This page contains affiliate and referral links. If you charter, book, or buy through them we earn a referral fee, paid by the broker or platform, at no cost to you. We have not adjusted our rankings for the referral rate. Full breakdown on our how-we-make-money page.
The Ligurian Coast is the 55 nautical mile stretch of Italian Riviera between Genoa and the Gulf of La Spezia, anchored at Portofino in the west and at Portovenere in the east, with the Cinque Terre running the middle 12 nautical miles. A 40m motor yacht working the coast in mid-August runs €170,000 to €230,000 per week before APA. The Portofino harbor holds 12 superyacht slots, the August calendar books 9 to 12 months ahead, and most charter yachts work the coast on a 3 to 4 day segment of a Western Mediterranean rotation rather than as a standalone week.
The point of the Ligurian Coast is the density of the cruising. Within 55 nautical miles you get the most photographed Mediterranean village (Portofino), a five-village vertical coastline that no other ground delivers (the Cinque Terre), and the deep-water gulf at Portovenere with the islands of Palmaria and Tino. The cost of that density is that the week runs out of cruising radius at the end of day three and the answer is to pair with the Côte d'Azur to the west or to push south to Corsica.
The Ligurian Coast is also one of the few Mediterranean grounds where the season window is narrower than the rest of the Med. The June to early September window is the only useful period; May is cold, late September shifts to rain, and the August peak has the marina-capacity friction that defines this coast.
When to charter the Ligurian Coast
May. Water 16 to 18 degrees Celsius. Most coastal restaurants closed through May 15. Portofino harbor open but Paraggi and the eastern beach clubs not yet operating. Avoid May for the Ligurian Coast; the product is not yet open.
June. Water 20 to 22 degrees by mid-month. Restaurants ashore opening from June 5 (Paraggi beach clubs, Da Puny in Portofino, Locanda Lorena on Palmaria). Anchorages still light. Rates 25 to 35 percent below August. The second half of June is the strongest opening Ligurian window.
July. Peak begins around July 5. Water 23 to 24 degrees. Portofino harbor fully booked. The Cinque Terre day-tripping density rises through the month. Headline rates.
August. Hardest month. Portofino harbor 100 percent booked, the anchor outside the harbor (Paraggi bay) holds 40 to 60 yachts on weekend nights. The Cinque Terre village tender access at Vernazza and Monterosso runs queue-restricted by midday. La Camogliese, Da Puny, U Giancu, and the Splendido lunch terrace need 2 to 4 week lead times.
September. Water 22 to 23 degrees through September 15. The first 10 days are the cleanest Ligurian week of the year. Rates fall meaningfully from September 12 onward. The Cinque Terre vineyards harvest, the late-summer evening light is the strongest of the season.
October. First week workable. Water 19 to 21 degrees, swimming viable but cold by Ligurian standards. Most beach clubs close October 8 to 15. The coast moves to the off-season product.
The Ligurian Coast cruising zones
Portofino and Paraggi. The Portofino harbor (12 superyacht slots, 35m maximum inner harbor, 50m maximum outer slots) is the most concentrated coastal stop in the western Mediterranean. The Paraggi bay 1 nautical mile northwest holds the anchor for yachts above 50m and the Paraggi beach clubs (Langosteria Paraggi, Bagni Fiore) carry the daytime ashore. The Castello Brown and the Splendido Mare hotel terrace anchor the evening.
Santa Margherita Ligure. Two nautical miles north of Portofino. Working marina with 80 superyacht slots, better berthing inventory than Portofino itself, and the practical overnight base for yachts above 50m. The town carries its own restaurant inventory (L'Altro Eden, Trattoria dei Pescatori) and serves as the tender point to Portofino for yachts at the larger sizes.
Camogli and the Promontorio di Portofino. Three nautical miles west of Portofino. The San Fruttuoso abbey anchorage on the protected south side of the promontory is the day-anchor stop of every Ligurian week. The 13th century abbey, the underwater Christ of the Abyss, and the small beach restaurant (Da Giovanni) make a clean lunch stop. Anchor in 15 to 30 metres on the lee side.
The Cinque Terre. The five villages (Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, Riomaggiore) run 12 nautical miles east of the Promontorio di Portofino. The marine protected area regulates anchoring; the captain will hold the yacht offshore at 30 to 50 metres in designated anchor zones and tender to the villages. The clean approach is a half-day round across the five villages anchored at Vernazza for the visual, with the tender visit to Manarola or Monterosso for lunch.
Portovenere and the Gulf of La Spezia. The eastern anchor of the coast. Portovenere holds a small harbor for yachts to 30m; above that the anchor is in the Gulf of La Spezia between Palmaria, Tino, and Tinetto islands. The Locanda Lorena on Palmaria and the Antica Trattoria della Marina at Portovenere are the standing meals ashore. Anchor in 18 to 30 metres on the Palmaria side.
Lerici and the eastern gulf. Three nautical miles east of Portovenere. Working town with the Castello di Lerici view and a quieter overnight option than Portovenere itself for yachts that want to overnight on the gulf.
A standard 7-day Ligurian and Côte d'Azur rotation
| Day | Anchorage | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Sat | Monaco or Cap Ferrat | Boarding, short hop, overnight Villefranche or Beaulieu |
| Sun | Portofino (anchor Paraggi) | East run 80 nautical miles, lunch on the way at San Fruttuoso, evening at Da Puny |
| Mon | Portofino to Cinque Terre | Cinque Terre half-day round, lunch tender at Vernazza, overnight Portovenere |
| Tue | Gulf of La Spezia | Palmaria anchor, Locanda Lorena lunch, dinner at Antica Trattoria |
| Wed | Cinque Terre return | Westbound across the Cinque Terre, anchor Santa Margherita |
| Thu | Portofino harbor | Inner harbor berth if available, evening at Splendido Mare |
| Fri | Saint-Tropez or Cannes | West run back to the Côte d'Azur, overnight Pampelonne or Cannes |
| Sat | Cannes or Antibes disembark | Disembarkation morning |
This is the rotation that gives the Ligurian Coast its full charter week. It works on 30m to 60m yachts cleanly. The 80 nautical mile passage Saturday to Sunday is real and the captain prefers a morning departure with the weather window clear. Above 60m the structure shifts the Portofino overnight to Santa Margherita and treats Portofino itself as a daytime tender stop.
Ligurian Coast yacht size guidance
30m to 45m. The clean fit. Portofino inner and outer harbor absorbs at this size, Paraggi anchor direct, Cinque Terre anchorages absorb. Portovenere harbor takes 30m direct.
45m to 60m. Workable. Portofino harbor outer slots only (4 to 6 of the 12 slots). Paraggi anchor direct. Santa Margherita the practical overnight base for some nights.
60m to 80m. The week compromises. Portofino harbor absorbs 1 to 2 outer slots, fully booked 9 to 12 months ahead. Santa Margherita is the working overnight base. Portovenere overflows to the Gulf of La Spezia anchor.
80m and above. Daytime only at Portofino. Overnight base shifts to Genoa (28 nautical miles west) or Santa Margherita. Most weeks at this size treat the Ligurian Coast as a daytime corridor on a Western Mediterranean transit rather than as an overnight ground.
Ligurian Coast charter cost math
| Line item | Range (40m motor yacht, August peak) |
|---|---|
| Weekly rate | €170K to €230K |
| APA (32% to 35%) | €54K to €80K |
| VAT (22% Italian) | €37K to €50K |
| Portofino harbor berthing (per night, August) | €3K to €6K |
| Santa Margherita berthing (per night, August) | €1.5K to €3.5K |
| Splendido Mare, Da Puny dinners (per visit) | €1.5K to €4K |
| Paraggi beach club daybed (per day) | €1K to €2.5K |
| Gratuity (10% to 15%) | €17K to €34K |
| Full check | €290K to €405K |
The 22 percent Italian charter VAT applies. APA on the Ligurian Coast runs 32 to 35 percent; the western and eastern passages (Côte d'Azur cross, Corsica push) drive fuel burn higher than a Tyrrhenian-only week. Portofino harbor berthing at €3K to €6K a night in August is the second highest single-night rate in Italy after Marina di Capri.
What we passed on
We pass on Portofino as a 7-day standalone single-base week. The harbor pressure and the cruising radius (Portofino-San Fruttuoso-Sestri Levante reaches its natural limit at 25 nautical miles) does not absorb a full week. Pair with the Côte d'Azur west or the Cinque Terre east.
We pass on the Cinque Terre as an overnight anchorage on weekend nights in August. The marine protected area limits anchor positions and the village-front anchors expose to southwest weather. Overnight at Portovenere or Santa Margherita and tender to the villages from the wider anchor offshore.
We pass on Portofino harbor outer slots on Saturday changeover days in August. Tender congestion at the harbor inner berth runs 9 to 11 a.m. when day-tripping ferries cycle and the harbor handover from the previous week's yacht to the inbound yacht takes 3 to 5 hours of dock time. Overnight at Santa Margherita on changeover Saturdays and shift to Portofino Sunday morning.
We pass on the Camogli harbor as a tender stop above 30m. The harbor is small, the entrance shallow, and the village access by tender is restricted in August. Anchor in the bay outside the harbor and tender to the San Fruttuoso abbey or to Camogli town from offshore.
Multi-region pairings
The Ligurian-Côte d'Azur 7-day rotation is the standard pairing. We cover the Côte d'Azur side on the Côte d'Azur page and the French Riviera page.
The Ligurian-Corsica 10-day one-way (Saint-Tropez board, Portofino, Cinque Terre, cross south to Corsica or Sardinia, disembark Olbia) is the cleanest long-form pairing and the structure that gets the Ligurian Coast at its full value. The Portofino to Bastia passage is 110 nautical miles and runs cleanly in 9 to 12 hours with a morning departure.
The Ligurian-Amalfi structure (Portofino to Naples) requires 360 nautical miles of passage and runs as a 14-day Western Mediterranean transit only; it is not a 7-day option.
The cross-pillar question (villa or charter)
The Portofino hills and the Santa Margherita coast hold a deep villa inventory at €15K to €60K per week. For clients who want Portofino evenings without the harbor friction, a villa stay plus day charters from Santa Margherita to San Fruttuoso, the Cinque Terre, and Portovenere works at €5K to €12K per day. The yacht charter answers when the trip wants the Cinque Terre and Portovenere overnight inventory, when the group prefers the deep anchor swim rhythm to a beach club routine, or when 3 to 4 nights of the week sit at the Côte d'Azur or Corsica.
The rest of the trip
VillasForKings covers the Portofino hillside villa inventory plus the Santa Margherita and Sestri Levante coastal options. HotelsForKings covers the Belmond Splendido and Splendido Mare, the Grand Hotel Miramare in Santa Margherita, and the Grand Hotel Portovenere. RestaurantsForKings covers Da Puny, U Giancu, Langosteria Paraggi, La Camogliese, the Locanda Lorena on Palmaria, and the Splendido lunch terrace. BarsForKings covers the Splendido bar, the Caffè Excelsior in Santa Margherita, and the Portofino piazzetta evening map.
FAQ
What size yacht works best at the Ligurian Coast? 35m to 50m motor yacht. Portofino harbor outer slots absorb at this size, Paraggi anchor direct, and the Cinque Terre offshore anchor works without size compromise. Above 60m the trip shifts the overnight base to Santa Margherita.
When is the Ligurian Coast at its best? The last two weeks of June and the first 10 days of September. Both windows deliver warm water, full restaurant calendar, and 25 to 35 percent below August peak rates without the Portofino harbor pressure.
How far ahead do I need to book Portofino harbor in August? Nine to twelve months ahead. The inner harbor slots book first and the outer slots fill by April for the following August. Late charter bookings work with a Santa Margherita overnight base and a tender approach to Portofino.
Can I do the Ligurian Coast as a 7-day standalone? Tight. The cruising spine yields 4 days of real interest. Pair with the Côte d'Azur west or with Corsica south for the full week.
Is the August Cinque Terre crowd manageable from a yacht? Yes if the structure is right. Anchor offshore at Vernazza or Monterosso and tender into the villages between 8 and 10 a.m. or after 17:00 to miss the midday day-tripping density. The villages absorb 4,000 to 6,000 visitors per day in August and the morning and evening windows are the working ones.