Manarola

Manarola is one of the oldest and most photographed of the Cinque Terre villages, a tumble of colourful houses spilling down a rocky ravine to a tiny harbour on the eastern side of the park. It is a centre of Sciacchetra production, the prized local sweet wine pressed from grapes grown on the steep terraces that rise behind the village, and vines and olive trees press right up to the houses. There is no beach; instead villagers and visitors swim and sunbathe from the flat rocks around the little harbour, jumping into the deep clear water on warm days. The classic experience is to walk out along the Punta Bonfiglio path on the far side of the harbour to the elevated viewpoint, where the whole village rises in stacked colour above the boats, the single most reproduced image of the Cinque Terre. A visit takes around half a day. The village is especially magical in December, when one of Italy's largest illuminated nativity scenes, made of thousands of lights, covers the hillside above the village. It is reached by the Cinque Terre Express train and, in summer, by ferry. The village is busiest from late morning through the afternoon; the most rewarding time for photographers is the blue hour just after sunset, when the house lights come on and the harbour glows. Early mornings are quiet. Sample the Sciacchetra in one of the small wine bars to round out a visit to this corner of eastern Liguria, an easy train hop from Riomaggiore and the other villages.