Mortar-made pesto workshop on the Nessun Dorma terrace, Manarola

Pesto is the sauce of Liguria, and Manarola is a good place to learn to make it the way it used to be made: by hand, in a marble mortar, with freshly picked basil. The class is held on the terrace of Nessun Dorma, at Punta Bonfiglio, facing the village's best-known view. During the class the place is for the group alone.

What the class is like

You arrive at the terrace, are given an apron and are told where each ingredient comes from and the history of those who invented the sauce. You pick the basil leaves from their plants and, with pine nuts, garlic and sea salt, make the pesto in an old Carrara marble mortar. Then you taste it and are shown the trick for getting it right and repeating it at home. There is a small prize for the best pesto in the group.

Then you eat: burrata, Parma ham, melon, the house bruschette and focaccia, with wine and water. There are vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options, though the house warns that the kitchen is small and cross-contamination is possible. It ends with a tasting of a Cinque Terre white and a short chat with a Ligurian sommelier. Anything you order off the menu is paid separately. In all it takes about two and a half hours.

Times and price

It costs €85 per person, and the price is the same for groups and agencies. Children under 6 do not pay, those aged 6 to 9 pay half and from 10 the full price. There are three departures: at 10:30 every day from 11 March, at 13:45 from 1 May and at 17:00 on Mondays and Wednesdays from May. No sessions on Tuesdays. In the rain the class is cancelled.

You book on the house's website or in its app, where you keep the confirmation. Cancelling is free from the app. Classes are given in English, with plenty of Italian hands.

Getting there

Get off the train at Manarola and follow the signs to the marina. At the end of the street there is a balcony with a sea view: take the little path round the cliff and, at the corner, climb the steps to the white parasols. It is five to ten minutes from the station. If you take the train after the class, they keep your luggage while you cook.

Combine it

The 10:30 class fits after the Via dell'Amore, which reaches Manarola from Riomaggiore in half an hour. In the afternoon you can go up to Groppo for the Sciacchetrà tasting or walk the vineyard trail.