Cinque Terre Events: The Five Villages' Own Festivals

Monterosso al Mare, San Giovanni Battista, 24 June

Monterosso al Mare's patron saint is San Giovanni Battista, Saint John the Baptist. The village marks his feast day on 24 June each year. This is the date most visitors to the largest of the five villages will encounter if they arrive in late June.

Note that Riomaggiore, at the southern end of the coast, honours the same saint on the same day, but these are two separate village celebrations rather than a joint event, each with its own local character and its own community behind it. If you want to see how a Ligurian seaside village keeps its patronal feast, Monterosso in late June is a straightforward choice, and the village has the most accommodation and services on this coast to absorb festival crowds. Our Monterosso al Mare page has more on the village itself.

Joining one of the Cinque Terre tours that run through the villages in late June is an easy way to see Monterosso's San Giovanni Battista celebrations alongside the rest of the coast.

Vernazza, Santa Margherita d'Antiochia, 20 July

Vernazza's patron saint is Santa Margherita d'Antiochia, and her feast day falls on 20 July. The village's most recognisable building is dedicated to her. The parish church of Santa Margherita d'Antiochia stands right at the edge of the small harbour, and its construction was begun in 1318 in the Antelami school style.

That gives the festival a very specific setting, since the church dedicated to the saint is the same building that anchors the village's waterfront. Visiting around 20 July means seeing the feast in the height of summer, when the village is at its busiest with travellers. For practical planning around your dates, our Vernazza page covers the village in detail.

Corniglia, San Pietro, 29 June

Corniglia celebrates its patron saint, San Pietro, Saint Peter, on 29 June. The day includes a religious procession that starts at the church of San Pietro and makes its way to the Santa Maria terrace, the viewing platform above the sea that is one of the village's best known spots. The feast also has a food tradition attached to it.

The traditional dish for the day is torta di riso, a savoury rice tart, which local cooks prepare for the occasion. Corniglia is the only one of the five villages that does not sit directly on the water, so the procession route from church to terrace takes in the village's elevated position above the coast. See our Corniglia page for more.

Manarola, San Lorenzo, 10 August

Manarola's patron saint is San Lorenzo, Saint Lawrence, celebrated on 10 August. The evening procession is the most distinctive of the five, because part of it travels by sea. The statue of the saint is carried through the village down to the Palaedo landing, where it is transferred to a boat.

The boat carries the statue along the coast before returning it to the Marina. From there the procession climbs back up through the village to Serravalle and ends at the church of San Lorenzo. The combination of a village procession and a sea crossing makes this a festival shaped by Manarola's relationship with the water.

August is peak season, so plan accommodation well ahead. Our Manarola page has more.

Riomaggiore, San Giovanni Battista, 24 June

Riomaggiore's patron saint is also San Giovanni Battista, known locally as San Gian, with the feast day on 24 June. This is the same date as Monterosso al Mare's own feast for the same saint, but the two are entirely separate celebrations, each run by its own village. Riomaggiore marks the day with its own food tradition.

The dish tied to the feast is torta di riso salata, a savoury rice tart, prepared according to local tradition for the occasion. Arriving in Riomaggiore on 24 June puts you in the southernmost village on its most local day of the year, which is a different experience from visiting in the peak of summer. Our Riomaggiore page covers the village.

The Presepe di Manarola, the Illuminated Nativity Scene

Manarola's winter event is the Presepe di Manarola, an illuminated nativity scene laid out across the hillside above the village. It was created from 1961 onward by Mario Andreoli, a railway worker, who built the figures using recycled materials. It is described as the largest nativity scene of its kind in the world, and some of the figures use thousands of light bulbs.

The display is lit for the Christmas season each year, turning the terraced slope above the village into a large illuminated tableau that can be seen from the water and from vantage points around the village. It is a genuinely local creation, grown from one man's project into the event the village is known for in winter. Our Manarola page has more on visiting.