Guvano Beach
Guvano Beach — Did you know that Cinque Terre in Italy has a secret nude beach? A little Googling helped us learn of it’s existence, but finding it, and GETTING to it was a whole different thing. In the past this nude beach was accessible via Corniglia through a train tunnel followed by a treacherous pathway down to the beach. But a few years ago that tunnel was closed for safety reasons, and the path that was once treacherous at best has become an impossibility, overgrown and eroded beyond functional use. That means the only possible way to get to Guvano Beach is by water. It also means the few who make the extra effort to venture to this secluded beach will find themselves rewarded by a unique nude beach that they will probably have all to themselves.
There are 3 options for getting to Guvano Beach by water…..kayak, stand up paddle board, or a motorboat. A kayak is probably the most affordable option, but involves a steep calorie and time investment. Renting a kayak from Riomaggiore or Vernazza costs about 50 Euro for a day. It would involve about a paddle of about 3 miles round trip, but it’s not a river, it’s an ocean, so if you add wind and chop that could be a tiring combination, though on a sunny calm day it could be amazing. It could take about 2-4 hours each direction depending on conditions. The plus is that it’s easy to stop off at other harbors, like Manarola. If you choose this option, research it well. We had only a half-day to fit in Guvano Beach, so kayaking wasn’t an option.
As far as we could gather, SUP rentals are available only in Levanto, which is too far to paddle to Guvano Beach. SUP tours are available in Cinque Terre, but a group itinerary would not likely include Guvano Beach. If you have a car, you could rent a board in Levanto and drive it in to Cinque Terre and drop in wherever you like, which is a cool idea, but parking is not cool, and navigating in and out of the harbors is at times steep and/or crowded. Nevertheless, if you figure out how to accomplish this, it is possible you would be the first ever to do so, and that’s a pretty cool thought.
The easiest way to get to Guvano Beach is via boat. It will cost about 180 Euro for a half-day, but, you’re basically going to have a James Bond experience, so, sort of worth it if that’s not too much to budget into your vacation expenses. Our two favorite towns in Cinque Terre are Manarola and Vernazza. Vernazza happens to offer boat rentals from a couple different companies. Be sure to book in advance, and ideally have a cell phone available for communication on the day of the rental. It’s also worth knowing that unless you have an international boating license, you will be limited to slower engines, like 5hp or less. There are classic Italian fishing boats called Gozzo motorboats, that’s have a charming retro look and move at about 5-10 mph. At that rate it takes about 15 minutes to get from Vernazza to Guvano Beach. So, while it’s not cheap, it does offer the gift of more time on the beach and more time to EXPLORE the rest of the Cinque Terre coastline. I’m not sure there is a more splendid way to explore Cinque Terre than by boat. It was an amazing experience.
So, I said 15 minutes to “get there”, but part of the adventure is that there is no way to pull onto Guvano beach and pulling a boat up onto the beach is forbidden, plus it’s rocky. So when you get there you will need to drop an anchor not far off shore, and swim for it! Be sure to bring flip flops, because the beach is made up of a bunch of large round 2-6 inch pebbles. Those pebbles are amazing for stone collectors, so many cool patterns! But they would be uncomfortable without shoes. There’s a lot to explore on this beach, crystal clear water, some natural stone formations, World War 2 ruins, and abandoned train architecture like a wall, bridge bases, tunnel entrances, etc. Meanwhile you are flanked by the amazing blends of green, turquoise and blue that only nature and a place like the Italian coast can blend into such visual perfection.
Guvano Beach is a spot that easily became one of our favorite nudist spots in the world. We highly recommend this adventure if you happen to be traveling through the Italian Riviera and have some time to spend in Cinque Terre. Cinque Terre is a worthy enough destination by itself, but adding in the self-guided boating tour and such a unique nude beach as Guvano Beach really made it a trip to remember. Ciao!
