Long on my bucket list, these five gelato-coloured Italian Riviera cliffside villages, reached only by sea, train or foot, were every bit as stunning as I had hoped they would be.
Monterosso was in the middle of a lemon festival, with home-made limoncello stalls decorated in green and yellow bunting. We took our guide’s advice and tried a limoncello slushy – but in my humble opinion, prosecco makes an even better mixer.
The $84 (£62) shore excursion seemed good value as Cinque Terre would have been difficult to reach otherwise and the price included the return coach trip, local train fares and services of our guide.
Back on board, the captain announced that the next day’s call to Genoa was cancelled. My heart sank – until he added that we would be going ashore at Santa Margherita instead.
As the quaint Ligurian seaside resort was our intended destination, it saved us a train journey, and we now had extra time to reach Portofino.
Yet despite this, we still managed to miss the Portofino ferry. Undeterred, we caught a bus instead and marvelled at the swanky yachts in the marina at this world-famous resort.
After a spot of window-shopping, we sat at a waterside bar sipping prosecco and watching the comings and goings on the sun-drenched Piazzetta.
The jetset lifestyle rubbed off on us, as the next day in Marseilles we treated ourselves to a room service champagne breakfast, delivered with a flourish on our sunny balcony. If only every Monday morning began in such splendour.
