The area is best known for its culinary delights, culled from forest, field, and sea. Here the land yields an incredible variety of edible mushrooms; and oregano, borage, rosemary, and sage grow abundantly. The pine nuts essential to pesto are easily collected from the forests, as are chestnuts for making flour and olives for the oil that is the base of all dishes. Garlic and leeks flavor sautéed dishes, and beets turn up unexpectedly in ravioli and other dishes. Pesto sauce is said to have been invented in the area. Fishing boats add their rich hauls of anchovies, mussels, squid, octopus, and shellfish.

The white Cinque Terre wine is well known. The vineyards produce Sciacchetra, a DOC wine, rarer than many other Italian varieties because of the low 25% yield characteristic of the Vermentino, Bosco, and Albarola grapes from which it's derived. It goes well with fish as well as the local pasta dishes, such as Spaghetti al pesto, a wonderful sauce of basil, garlic, olive oil and cheese.

Other dishes are steamed mussels in garlic, tomato and mozzarella salad and marvelous local white wine. Round off your meal in a little Italian ristorante with a walnut cake or tiramisu.

The cafes serve breakfast; stand at the bar to drink a cappuccino and eat a sandwich and wash it down with a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice.

Check out the Enoteca Pirun wine shop in Corniglia. There are scores of local wines, spirits and other curios for sale, or just sit down with a nice glass of wine in the evening and soak up the atmosphere of the cool little place.

Because of the uniqueness of the Cinque Terre, it has been named by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The area has also been designated a National Park to protect the characteristic landscape. The Cinque Terre National Park is actively involved in recuperating and maintaining abandoned terraces. In 1997 the waters of the Cinque Terre were made a Marine Protected Area to safeguard the diverse range of animals and vegetation that are present, including several rare types of coral.