Choosing a Portofino Tour: Boat, Walk, Kayak or a Day from Genoa

There is no gate to Portofino, so a trip is not a ticket in. It is a way of seeing a harbour village and the headland round it. Choose the way before you compare prices, and the right one among the Portofino guided tours is usually obvious. Start with where you are staying.

What are the ways to see Portofino?

Almost every trip here is one of five things. Each shows you a different part of the promontory, and each asks something different of you.

Prices move with the date and the option you pick. The harbour boat adds €10 fuel in cash, and a private boat's price covers the whole boat. The rest of this guide takes you through the questions that decide between them.

Where are you staying?

Your bed decides more than your budget does. Most trips start at a fixed pier, and none of the boats includes a transfer.

• Portofino: the harbour boat leaves Molo Umberto I, and the kayak base at Paraggi is about a kilometre back along the road.
• Santa Margherita: the pesto walk meets at the ferry pier, and several private boats board there.
• Rapallo: the shared Rapallo boat and the boats priced by party size meet at Rotonda Marconi.
• Genoa, or a cruise ship there: the bus-and-boat day or the private boat from Porto Antico. See the tours from Genoa.

The map of the harbours marks every meeting point, so you can see how far each one is from your bed.

Do you want to see the headland, or spend time in the village?

This is the question most people skip. A boat shows you the lighthouse, the cliffs, San Fruttuoso bay and Camogli in a morning, from the angle no road reaches. But not every boat lands you, and the harbour boat stays at sea the whole way.

If you want to walk the lanes, climb to San Giorgio and sit in the Piazzetta, you need time on land. A guided walk gives you that, and so does the Rapallo boat's hour ashore. On your own, the ferry gives you as long as you like.

Is a shared boat enough?

For most people, yes. A seat costs $98 to $103 a person, plus €10 fuel in cash on the harbour boat. You share it with up to 12 people and a skipper.

The shared boats differ in what they give you. The harbour boat runs two and a half hours from Portofino to Camogli and back, with drinks and a swim. The Rapallo boat runs four hours, with an hour ashore in Portofino and an hour snorkelling over the underwater statue, gear included.

When is a private boat worth it?

When there are four or more of you, or the day matters. Most private boats price the whole boat, from $557 per group (up to 5). Five people on that boat pay about $111 each, which is close to a shared seat.

A private boat also lets you choose the pier and the stops. Several dock in Portofino and Camogli, and one sails to the Cinque Terre. The private boat tours page sets them side by side.

Should you walk with a guide?

Walk with a guide if you want the story and the table. The pesto walk crosses from Santa Margherita by ferry, climbs to San Giorgio, stops at a bakery, then gives you a pesto class and lunch on the harbour.

A private guide walks the Piazzetta and the lanes with you for two to six hours, and one adds Santa Margherita. The park hike crosses the promontory to San Fruttuoso on foot. The walking tours page compares all of them.

When is a kayak or paddleboard better?

When you want to work for the view, and everyone in your party can swim. The kayak leaves Paraggi bay, passes Portofino harbour and stops to swim below the lighthouse. It is the cheapest trip on the coast and the most reviewed.

The paddleboard stays inside the calm bay of Paraggi and takes nobody under 14. Both last an hour and a half. The kayak tours page has the gear and the rules.

Is a day from Genoa worth it?

If Genoa is your base, or your ship docks there, yes. The bus-and-boat day meets three minutes from the cruise terminal and gives you about two hours in the village. You trade the freedom of the train for a fixed plan with a tour leader.

The private boat from Porto Antico is a full day by sea, with time ashore at San Fruttuoso, Portofino and Camogli. It costs $1,276 per group (up to 7), so it suits a group.

What if you arrive on a cruise ship?

Then your pier decides it. Ships anchored off Portofino tender you to Molo Isolotto, and those off Santa Margherita to Molo Maloncello. The private guided walks meet you at either, so you step off the tender and start.

If your ship docks in Genoa, the bus-and-boat day meets three minutes from the terminal and runs five and a half hours. Check your all-aboard time against the length of any trip before you book it, and leave a margin for the sea.

What if you want the Cinque Terre too?

You can reach it by sea from here. The Cinque Terre boat sails for seven hours from Portofino, Santa Margherita or Rapallo, with about an hour in Monterosso and two in Vernazza, at $3,481 per group (up to 7). On your own, the public ferry's Cinque Terre line leaves Santa Margherita and Rapallo for €47 return. Our post on the Cinque Terre by boat weighs the two.

What does the abbey have to do with it?

More than most listings admit. The Abbey of San Fruttuoso charges €10 for an adult, paid at its own door, and no fare includes it. Many boats stop in its bay only to swim, so you may not have time to go in.

If the abbey is the point of your day, pick a trip that lands you there, such as the Genoa boat or the park hike, or take the public ferry. Our San Fruttuoso page has the hours and the ways in.

Which trip suits children or a non-swimmer?

Check the swim rule first. The kayak and the paddleboard require you to swim, and the paddleboard takes nobody under 14. On a boat, a non-swimmer can stay aboard at the swim stop.

The pesto walk sells a child rate for ages 3 to 12 with two paying adults. Our post on Portofino with children goes through each age rule.

Which trip matches your plan?

Find the line that sounds like your day, then read that trip's card.

Still torn between two? Our one-day plans show how a boat and a village afternoon fit together, and the guide to boat fares sets the prices side by side.

Frequently asked questions

Trips for each way of seeing the headland

Portofino Small-Group Boat Tour to San Fruttuoso & Camogli

Two and a half hours from Molo Umberto I in Portofino harbour: past the lighthouse, over the statue's bay, a swim stop and on to Camogli, with drinks and limoncello, up to 12. Fuel is paid in cash at boarding.

From $103 per person plus €10 fuel surcharge a person, cash at boarding

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Portofino Boat and Walking Tour with Pesto Cooking & Lunch

Three hours from the Santa Margherita ferry pier: the return ferry, a guided walk up to San Giorgio, focaccia at a bakery, then a pesto class and lunch on the harbour, up to 6.

From $261 per person, bookings of two

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Private boat tour in the Tigullio and in the Portofino area

Three to four hours on a private boat from Santa Margherita or Rapallo: Portofino harbour, ashore if you ask, round the lighthouse and a swim at San Fruttuoso. Towels and a toilet on board.

From $557 per group (up to 5)

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