Monterosso al Mare is the largest village of the Cinque Terre and also the first to be documented (1056).
Consisting of two districts, the old village and Fegina, the more touristy part, Monterosso al Mare also boasts important monuments. Amongst these the XIV century church of San Giovanni Battista (St. John the Baptist), in front of which rose the Medieval  Palazzo del Podestà, of which some traces remain. Of great importance, on the colle dei (hills of) Cappuccini, the castello dei Fieschi (the castle of Fieschi) and the monastero (monastry) whose church is San Francesco (St. Francis), contains works of art of unestimable value amongst which pictures attributed to Van Dick, Cambiaso, Piola and Guido Reni.
Villa Montale can be found at Fegina, where the Nobel prize winner for Literature stayed and the Gigante (Giant), imposing statue in reinforced cement built at the beginning of 1900 which originally held up a terrace in the shape of a shell.

Useful numbers:     
Municipality +39 0187 817525       
Proloco +39 0187 817506       
The Cinque Terre Park +39 0187 817059       
Railway Station +39 0187 817360       
Taxi: Taxi Driver +39 335 6165845 / Speedy Taxi +39 335 6165842 / Taxi Libero +39 335 6280933       
Porter +39 333 4279309       
Police +39 0187 817524       
Levanto Hospital +39 0187 800409       
Pharmacy+39 0187 818391