When our cruise ship stopped at Santa Margherita, Italy, we had many excursions to choose from. Our final decision was to hike to Portofino and back, while enjoying both cities and the views in between. And what views those were!
The walk took a little over an hour and was easy at times, with a few moderate spots along the way. We got an idea of what it would be like as we viewed the northern Italian coast from our cruise ship balcony. Gorgeous!
After we disembarked and took off toward Portofino, I couldn’t resist this shot of the cruise ship. You just don’t think about how huge it is when you are on it. It’s impressive from the shore.
The views just got better and better as we hiked. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.
The first part of the hike was along the road and then we headed into the hills for the second half.
It was a very nice trail through the hills with pavers and handrails to keep things safe.
This was my favorite picture of the day. (That’s why I made it my opener :)) Imagine spending your summer in this Italian home. Waking up in the morning with a cup of coffee and that view. Taking an afternoon dip in the crystal clear Mediterranean Sea. Stunning!
We passed many homes, hotels and beautiful buildings. But the most surprising thing we passed were gates like the one below.
Why would it be surprising to pass this gate you ask? WELL, it wasn’t along the road, it was along that trail we were walking on. I just couldn’t imagine walking up this hill, along a little path to get to the entrance of my home. Very Italian chic, but very inconvenient.
I was very excited to see this church in Portofino because it meant my hike was nearing the end. I must admit that I was very hot, tired, thirsty and ready to sit down. Which is exactly what I did, to the tune of $10 for one Diet Coke, but more on that in my next post about Portofino.
As soon as we arrived in Portofino, I knew that I would not be hiking back to Santa Margherita. I would be taking the ferry. My husband, who runs 10 miles for fun, thought he would hike back and see who could get there fastest. Sounded good to me, as I sat comfortably on my bench waiting for the next ferry.
Turns out, taking the ferry back afforded me lots of great pictures of the coast line. It was fun to see the area I had just hiked from a different point of view.
I made it back to Santa Margherita just in time for some delicious pesto pasta, pizza and gelato. More on that coming soon. Oh, and I beat my husband back. That’s important! 😉
This post linked to Amaze Me Monday, Travel Photo Monday, Through My Lens, Inspire Me Wednesday, Travel Photo Thursday & Blue Monday
Hi Sonja,
LOL, I'm so glad that you allowed your husband the pleasure(?) of going it alone while you snapped some gorgeous shots for us! You sure found a unique blue today.
Have a Beautiful Blue Monday!
Such super snaps!! I'm enjoying my mini vacation looking and studying your beautiful pictures. I must admit I always feel a little exhilarated splitting up and doing things on my own in port. Good for you to do the amount of hiking you wanted and then enjoy something else!
Love the color of the sky! So pretty. Looks like you had a great time. Thank you for sharing. Have a good week.
Amazing shots! What a beautiful place! My sister went there on her honeymoon.
Well done. You certainly made ethe right decision to go on the ferry as ALL the image both from the hike and ferry are stunningly beautiful
Stunning shots – please come link up at http://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2015/10/poor-little-birdie.html
What a gorgeous place to visit!
Amazing post.
Thanks so much!
Haha, well done on beating your husband!! The walk looks sensational – such amazing scenery, it's hard to imagine living amongst such beauty!! I guess the downside is the cost?? Have a great week!