have carefully built terraces on the rugged, steep landscape right up to the cliffs that overlook the sea. Part of its charm is the lack of visible corporate development. Paths, trains and boats connect the villages, and cars cannot reach them from the outside. The Cinque Terre area is a very popular tourist destination. Day 1: Arrival in Genoa. Guided tour of the historical center: the Romanesque-Gothic Church of S. Lorenzo, with its beautiful interior frescoes and the famous chapel of the Baptist, Piazza De Ferrari with the Opera House and the Academy of Fine Arts, the Church of Jesus, a fine example of Baroque, including works by Rubens and Guido Reni, the Ducal Palace, seat of the city government, now used as a major art exhibitions. A short climb leads to the Medieval Gates and the House of Columbus. A few steps away we find the noble Piazza S. Matteo with palaces now included in the lists of the UNESCO heritage of humanity. Continue to Piazza Campetto and Via degli Orefici, full of old shops and bakeries, to reach Piazza Banchi, dominated by the characteristic Church of S. Peter, with brightly painted, Palazzo S. Giorgio, where the prisoner Marco Polo had dictated his Milione, and the Expo, the old port, restored by Renzo Piano in 1992, and today the most touristic area of the city with the Aquarium, the Bigo and the City of Children. Continue along Via S. Luca, to reach the Church of S. Siro, with the beautiful Annunciation by Gentileschi. Then we arrive in Via Garibaldi, its palaces and gardens offer one of the best examples of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries in Genoa. Free lunch. In the afternoon, tour by bus to reach the waterfront, with a stop in the beautiful Boccadasse, once a fishing village, and to enjoy beautiful panoramic views crossing the area of Albaro, with ancient Villas. Back to the center Hotel for dinner and overnight. Day 2: After breakfast, visit to the largest aquarium in Italy , the second in Europe, after that of Valencia, Spain and the ninth in the world. It is located in Ponte Spinola in the sixteenth ancient port of Genoa, in a building designed by architect Renzo Piano. The course of about 2 hours and 30 minutes winds up a total area of 9,700 square meters. The original structure (39 tanks) includes a path through to tanks with fish and many reptiles, and explains the original natural environment of each species with clear educational aims. Best important are the five large tanks, in any floor of the aquarium, with dolphins, sharks, seals, manatees and turtles and many other species. Free lunch. In the afternoon, departure to the Riviera, the coast, to visit some of the most typical villages with its little houses with colorful facades, the promenades of the nineteenth century, large hotels and villas. Portofino is the most popular attraction, often in his Piazzetta , you can meet celebrities and his church on the hill offering a magnificent panorama. Just nearby is Santa Margherita, built around two bays with in the center the beautiful Villa Durazzo Centurione, with its beautiful Italian garden. For people who love shopping, the destination is Rapallo. In the historical center we can find shops for all tastes and all budgets. Then Chiavari, a small medieval town, with its elegant arcades in black stone and Sestri Levante, with its two magnificent bays and sandy beaches. Dinner and overnight at the hotel in one of the villages along the coast. Day 3: After breakfast, depart by boat from Levanto to reach the Cinque Terre: Monterosso, Vernazza, Carniglia, Manarola, Riomaggiore, until Portovenere. We can stop for a walk in all ports, except Carniglia : in Monterosso, to visit the medieval village with the Aurora Tower, in Vernazza, with the Tower and the Castle of Doria, in Manarola, to visit the Church of San Lorenzo in Gothic style, the Oratory of the Disciplined and the Bell Tower. From Manarola to Riomaggiore we can drive along the so-called Way of Love, a road cut into the rock overlooking the sea. Finally we arrive in Portovenere, a wonderful medieval village, with blue sea, included in the Regional Natural Park of Portovenere with the islands of Tino, Tinetto and Palmaria. Continue to La Spezia for return trip. .