Online maps are a great family travel planning resource and a great way to get the kids involved. Teach the kids to use online Cinque Terre maps to find hiking trails and plot your route. Turn the family adventure into a learning vacation; reading a map and using a compass are fun activities on the hiking trail. Geocaching - gps treasure hunts - is popular with kids and may provide an incentive to get them walking.

Books are a great way to introduce younger children to a new adventure and get teens and tweens ready for a family trip. Take a journey through literature and explore Italy through non-fiction and novels. Get recommended reading lists for family travel to Liguria that are designed to spark the interest of adults and kids and go beyond a romantic view of the neighboring province of Tuscany. Discovery mysteries that will help build intrigue and spark a sense of adventure for your upcoming trip to Italy. Walking in Italy, a Lonely Planet Guidebook, goes beyond pointers on mapping the trail and is ideal for ramblers no matter the level of skill.

Italy has a rich tradition in music, which goes beyond folk music and opera. Learn more about Italian popular music and listen to Italian music online before you depart on a trip to Italy. Discover trallalero, a polyphonic folk music that originated in Genoa and was made famous by Alan Lomax, an American musicologist.

Getting the latest hiking news will help prepare you and the kids for the family trip. Discover tips and tidbits about walking and find out what's happening outdoors before you depart on a walking trip. But don't stop your research there. Read regional Italian news online and brush up on current events in Liguria from politics to economics and sports to entertainment. Discover what the locals are reading.

There are a variety of online resources that make preparing for a hiking trip in the Cinque Terre fun. Map reading is about more than locating your home. These map reading activities will help you learn to read a compass and plot longitude and latitude. Map games make finding the way an adventure. Fun experiments bring science to the trail. Do you know how a compass works?