Camere Giuliano Basso — Hotel in Vernazza

This is a very special place to stay while exploring the stunning Cinque Terre region of Italy! The rooms are clean and cozy and lovely and all open up to a gorgeous view of the town and the sea, onto different levels of stone patios that guests can use. All the stonework on the property has been done by Giuliano himself, and he is a very knowledgable and generous host-- he offers great recommendations for hikes and restaurants, and has a room set up for guests where you can borrow beach towels and goggles, travel books and maps, make yourself a coffee or tea, and a refrigerator filled with ice cold bottles of water for guests, which was so appreciated after returning from a hot day of hiking, swimming, and exploring! The location is wonderful-- a 3-minute walk from the train station, and at the quieter end of town. Just up the road is the fantastic Il Pirata restaurant-- a must for delicious breakfast goodies and coffee served by very friendly owners. Also, the hiking trail from Vernazza to Corniglia runs right in front of Giuliano's property! The hiking trail from Vernaza to Monterosso can easily be accessed by a trailhead starting on the main street of town. If you're not up for hiking, all the towns of the Cinque Terre are super-easy to reach by the train that runs all day long between towns. For my family of four, staying at Giuliano's and exploring the Cinque Terre was the highlight of our trip to Italy! While we voted the gorgeous rocky swimming area in Corniglia as our favorite place to swim, the location of Vernazza was wonderful for us because it was perfect for doing the hiking trails in smaller chunks-- hike one day to Monterosso and back, hike one day to Corniglia and back, other days maybe hop the train or a ferry to see the other towns, another gorgeous trail nearby that Giuliano recommended for getting closer up into the terraced landscapes, etc. (Note: I would recommend a minimum of four nights in the Cinque Terre area, preferably five nights. This is not a place to just day-trip to or spend only one night!) Everywhere you turn is stunningly beautiful and memorable! I really hope to return to the area someday, and would definitely want to stay again at...

Imagine this: You book a room for a long weekend in a high-demand destination (Vernazza in the Cinque Terre) well in advance of your stay and confirm your reservation a week before checking in. You get to your destination, call your host for directions and hear this from the other end: “I have been trying to reach you for two weeks … I don’t have a room for you.” Uh, no … no phone calls, no e-mails, no contact — to say nothing of the confirmation e-mail I had received before leaving in my trip. Moments later, a young lady arrives with a note that says the owner has located a room for two of the three nights of my planned stay in Vernazza with no guarantees that a room could be found for the third night. Instead of looking out over the town and sea, your view in the relocated room is cars on the street. So much for the Cinque Terre — with an available room on a Saturday night as likely as winning the lottery, I bailed and headed for Lucca (which is a very cool town). It cost me around $150 for the new train ticket, the extra cost of an Airbnb room in Lucca snd the lost expense of a ticket to a Serie A match I had planned to see in La Spezia. And it you think there was any offer of compensation for the inconvenience, think again. In nearly 50 years if traveling I had been “walked” from a hotel exactly once before — and on that occasion, I was relocated from a Westin to a Ritz-Carlton at no cost plus a food/beverage credit to acknowledge the inconvenience. All of this said: Should you choose to book with this establishment, confirm again and again and then pray you will have a room...

We loved Giuliano's place. We stayed there 2 years ago. He offers a little kitchen for you to store food or wine in. He offers coffee/tea all day long in this kitchen. We took the room with the patio on the roof. I can't recall the name of it, but we loved it. We sat out every evening and enjoyed the view and sunset. If you prefer to mingle, some of the other rooms/suites offer a common patio....just above ours. From his place, you walk down the 50 or so steps (yes, you need to be aware there are about 50 steps, but they are spread out over about 800 feet so it's not as bad as it sounds and it affords you the great view) and continue straight into town. When you reach the waterfront, take a right and go to the last restaurant set back to your right. It's in the Basso family and it was the first restaurant to make PESTO. Their pesto is truly amazing. Giuliano will tell you the name of the restaurant. He sent us over a glass of wine...very nice touch. Vernazzo is right in the middle of Cinque Terra. It's a lovely small town with an adorable downtown and several nice restaurants. His place is right ABOVE the train station, but the noise doesn't bother you. It's rather quaint and very convenient. For about ONE euro you can hop the local train and visit all the other towns or walk on the path above Giuliano's place and hike the trail that runs through all 5 towns. We loved this stop. Rick Steeves has stayed here with his crew of 2...