Project Activities | Itinerary | Price | TRIP REVIEWS | Trip Reports | Safety
Volunteer in Cinque Terre, Italy – a land rich in cultural diversity and exquisite landscapes.
Experience the historic, colorful villages of the iconic Mediterranean hillsides and jagged coastlines of Cinque Terre, Italy. Substantially located within the UNESCO World Heritage designation boundaries of Parco Nazionale delle Cinque Terre, the area embodies the connectivity between people and nature within an exceptional scenic landscape. Our Italian guide will lead us through the iconic village where we will volunteer and lodge. Gain an appreciation for the environment, history, and local cuisine while helping to preserve this historic cultural and environmental marvel. UNESCO recently added dry stone walls in Italy to its List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
Our volunteer projects are located in the Cinque Terre region of Italy, where we will restore the iconic ancient dry stone walls and vineyard terraces which illustrate the area’s heritage of humanity, traditional land uses, and landscape design. These terraces, some dating back to the year 1000, contain no imported stones and are maintained by hand. When these stone walls fail, it can cause erosion, landslides, and loss of animals and human livelihoods.
After taking a short uphill walk from our hotel in Riomaggiore, we approach the terraces perched above the Ligurian sea to our volunteer project site at Azienda Agricola Possa. The farm and winery are located within the Cinque Terre National Heritage Designation and belong to Samuele Heydi Bonanini. Heydi has brought back the production of ancient wine and maintains the ancient dry stone wall terraces preventing erosion loss. 
Volunteer projects may alternate between rebuilding the ancient dry stone walls and vineyard terraces and working on soil recovery projects such as preparing fallowed agricultural land for future plantings necessary to stabilize the terraces or planting historical plant varieties of traditional Cinque Terre vines.
No prior experience is required; project training is provided. The projects include a variety of tasks that we will rotate. There are two community elevators located in Riomaggiore that lead to two upper streets but no elevators at this worksite or in the hotels! You should be able to hike/walk up steep hills and streets with a day pack, climb uneven steps in the village and at the project site, walk and work on narrow hillside trails and terraces, move soil or rock with a shovel or pick, pull unwanted vegetation, and carry stones weighing approximately 10-20 lbs. As always, your safety is our priority.
IMPORTANT NOTICE Day 1 is the day you should plan to arrive at the meeting point for the trip. This may require departing your hometown one or more days in advance and traveling on an overnight flight.
Day 1: Introductions, Orientation, and walk in Florence. We begin in Florence, Italy, known for its artistic and architectural heritage. We will meet in the mid-afternoon for an orientation meeting at our hotel. If timing permits, we will later take a pleasant walk from the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore to the Battistero di San Giovanni and the Palazzo della Signoria. (Dinner included)
Day 2: Florence to Lucca to Riomaggiore, Cinque Terre. After breakfast, the group will embark on a private transfer to Riomaggiore, stopping in Lucca 
to see the historical city and have lunch. After lunch, we continue our journey to Riomaggiore, the base for our volunteer project. After checking into our hotel, we will meet to discuss the projects, expectations, and safety requirements. We will take a short walk around Riomaggiore and then go to dinner. (All meals included)
Day 3: Volunteer Projects in the Cinque Terre Region. After breakfast, we will walk up the short but steep paved road to our volunteer project site, Azienda Agricola Possa, where we will meet Haydi, our local partner and owner of Possa, and then begin our volunteer projects. Mid-day, we will break for a lovely picnic lunch overseeing the terraces, vineyards, and sea. At the end of the day, we will walk back to the hotel and have free time before dinner. (All meals included)
Day 4: Volunteer Projects in the Cinque Terre Region and Cooking Demonstration. After breakfast, we walk to the Possa winery and spend the morning volunteering on the vineyard or dry stone wall terraces. After a few hours, we will walk back towards the hotel where we will meet a local chef and enjoy a fun cooking class to learn how to make a real basil pesto and fresh pasta which will be the group’s lunch meal. After this lovely lunch, we return to the project site. Late in the afternoon we will return to our hotel and relax before having a nice dinner. (All meals included)
Day 5: Volunteer Projects in the Cinque Terre Region and Optional Hike to Monastery of Madonna di Montenero. After breakfast, we walk to the Possa project site and spend the day working on the vineyard or dry stone wall 
terrace projects. Late in the afternoon, trip participants can return to the hotel and rest before dinner or take an optional hike along a stunning trail that goes up to the monastery of Madonna di Montenero about 1,000 feet above sea level. This short and steep trail runs uphill at an impressive angle, passing by ancient vineyards and olive trees. From the vantage point of the Madonna di Montenero monastery, your eyes sweep over the jagged Mediterranean coastline. From one end to the other, Liguria is sprinkled with lavish villas, stone-built villages, and the proverbial castles in the air seemingly lifted from fairy tales. (All meals included)
Day 6: Rest Day. Optional hiking in the Cinque Terre National Park: Today you will have a rest day. You can rest and enjoy Riomaggiore or visit other local villages by train on your own. Or you can join an optional group hike led by our local guide in Parco Nazionale Delle Cinque Terre, on the Cinque Terre Trail which passes through several beautiful villages. Hiking along, we will focus on the cultural and natural resources that our guide shows us, before taking a train back to Riomaggiore. (Breakfast included)
Day 7: Volunteer Projects in the Cinque Terre Region. Today is our last day volunteering at the Possa winery. We will continue the dry stone walls and the vineyards projects in the morning, enjoy a picnic lunch and then volunteer until late afternoon. After we return to our hotel, we have time to rest before dinner. (All meals included)
Day 8: Transfer to Florence. After breakfast, we board our private transportation and drive back to Florence. Along the way, we stop in Porto Venere, a surprising village with a thousand pastel colors and the castle Doria where we will have lunch. After lunch, we board our transportation and continue into Florence to check into our hotel. We enjoy a last walk around the city and celebrate at our farewell dinner. (All meals included)
Day 9: Arrivederci to our traveling companions as our trip ends after breakfast. Volunteers are responsible for providing their own transportation to their mode of return travel. Volunteers may choose to fly home from Florence, or they may travel by plane or train to other cities within Italy for extended stays. (Breakfast included)
Note: Although we do our very best to adhere to the schedule above, the itinerary is subject to change for numerous reasons beyond our control, including changes in the local project needs, weather, and terrain conditions.
IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING AIR TRAVEL: Before purchasing your airline tickets, please check with us to ensure the trip has the necessary minimum number of participants required to operate.
$3,965 for nine days (single supplement $600 subject to availability)
(Note: Your trip expense may be tax-deductible. Please see our Frequently Asked Questions page and consult your tax advisor for details.)
Price includes:
- Leadership and support staff for volunteer activities
- local guides
- hotel accommodations
- all meals listed in the itinerary
- all bus and train transportation as noted on the itinerary
- project tools
- all orientation and training excursions as noted on the itinerary
- park entrance fees
Price does not include:
- International airfare to/from Italy
- meals not listed in itinerary
- medical immunizations
- insurance (emergency medical and evacuation insurance is mandatory)
- excess baggage charges
- airport taxes
- alcoholic beverages
- gratuities or personal items
Deposit and Cancellation
A deposit of $500 per person is required at the time of signup; final payment is due at 90 days prior to departure. The payment and refund policy can be found here. Please print or download a copy of this document for referral.
Group Size: 8 – 11 plus trip leaders
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What a fantastic trip!! The food, accommodations and logistics were great! Nancy, Mark and Tancredi (our local guide) did an amazing job leading our group, seemingly seamlessly adjusting our plans based on the weather and taking care of all of the details! It was great to meet and interact with local folks, accomplish some great work, and see/experience this beautiful and very special place! I'll be doing this again and hope to see many of my fellow travelers/volunteers on future trips! Thank you Conservation VIP! Well done!
This is my 3rd trip with ConservationVIP. Once again, ConservationVIP delivered! Cinque Terra is a lifetime destination, but current popularity and reports of crowding may cause hesitation. Traveling with ConservationVIP with a local guide allows enjoyment of 5Terra from a different perspective. Tancredi (local guide) loves what he does from sharing culture, history, problem solving, finding the best picnic lunches and kindly helping when the needed. Nancy and Mark of course kept everything moving forward even when things happen like very bad weather.
This trip allows a very intimate inside view of the community of 5Terra from challenges to what makes it so great. If you want an “in the weeds” experience do this! Working out on the vineyards, repairing walls, pulling those weeds, meeting and helping the people that are trying to keep 5Terra’s culture very alive. Heydi the winemaker stewards his land to respect nature, increase biodiversity (pollinators) and revive and grow local varieties of grapes (well suited to the terrain and conditions) that were on the verge of extinction.
Working on the national park trails, clearing out mud, Weeds! Is an immediately satisfying experience as the trail emerges out of the landscape. The day after the trail was cleared, hikers were using it. Of course, Barbara and Stefano were very grateful for the extra hands and graciously fed us lunch. We did have to learn to make Bruschetta and pesto under her exacting, excellent tutelage in order to eat lunch. Delicious!
And what do you do when there is a code red storm coming in that could possibly create flooding and it is too dangerous to go out? Mark, Tancredi and Nancy to the rescue. We spent the day in Heydi’s winery processing cases of grapes by pulling the individual grapes off the grape clusters while the rain came down outside. A few people helped with labeling and packaging of the wine for shipment. It was a great team building day, Tancredi created a beautiful picnic, and a couple of days later, we were able to see the grapes happily fermenting into wine in a vat. This was certainly much better than hanging out in the hotel all day watching the rain.
The trip starts and ends in Florence which has a lifetime of art, architecture, and charm. The high speed train is an easy trip to Rome. Do not hesitate to do this trip! You will not be disappointed.
We just returned from CVIP Italy/ Cinque Terre. Here is my review: When you come to Liguria You can be sure you Will have a fabulous time Seeing the towns Walking up and down And drinking the local wine. Mark, Nancy, Tancredi Made sure we were ready To enjoy everything we would see. Though we’re not finished yet We owe a big debt To Conservation VIP. Enjoying the glory of RioMaggiore So much to see and do there From Barbara the pesto The site from UNESCO The best of Cinque Terre. Heydi makes sure That his wine is quite pure For enjoying some fine Sciachettra The product is sweet Complex and complete For dessert you can only say “Aaaahhh The work wasn’t easy But pasta and caprese Made way for satisfaction Tiramisu and pesto We made, all the best While our leaders directed the action. I still had to chuckle While scraping my knuckles To clean up the pilgrimage stairs Cause my crew was delightful And often insightful For all we were doing while there So thanks VIP For putting up with me I think we would sign up again For the trip of a lifetime And Pleasurable wife time And the joy of newfound friends.
In summary, the Cinque Terre work trip exceeded our expectations for traveling with a purpose.
Purpose for us means: 1. to help sustain and maintain unique and at risk locations around the world.
2. Plus immersion into new cultures and learning about different cultures, customs and people.
These goals were met and exceeded with the Cinque Terre Trip.
Our specific feedback on the Cinque Terre trip is:
Local Leader: Tancredi was excellent on assessing the group and leading us on hikes that stretched us, but provided excellent views of the area and doable for all of us. Plus providing optional hikes for those who wanted to do more , i.e. to hike on to Vernazza and the hike up to Monastery was excellent.
Tancredi went above expectations in planning and providing excellent meal options. Especially for those that have dietary challenges, like me being gluten free and those who were vegans.
ConservationVIP Leaders: Nancy and Mark provided great support and leadership. Especially making the ad hoc change to spend a rainy day helping at the Bossa winery by inspecting bottles and destemming hundreds pounds of grapes. This was an excellent learning experience and much safer than working in the rain. Nancy went above expectations by balancing leader functions and also doing a ton of work alongside the other participants.
The organization of daily plans, transportation and in transit stops to Lucca and Port Venere and Riomaggiore was well coordinated.
Hotels in Florence and Riomaggiore provided good service. The rooms were clean and comfortable and breakfast was nutritious and with good options. Showers were a tad small, but provided a good flow of hot water.
Recommendations: Include the day of working inside the winery for every trip. I realize the multiple rain days changed the itinerary, however allowing for a down half day and evening during mid trip would be beneficial to all of us. The work was very strenuous and difficult to maintain for 4 days.
Respectfully and thankfully submitted by,
Dave & Ellen W
I thoroughly enjoyed the trip to Cinque Terre. The village of Rio Maggiore is lovely, nestled in its river valleys. Our trip was with Conservation VIP as a volunteer working excursion. We worked hard at a local vineyard, helping reduce weeds, picking grapes, cleaning up grape-picking equipment and installing fence. We also cleared a hiking trail within the National Forest, removing soil, loose rock and vegetation. Our hard work made us hungry and the food we ate was excellent! Our guide Tancredi of Mandala Tours took us to osterie and ristoranti which featured fresh seafood and vegetables. During our work breaks, we hiked local trails to spectacular views of the mountains and Ligurian Sea, had a cooking class from an excellent chef (dining on handmade pesto, pasta, bruschetta and tiramisù) and tasted the vineyard’s wines as well. I enjoyed meeting the leaders from Conservation VIP, our guides, and all the volunteers who were on the trip.
This trip was amazing! Leaders Mark and Nancy along with local guide Giovanna executed a well thought out itinerary that included a “workplace” with breath taking views, informative outings, great food and comfortable accommodations. To share the beauty of Cinque Terre with a such a hardworking, fun loving group of people was a memorable experience.
the cinque terre trip was very well organized. conservation vip trip leaders (mark and nancy) and our italian guides (giovanna and her colleague in lucca) were both top notch. the italian cuisine and our hotel accommodations were excellent. fellow volunteers were an amazing and gregarious group and virtually everyone enjoyed the work project as well as other outings. i give this trip 5 stars!
The trip was amazing! Great leaders who put a lot of thought and effort into every detail. The food was delicious, and the accommodations were perfect! The work energized us, and the group felt like old friends.
The key to staying comfortable while on an active trip is layering. To get maximum comfort with minimum weight, you need versatile layers that mix and match to create the right amount of insulation, ventilation, and weather protection. The gear list has been created to help you in choosing your equipment for the trip. View the Gear List PDF.
Please click to view Trip Report PDFs.
Please check with your doctor to see if any immunizations are recommended for you.
ConservationVIP has always focused on our volunteers’ safety. Traveling with safety concerns requires some extra planning and flexibility both for trip leaders and trip participants!
To prevent illness or injury on the trip, participants may have to follow procedures such as mask-wearing, social distancing, methods for carrying and using tools and other site-specific procedures as instructed by the trip leader. More specific safety instructions will be provided on the trip.
Participants will also have to comply with any restrictions imposed by Italy and their country of origin at the time of travel. While we know that the restrictions may change between now and the time of travel, we cannot predict what those changes will be.
