Cinque Terre or Countryside excursion in Europe?

Hi All! So excited to be going on the Silhouette on Sept. 3, 2015. I have 2 Questions: My travel agent said the excursions fill up quickly and I should book in advance of sailing. Have you found that to be true on Celebrity? (I haven't had many issues on Norwegian or Carnival) Next question, out of the port of Florence we are trying to decide whether to do Cinque Terre or the Countryside tour of San Gimignano and Volterra. Any recommendations? Many thanks!!

Can't speak directly to ship's excursions, but we've done Cinque Terre on our own and it is beautiful. Never been to Volterra, hope to get there on our next visit to Italy. San Gimignano is over rated in my opinion.

Tours were selling out in advance last year on the Eclipse's med tour. We joined a wait list on board for one tour and were successful in securing 2 places.

We joined a Cinq-Terre tour from the ship. It was the only one we booked through Celebrity. You could probably do it for a lot cheaper on your own- check your rollcall for others who might be interested. We had no problems booking it on board.

Cinq-Terre is difficult to get to because Celebrity docks far away from there and the train schedules are not that great.

It is quite beautiful and worth a trip if you've already done the Leaning Tower of Pisa and other Florence attractions.

Totally disagree Cinq-Terre is one of the easiest tours to do no your own. Did it last year Trains are frequent and drop you off close to the city so you don't have to walk long distances to the city.

As was said read the BB on how to do it and you will save a bundle and be able to stop and smell the roses.

Absolutely, there is no reason to do a ship's tour for the Cinque Terra. You get off of the ship in Livorno, take the milk train and get on and off as you like ( you did buy the day pass, didn't you?). The Cinque Terra is unique and not to be missed.

It really is no more complicated than that.

Ed

Absolutely, there is no reason to do a ship's tour for the Cinque Terra. You get off of the ship in Livorno, take the milk train and get on and off as you like ( you did buy the day pass, didn't you?). The Cinque Terra is unique and not to be missed.

 

It really is no more complicated than that.

 

Ed

We will respectfully disagree with your post. The Silhouette docks in Livorno which is about 1 1/2 hours drive from Riomaggiore (the closest Cinque Terre Vilage). And train connections from Livorno to La Spezia and on to Cinque Terre are not very good for cruisers (not to mention the hassle of getting from the port to the Livorno Centrale Stazione). When we have gone to Cinque Terre from Livorno we always found the best way was to simply rent a car (for delivery at the pier) and drive ourselves to Riomaggiore where there is parking. Perhaps you were thinking of a cruise that went to La Spezia....and from that port we would agree that Cinque Terre is easy to do on your own.

As to the options mentioned by the OP, it is a tough call. Cinque Terre is a group of 5 small villages in a very picturesque setting and we have enjoyed the area many times. Unfortunately, the area has still not fully recovered from the awful mud/land slides of a few years ago and the famous "Lovers Walk" between Riomaggiore and Manarola remains closed.

San Gimignano/Volterra tours do give you a decent drive through some of the lovely Tuscan countryside. San Gimignano is an old walled city (famous for its Towers) that has unfortunately become a day trip tourist destination for every bus in Italy! Personally we love the place but love it a lot more in the evening after all the day tours are long gone. But even when overflowing with tourists its nice to stroll up the main street, browse the shops, and stop at a cafe for a drink or lunch.

Volterra is another personal favorite often missed by tourists. It is just a well preserved city with more then its share of shops, boutiques, and restaurants. When we are staying in the region DW and I will often drive over to Volterra just to walk around and enjoy a long lunch.

If you are limiting your choice to only those tours we would probably suggest Cinque Terre. That being said, for those who have not been to Florence (a lot) this is what we recommend from Livorno. The more DW and I spend time in Florence (we usually stay 2 or 3 nights whenever driving in the region) the more we appreciate this fantastic city.

Hank

I agree with Hank. Great excursion, but trains are not reliable enough due to strikes or weather. I think one person could have great luck and make all connections and another get stuck somewhere due to missed connection.

We recently went to the Cinqueterre via Livorno when on the Celebrity Equinox, and I arranged a private tour via our Roll Call. It is by far better than the Celebrity tour, a small group of 8 people compared to 40+ there is no comparison.

Although it would appear easy to just get to Livorno Train station, one train change at La Spezia and you are there in about 1.5hrs, it is not that simple. Firstly you have to get to Livorno station from the port, taxis are not interested as the journey is relatively short, they want longer journeys to Florence etc. Using Celebrity shuttle then the bus to the station , you will miss the first convenient train, you will be lucky to catch the 9.40am train, also the train schedules are not that reliable.

We arranged for a Merc Sprinter minibus to take our group of 8, we were dropped off at Manarola by 9.15am and the driver collected us from Monterosso at about 3.30pm. We arrived back at the port at 5.15pm. paying 450EUR, 55Euro/pp, now compared to Celebrity tour at $142/pp it is a lot cheaper. We used http://www.tuscanytastetours.com our driver was a called Mario, a real gent, old school, suit /collar/tie - we had a great time.

A word of warning, if the weather is poor and the sea choppy avoid the Cinqueterre. The area is overrun with tourists, trains between the villages seldom adhere to their timetables and the ferries are postponed with just a little choppy seas. That said you need to be flexible and have a plan B incase things work against you. A mobile/Cell phone is absolutely essential to contact your driver if things go pear-shaped.

Also check out if other cruise ships are in La Spezia Port, if there is a large ships I would suggest you avoid and choose your other destination. Cinqueterre is beautiful but the quaintness and serenity has been ruined by the volume of the visitors, a cruise-ship day trip is NOT the ideal way to see the place and it could be a 50:50 nightmare experience.

Check out the Equinox 11th May Cruise feedback - many said never, never again!!

The Italian train system is not reliable. They have these last minute wild cat strikes and you don't know if it will last 15 minutes, 15 hrs, or 15 days! It is bizarre but could raise your blood pressure if you are trying to make it back to the ship on time. I certainly wouldn't want to be stuck in the middle of an olive grove!

cinque Terre is beautiful and all that walking up and down hills will build up your calf muscles. San Gimignano is also a wonderful medieval town not to be missed - we also went to Siena the same day.

I love all of Italy, wonderful people, food, drink and scenery!

What ever you do - just enjoy yourself, it's a beautiful country.

Hi All! So excited to be going on the Silhouette on Sept. 3, 2015. I have 2 Questions: My travel agent said the excursions fill up quickly and I should book in advance of sailing. Have you found that to be true on Celebrity? (I haven't had many issues on Norwegian or Carnival) Next question, out of the port of Florence we are trying to decide whether to do Cinque Terre or the Countryside tour of San Gimignano and Volterra. Any recommendations? Many thanks!!

Unless you have a car or a private driver Volterra is way out of the way. The drive from Lucca to Volterra is about 2 hours one way. I just got back from a non-cruise vacation where we stayed in Lucca, Val D'Orica, and Siena for 10 days and had a car 7 of those days.

I would do Cinque Terre or Lucca by train. For those who do not want to climb steep hill Lucca is flat. Good Luck!

I had been there on a tauck tour in the late 1990's-- It was absolutely beautiful, and couldn't wait to get there at another time. Two years ago we did Venice, Florence and Pisa on our own, before spending a few days in Rome and then taking the Celebrity Reflection for mediteranean cruise. Well, we left from Florence with a small group tour to visit the Cinque Terre once again. It became so commercialized, that it lost the appeal of what it once was: an unpspoiled real Italian experience-- so I wouldn't bother visiting there again, to me, not worth it at all.

The only ship excursion we did during our Mediterranean cruise was the ships tour to the Cinque Terre. I am a worrier, and was afraid to do this excursion on my own. I am sure it is not difficult, but I was still more comfortable with taking the ships tour. It was actually a terrific excursion, as we were transported to each town, but within the towns we had time on our own. We did not do anything as a group, and had sufficient time to roam on our own. Of course I would like to go back and spend more time on another vacation. Usually we either do our own tours or arrange smaller tours with people on a roll call, but for us this particular ship excursion worked out well.

If you are concerned about missing the option to take a celebrity excursion, I'd suggest you book it now (which will require you to pay in full in advance), but remember you can cancel at any time up until 24 (sometimes 48) hours in advance and get your payment back. Once you've made your reservation, post on your "roll call" and see what others are doing....what tours they are setting up. If you find something you'd like to do, just cancel the celebrity excursion and they'll refund your money to your credit card if you cancel prior to the cruise or to your On board account as a refundable on board credit.

... It became so commercialized, that it lost the appeal of what it once was: an unpspoiled real Italian experience-- so I wouldn't bother visiting there again, to me, not worth it at all.

You can say that about almost every town that is near cruise ship ports.

My sister travelled to Cinque Terre last year when they berthed at La Spezia. Even though not as far away as Livorno, due to train issues and transport between the villages they almost missed the boat.

I've done both (through different cruise lines), and enjoyed both.

While we loved seeing the countryside, I think Cinque Terre is a "must see". It is unique.

Personally, I would save the countryside tour for the next time...:)

Oh, and regarding ship's tour v on your own...we enjoy having a guide to tell us history, and to point out things we might have otherwise missed. (not to mention not having a lick of worry about missing the ship)

Thank you all for taking the time to give me your thoughts! Based on so many pro's about Cinque Terre versus the countryside, I believe we will probably do that area; hopefully there will be another opportunity to see the countryside! I'm a bit of a worrier so I believe I'll have to do a tour either with the ship or with an outside company rather than try to manage it on our own. The train system sounds somewhat unreliable and I would hate to miss that ship!! Again, thanks much it was very helpful!

Thank you all for taking the time to give me your thoughts! Based on so many pro's about Cinque Terre versus the countryside, I believe we will probably do that area; hopefully there will be another opportunity to see the countryside! I'm a bit of a worrier so I believe I'll have to do a tour either with the ship or with an outside company rather than try to manage it on our own. The train system sounds somewhat unreliable and I would hate to miss that ship!! Again, thanks much it was very helpful!

Its a good choice to go to Cinque Terre with a tour group, but do go back and see Tuscany on your own. The trains are not that bad between the big cites, just getting in and out of small towns such a CT are harder.