Offering extraordinary views along Italy's Cinque Terre coast, the celebrated "Via dell'Amore" or "Path of Love" trail reopens this weekend , first for locals and then visitors -- but only with a paid reservation. The path, which runs more than 900 metres between the colourful coastal villages of Riomaggiore and Manarola on Italy's northwestern coast, was closed in 2012 after a landslide. It has been rendered safe and remade as part of a 23-million-euro ($25 million) restoration project, which required a helicopter to transport materials and saw workers suspended by ropes and cables off the cliff.
It will be opened to residents of the surrounding areas and holiday home owners from Saturday, with tourists allowed in from August 9 -- but only by reservation. Visitors must buy a five-euro ticket in advance, which includes a guided walk and entry to the Castle of Riomaggiore, with access limited to 400 people per hour. Tourists will only be able to walk in one direction, from Riomaggiore to Manarola, although locals can move freely, as they have since the path was built in the 1930s.
A daily ticket has long been required to hike the trails in the Cinque Terre, a UNESCO World Heritage site made up of a network of five villages on the edge of the Mediterranean Sea. But ticketing the "Via dell'Amore" is a new idea, which comes amid a surge in visitor numbers to the region. Last year four million visitors were recorded by the municipality of Riomaggiore.
"We want to ensure a more sus.
