Because of its beauty and peculiarity the Cinque Terre sea has been acknowledged and guarded as a "Natural Protected Marine Area".

The sea that seat washes the Park is also part of the vast Protected Marine Area called "Whale Sanctuary"; therefore the Cinque Terre are a good depanrture point for "wale wathcing".

Refined sea-people will appreciate the rocks, the beaches and a trasparent water where all shades of blue are gathered together.
On the coast between Vernazza and Monterosso you'll find a tale place, the "Tana della Maemuna", a cave about fifty mt. long. It's a real beauty where the sun light reflecting on water, plays on the stoney walls and causes a misterious atmosphere. Someone says that the cave took its name from a mermaid, others think it's a distortion from "Mammona", the devil. It can be reached and explored by boat.

The line boat service to the Cinque Terre is very active in the good season from different places in Liguria. The tour from Monterosso to Portovenere is a suggested one: the boat tour allows to discover along the coast hidden spots otherwise unreachable.

A few fhone numbers in La Spezia:

Battellieri del Golfo..........0187.210.10
In.Tur.........................0187.329.87
Navigazione Golfo dei Poeti....0187.732.987
Linea "Cap.Baracco"............0187.966.955
Marittima F.lli Rossignoli.....0187.817.456

The sounding depth the coast is rocky and slopes down rapidily to a depth of 20-30 mt. In the protected sea area there are three zone of different guardianship. For those interested in underwater diving it's possible to contact scuba instructors: they are fully equipped for diving up to 40 mt., both in Cinque Terre and in the nearby islands Palmaria, Tino and Tinetto.