Riomaggiore ( lij, Rimazzô, locally ) is a village and

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the

province of La Spezia A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outsi ...

, situated in a small

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between Hill, hills or Mountain, mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers ...

in the

Liguria Liguria (; lij, Ligûria ; french: Ligurie) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is ...

region of Italy. It is the first of the

Cinque Terre The Cinque Terre (; lij, Çinque Tære, meaning "Five Lands") is a coastal area within Liguria, in the northwest of Italy. It lies in the west of La Spezia Province, and comprises five villages: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, ...

one meets when travelling north from

La Spezia La Spezia (, or , ; in the local Spezzino dialect) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second largest city ...

. The village, dating from the early thirteenth century, is known for its historic character and wine produced by the town's

vineyard A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineyards ...

s. Riomaggiore is in the

Riviera di Levante The Italian Riviera or Ligurian Riviera ( it, Riviera ligure; lij, Rivêa lìgure) is the narrow coastal strip in Italy which lies between the Ligurian Sea and the mountain chain formed by the Maritime Alps and the Apennines. Longitudinally ...

region. It has a shoreline on the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

Gulf of Genoa The Gulf of Genoa (''Golfo di Genova'') is the northernmost part of the Ligurian Sea. This Italian gulf is about wide from the city of Imperia in the west to La Spezia in the east. The largest city on its coast is Genoa, which has an important p ...

, with a small beach and a

wharf A wharf, quay (, also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more berths (mooring locatio ...

framed by

tower house A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation. Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountainous or limited access areas, in order to command and defend strateg ...

s. Riomaggiore's main street is Via Colombo, where numerous restaurants, bars, and shops can be found. The ''

Via dell'Amore La via dell'Amore or The Way of Love (Via de l'Amùu in the Ligurian language) is a pedestrian path overlooking the sea, with a length of just over one kilometer, linking the villages of Riomaggiore and Manarola, Cinque Terre, in Liguria (Italy). ...

'' is a path connecting Riomaggiore to its ''

frazione A ''frazione'' (plural: ) is a type of subdivision of a ''comune'' (municipality) in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist era (1922–1943) as a way to consolidate territ ...

Manarola Manarola (''Manaea'' in the local dialect) is a small town, a frazione of the comune (municipality) of Riomaggiore, in the province of La Spezia, Liguria, northern Italy. It is the second-smallest of the famous Cinque Terre towns frequented by ...

, also part of the

. Riomaggiore is the most southern village of the five

, all connected by

trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. Th ...

. The water and mountainside have been declared

national parks A national park is a natural park in use for conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual ...

. Riomaggiore inspired paintings by

Telemaco Signorini Telemaco Signorini (; August 18, 1835 – February 10, 1901) was an Italian artist who belonged to the group known as the Macchiaioli. Biography He was born in the Santa Croce quarter of Florence, and showed an early inclination toward the st ...

(1835–1901), one of the artists of the

Macchiaioli The Macchiaioli () were a group of Italian painters active in Tuscany in the second half of the nineteenth century. They strayed from antiquated conventions taught by the Italian art academies, and did much of their painting outdoors in order to ...

group.

Transportation

Riomaggiore railway station is on the

Genoa–Pisa railway The Genoa–Pisa railway is one of the trunk lines of the rail transport in Italy, Italian railway network. It runs along the Ligurian coast from Genoa to Pisa through the Italian Riviera, Riviera di Levante and the Versilia. It passes through the ...

. It is served by trains run by

Trenitalia Trenitalia is the primary train operator in Italy. A subsidiary of Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane, itself owned by the Italian government, the company was established in 2000 following a European Union directive on the deregulation of rail transp ...

, including services from . Inside Riomaggiore, all major attractions are walkable for tourists.

In popular culture

Riomaggiore was featured in the 2014 driving video game ''

Forza Horizon 2 ''Forza Horizon 2'' is a 2014 racing video game developed for Microsoft's Xbox One and Xbox 360 consoles. It is the sequel to 2012's '' Forza Horizon'' and the seventh instalment in the ''Forza'' series. The Xbox One version of the game was ...

''. The village was not featured as the central location but was referenced on various road signs. Riomaggiore hill view

Riomaggiore and other Cinque Terre towns were the inspiration for the fictional Portorosso in the 2021 animated film ''

Luca The last universal common ancestor (LUCA) is the most recent population from which all organisms now living on Earth share common descent—the most recent common ancestor of all current life on Earth. This includes all cellular organisms; th ...

''.

Gallery

File:Riomaggiore village.jpg, Houses on the rocks File:Panaromic view of Riomaggiore at Sunset.jpg, Panorama File:Riomaggiore, Italy.jpg, Houses on the slope File:Riomaggiore sea view.jpg, Riomaggiore

References

External links

Welcome to Italy: Riomaggiore

Homepage of the City
Panaromic view of Riomaggiore at Sunset

Coastal towns in Liguria Italian Riviera World Heritage Sites in Italy {{Liguria-geo-stub

Transportation

In popular culture

Gallery

See also

References

External links