LIGURIA: A FAIRY PLACE
Genoa – Camogli – Portofino – Sestri Levante – Chiavari - 5 Terre - Portovenere
7 days – 6 nights
1° DAY: GENOA
Arrival to Genoa. Free time. Late afternoon meeting with our assistant who will explain the tour. Overnight at PALAZZO GRILLO**** or similar
2° DAY: GENOA
Breakfast. Morning dedicated to the LGBT excursion with licensed private guide. Free afternoon for shopping or individual visits. Overnight
3° DAY: GENOA – CAMOGLI – PORTOFINO – SANTA MARGHERITA – GENOA
Breakfast. Meeting with our tourist guide and departure to Camogli (we suggest by train). Arrival and walk to the port to catch the ferry to Portofino. Relax in the famous “Piazzetta” and visit of the village. Departure by ferry to Santa Margherita and visit of the beautiful town. Return to Genoa (we suggest by train). Overnight
4° DAY: GENOA – SESTRI LEVANTE – CHIAVARI – SESTRI LEVANTE
Breakfast. Departure to Sestri Levante and hotel accommodation. Visit of the town with our licensed guide to discover the places so loved by Hans Christian Andersen. H.C. Andersen was a Danish writer, very famous for his children tales. We do not have many information about his sexuality but many events lead to believe he was gay. His most famous fairy story was “The little Mermaid”, which was written as a love letter by Hans Christian Andersen to Edvard Collin. Andersen, upon hearing of Collin’s engagement to a young woman, proclaimed his love to him. He told him “I long for you as though you were a beautiful Calabrian girl”. Edvan Collin turned Andersen down, disgusted. Andersen then wrote “The Little Mermaid” to symbolize his inability to have Collin just as a mermaid cannot be with a human. He sent it to Collin in 1836 and it goes down in history as one of the most profound love letters ever written. Most scholars and psychoanalysts concluded that Andersen was gay or bisexual. The Little Mermaid, as it was originally written, did not have a happy ending. And other famous tale written by Andersen was “The ugly duckling” and also here some critics “read” a homosexual meaning in the transformation into a wonderful swan: a hymn to diversity. H.C. Andersen visited Sestri Levante in 1833 and he was so fascinated from this town which called one of the 2 Sestri bays, “La baia delle Favole” (Bay of Tales) for its infinite beauty. Nowadays in Sestri Levante a famous literary prize of fairy tales is dedicate to the Danish writer. Lunch in restaurant. Departure to Chiavari and guided tour of the “Botteghe” (old shops). At the end back to Sestri Levante and overnight
5° DAY: SESTRI LEVANTE – 5 TERRE – SESTRI LEVANTE
Breakfast. Departure by train to Riomaggiore. Meeting with our tourist guide. Visit of the little village. Riomaggiore boasts monuments of great interest, among which San Giovanni Battista (St. Giovanni Baptist), a church erected in 1340 with those central ones double with respect to the side ones (as all the other churches of the Cinque Terre), and l’Oratorio di Santa Maria Assunta (Oratory of St. Mary Assumption) which holds a Trittico XV century and a wooden statue of 1300 representing the Madonna (Maria). Also important is the Castello (castle) which dominates the historical centre. After time to visit riomaggiore, we’ll catch the ferry to the others “5 TERRE”, ho have an extraordinary view from sea. Stops: Vernazza, Manarola and Monterosso. Vernazza, considered by many to be the most charming of the Cinque Terre was documented for the first time in 1080. The remarkable economic and social level reached by the village in Medieval times and still today testified by the town planning conformation and by the presence of architectural elements of great importance, like lodges, churches, casetorri and arcades. The village is dominated by the remains of the “castrum” a series of Medieval forts dating back to the XI century, with a cylindrical castle and tower. The built up area comprises separate houses in a single central street and perpendicularly steep flights of steps called “arpaie”. The most important historical moment is Santa Margherita di Antiochia (St. Margaret of Antioch), a Roman-Genovese style church, whose construction dates back to the XIII century in which are recognised a Medieval body and a Renaissance one. At the end of the boat tour, we’ll catch the ferry from Monterosso to come back to Sestri Levante. Overnight
6° DAY: SESTRI LEVANTE – LA SPEZIA – PORTOVENERE – PALMARIA (Tino, Tinetto) – SESTRI LEVANTE
Breakfast. Departure to La Spezia and meeting with our guide. Ferry to Portovenere and tour by boat of the neighboring islands: Palmaria, Tino and Tinetto. Portovenere is a medieval and charming fishing village situated just south of the Cinque Terre. Portovenere, on the Gulf of Poets, is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Its picturesque harbor is lined with brightly colored houses while narrow medieval streets lined with shops lead up the hill from the ancient city gate to the castle. Ferries cruise along the coast each day, offering passengers a chance to have a view of one of the most evocative landscapes of the Mediterranean. It is possible to visit the three nearby islands by boat; Palmaria, Tino and Tinetto. In the late afternoon back to Sestri Levante and time to relax. Overnight
7° DAY: SESTRI LEVANTE
Breakfast. End of services
According to the number of participants, RainbowItaly can propose this itinerary in self-drive, minibus, GT bus, luxury car with private driver and everything can be personalized, starting from a basic package that includes:
- Late afternoon meeting with our assistant
- LGBT half day Genoa guide tour
- 6 nights in gay friendly 4**** selected hotels
- Breakfast included
- Licensed tour guide for all the excursions
- Ferry ticket Camogli – Portofino -S. Margherita
- Ferry Riomaggiore – Manarola – Monterosso (5 Terre)
- Train ticket Sestri Levante – Riomaggiore and Monterosso – Sestri Levante
- Ferry ticket La Spezia – Portovenere – Palmaria – La Spezia
We can propose meals in typical restaurant with “traditional Genoese menu”