Cinque Terre ffrom Livorno

[SKSMIKE5]

We're on the NCL Spirit May 2015 and are in Livorno from 8 am to 7 pm. I was wondering if anyone has made the trip to Cinque Terre from there? We were in Italy a few years ago and I took the train from Florence to Pisa and was going to continue to Cinque Terre but we were pooped so I'm pretty sure there are trains that will go there, just wondering about logistics and timing. Thanks!

[daydreamer62]

Im interested to hear replies to your question as Cinque Terre is top of my bucket list and Im hoping to visit when we stop at Livorno on our June 3 cruise on the Island Princess. - Looking at the excursions Princess lists there appears to be an excursion to Cinque Terre from Livorno for $139pp but no excursions have been listed for our actual cruise yet. - The excursion seems like its not a bad deal considering it involves bus and boat .

[SKSMIKE5]

I have read a review reviews here where people mention docking at La Spezia vs Livorno and then doing Cinque Terre from there on their own. We are docking at Livorno and I think I understood someone to say they took a taxi for about 15 euro from Livorno to the La Spezia train station and then went to Cinque Terre, is that correct? Thanks.

[sailor1362]

La Spezia is one hour drive from Livorno, 15 € maybe is for the taxi to the railway station in Livorno, and then you take a train to La Spezia.

[euro cruiser]

While it is physically possible to get to Cinque Terre from Livorno by train, the amount of time it takes and the limitations of the train schedules make it not worthwhile. You wind up with very little time in Cinque Terre.

 

The first train you could make would be the 9:30, arriving in La Spezia at 10:37 and then on to the Cinque Terre villages from there, arriving between 11:18 - 11:35, depending on which village you get off at.

 

For the return, to safely make it back to the ship for a 7 PM sail away you'd need to be on the 4:20 PM train from La Spezia, which means leaving the villages up to a half hour before that, depending on which one you're leaving from.

 

So you spend four hours on the train, plus another hour getting to and from the ship and the Livorno station, for less than four hours in Cinque Terre.

[SKSMIKE5]

Thanks for the great response regarding the trains. I guess I'll look into a tour.

[kuldalai]

From a ship in Livorno you are going to see much more of the CT if you take the Ships excursion which typically goes by direct coach from Livorno to Portovenere where you join a ferry and pass Portovenere, Lord Byrons Grotto, then call at Riomaggiore, Manarola, pass Corniglia high up on the hill, alight at Vernazza with lunch and time to explore . Then returns by ferry or train via CT and La Spezia then coach to Livorno .

 

If you do it solo you waste time taxi to Livorno, train to La Spezia then tarisn to CT not that frequent after 1000am. One case ships excursion is better . If ship docks in La Spezia then it is feasible to do CT yourself .

[euro cruiser]

If you can get a small group together to share the cost of a private car service, or if you are willing to rent a car and drive yourself, you can maximize your time in the Cinque Terre while avoiding the dreaded ship's tour. The roll call for your sailing is the place to try and put together a group.

[Eurotravelmagazine]

First off all, it's definitely worth doing. Its fantastic. To get the best out of it I would recommend a ship's tour rather than doing it yourself - which is something I rarely do, as most of them are expensive and unimaginative.

 

As I recall, we went from Livorno to La Spezia by coach and then from there to several of the villages by boat, with time in each village to have a wander around.

[daydreamer62]

Thanks so much for that info. As it is truly one of my major dreams to go there I really want to make the right decision as to how to see it . You've confirmed what I had thought, that this would be one of the places a ships excursion might be optimal.

[SKSMIKE5]

Thanks for the great advice. Haven't decided for sure what we're doing. I really want to do Cinque Terre, but may save it for next time.. gotta have a reason to return. Plus we are doing multiple 8 or 9 hour all day tours and the hubby is leaning toward a more relaxing day. I'm looking into Lucca....

[kuldalai]

Lucca is easily doable by train from Livorno . One hour train trip each way via Pisa Centrale where you change trains . (20 minutes Livorno Centrale to Pisa Centrale, change trains then 30 minutes to Lucca). Check frequent train times on Trenitalia website .

 

As for Lucca great walking city and just magical within the walls of the old city .

Edited November 11, 2014 by kuldalai

[love2cruisegal]

This is great info. Looking at med cruise on Princess and was thinking of Cinque Terre as a shore excursion out of Livorno but not for a couple years. Glad to know ship tour is the way to go...that's what I thought. I have some Rick Steves books and Cinque Terre is one of his favorites. Thanks much.

 

Daydreamer62, will be anxious to read a review of your excursion.

[cruisingbarb]

If you're interested in a private tour to the Cinque Terre from Livorno, we used Papillonservice.com and were very happy with them. Our driver picked us up at the ship. Here was our itinerary:

 

•First stop Portovenere (90 min from Livorno)

•Take the ferry to Riomaggiore

•Walk from Riomaggiore to Manarola via the famous Via dell’Amore

•Take the ferry from Manarola to Monterosso*

•Have lunch

•Drive along the panoramic hilltop road

•Stop in Pisa

 

For the six of us, it was about the same price as the ship's tour but without the big bus and 45 people.

[kuldalai]

The Lovers Walk Rionaggiore - Manarola has been closed for over 2 years and is still closed . Typically Italian . Simple landslip takes years to fix, as the country just doesnt really have the money .

[DipBrat]

The Lovers Walk Rionaggiore - Manarola has been closed for over 2 years and is still closed . Typically Italian . Simple landslip takes years to fix, as the country just doesnt really have the money .

 

And looked still years away from opening when I was there this summer. There is an alternative route but it is a very tough climb on rough and crumbling ground.

[Hlitner]

Have been following this thread and waiting for some good answers to the OPs original question. Now that we are back home (from a long cruise/land trip) we finally have decent internet and so will take a shot. DW and I really enjoy the Cinque Terre area and have been there many times on both port days and long driving trips in Europe.

 

From the Port of Livorno, on a normal port day, the train is a lousy option. Given the hassle and cost of quickly getting to the Livorno train station and timing of the trains it is just not very efficient and will only allow very limited time at the villages.

 

So, that leaves you with several other options. You can certainly book an organized tour from the ship if that is your desire. Another option is to book a private car/driver from any of several providers (or simply hire a taxi for the day) and this is going to cost hundreds of Euros (this can be reasonable if split among multiple passengers).

 

The final option (one which have used several times) is to simply rent a car for pick-up at the port. As an example, the local Hertz franchiser (Sifracar) does provide pier-side cars..although they do charge higher prices for that convenience. Much of the additional cost is defrayed by not needing taxis to and from the train station (which can cost about 50 Euros round trip). Not sure of the current Sifracar price but suspect it is in the 125-150 Euro range for a small (4 passenger car). Keep in mind that nearly all rental cars are standard (stick shift) transmission. It normally takes us about 1:20 - 1:30 to drive from the port to Riomaggiore (the closest village) where there is parking in either a paid parking area or free parking along the hilly road that comes down into the village. Once in Riomaggiore you have full access to the train, ferries, or hiking trails (not sure if they have all reopened since the horrible mud slides).

 

By the way, for anyone deciding to rent a car from Hertz we think it is usually better to deal directly with Sifracar at their own website (Sifracar.com). They have an English language option and are normally pretty responsive to e-mails. It is also possible to use other rental car companies, but our experience has been that some other companies are hit or miss at whether they can deliver and allow returns at pierside. For reasons we shall not speculate, Sifracar always seems to be able to do business inside the port :)

 

Hank

Edited November 24, 2014 by Hlitner

[slidergirl]

The Lovers Walk Rionaggiore - Manarola has been closed for over 2 years and is still closed . Typically Italian . Simple landslip takes years to fix, as the country just doesnt really have the money .

 

That's a little harsh. Villages were decimated with those massive landslides. In Vernazza, the mud was up to the 2nd story of buildings. I had take some photos from my apartment window at the stores across the walkway when I was there a few years ago. On one of the websites that posted photos immediately post-slide, it showed one of those stores totally filled with mud and debris. It wasn't a simple landslip. I think it's a tad more important to clean up the villages and the housing where people live and had to bury those killed in the landslides rather than fix a tourist trail.

 

Back to topic: From Livorno, unfortunately, the time it takes to DIY via train just doesn't leave enough time to truly enjoy CT. DIY via rental car is definitely feasible if you don't want to be herded into a bus. Also, depending on water conditions, ferry travel may not happen. You'd be bussed between villages. Just keep that in mind.

Edited November 25, 2014 by slidergirl

[sunshine100]

We just came back recently from a TA and a few days on land in Italy. We stopped in Livorno and had a tour with a private company to Cinque Terre. I think it was one of the best days ever!!! Private message me if you want any details! What a truly special area!!!

[Cherylok]

We're on the NCL Spirit May 2015 and are in Livorno from 8 am to 7 pm. I was wondering if anyone has made the trip to Cinque Terre from there? We were in Italy a few years ago and I took the train from Florence to Pisa and was going to continue to Cinque Terre but we were pooped so I'm pretty sure there are trains that will go there, just wondering about logistics and timing. Thanks!

 

We did a tour to Cinque Terre this year with shareashoreexcursioninitaly. We were picked up at the port in Livorno and driven to Portvenere where we caught the ferry to 4 of the towns. It was a great day and we arrived back at the ship with plenty of time to spare. I set up a group on shareashoreexcursioninitaly site and other people joined us via our roll call. All was super easy and everything worked out perfectly. Great day and amazing villages in the Cinque Terre.

 

Cheryl

[SKSMIKE5]

Thanks everyone! Great advice! Totally excited about this cruise and now that Christmas is over I can get back to all my research. The group I'm with has pretty much decided to do Lucca and save CT for next time! Appreciate all the inputs.