Cinque Terre to Cortona by train

st,

Yes, it is easy to get from the Cinque Terre to Cortona in one day. The trip will be about 4.5 hours with 2-3 changes. Which of the C.T. towns are you staying in?

Note that there are two stations serving Cortona - Camucia and Terontola. I'd suggest using Camucia. When you arrive there, you'll have to take a Bus or Taxi up to the town (about 15 minutes). Several different types of trains are used on that route, and which ones you'll use will depend on which departure you use. With any segments on Regionale trains, note that you MUST validate locally purchased tickets prior to boarding the train on the day of travel, or risk hefty fines which will be collected on the spot!

Thanks for the speedy reply. I did see that we can take three trains from Monterosso to Cortona but didn't know how practical that was for one day. Would it be a lot of hassle with luggage? Would you suggest stopping in Florence for the night and taking the train early in the morning to Cortona or just take the three trains and go straight to Cortona? Have you ever made that trip?

st,

Changing trains with luggage is quite a common occurrence and very easy, unless of course your luggage is a couple of behemoth Steamer Trunks. You can easily go directly from the C.T. to Cortona. Stopping in Florence for one night would be somewhat of a waste of time as that would only provide one evening to explore, and then you'd leave again the next morning.

I've travelled all over Italy by train so I have travelled that route, albeit on separate occasions (ie: C.T. to Florence and then Florence to Cortona).

Have you chosen a hotel in Cortona?

No have not gotten a hotel in Cortona or Florence yet. What do you suggest? Since you are being so helpful can you help me with a few other questions?

1. We plan to take a food factory tour in Bologna and are going to do that first. We are trying not to change hotels a lot. We plan to also visit Florence a few days, CT two nights, the cooking class in Cortona, a tour of Tuscany and then Venice. Do you think it would be easiest to fly into Florence and spend the night there and go very early the next day to Bologna for the tour and then just come back to Florence that night, staying in the same hotel OR Just fly into Bologna and stay the night and be there the next morning for the tour and after the tour take the train to Florence for a few days (which would mean two hotels)?
2. Is it difficult to stop and see the Tower in Pisa as we take the train to or from Florence to CT? WE are staying in Monterosso.
3. Ever been on the train form Cotona to Venice? Thoughts?
Thanks so much for helping me with all of this. I just want to make it as hassle free as I can so trying to stay at fewer hotels and take as few trains with our luggage as we can. Linda

Linda,

I'm not clear on your overall Itinerary and also don't know what the flight options are like from your area, so it's difficult to offer specific suggestions. The route you mentioned seems to zig-zag somewhat, so probably not the most efficient. Have you got flights booked? I also prefer not to change hotels any more than necessary, as each change of location usually takes about half a day and has a cost in both time and money.

Regarding your questions....

1. I'd probably choose a slightly different route, but if the food tours are only available on certain days, that complicates the situation. With the places you mentioned, one possibility would be Venice > Bologna > Cinque Terre > Cortona > Florence (inbound flight to VCE, oubound flight from FLR). It would help to have more information on your plans.
2. It's not difficult to stop and see the Tower, but a bit awkward with luggage and I'm not sure it's worth the effort. There is a Deposito Bagagli at Pisa Centrale, but there can be long queues at times and you'll have to use a bus or taxi from there to the Tower. Pisa San Rossore station is closer to the Tower, but it's very small and nowhere to leave luggage.
3. Yes, I've travelled by train from Cortona to Venice but again not on the same day. You'll most likely be using a Regionale train from Cortona-Camucia to Firenze SMN (DON'T forget to validate!), and then high speed Freccia train from there to Venezia S. Lucia (you'll need to know which stations you're using for each trip, as most cities have several stations).

It's great to hear that you're staying in Monterosso, as that's my favourite of the five towns. Have you got a hotel booked there already?

For a hotel in Cortona, I'd recommend Hotel San Luca. It's a bit older but well maintained and very comfortable and in a great location right next to the bus stop and within easy walking distance to Piazza della Repubblica (where the Andre Rieu Tuscany concert was filmed a few years ago). In Florence you might consider Katti House which is also very comfortable and in a great location, within walking distance from Firenze SMN station. It would be a good idea to book as soon as you get your dates finalized. If you have access to the RS Italy guidebook, there are lots of other suggestions in the book.

The only date that is set in stone is the cooking class in Cortona on Sept 12th There were no other dates for that class. I am trying to work our schedule around that date and it is super difficult. We are from TX but will be arriving to Italy from London and can fly into any place in Italy that will work. We want to take a food factory tour in Bologna (not given on Sat or Sun), take a food tour in Florence (not given on Sundays) and probably spend another day in Florence ,spend two nights in Monterosso, see the Tower of Pisa if possible, take the cooking class in Cortona on SEPT 12 all day, take a tour of Tuscany (prefer a private tour- do you recommend a certain place to go?), spend three nights in Venice. It has been so difficult to figure this out. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

As of now we considering flying into Bologna, spend the night and take the tour, then go to Florence for two nights (take the food tour), go to CT for two nights and then need to get to Cortona so I thought we would have to go CT to Florence for the night and then leave in early AM for Cortona. Then it is undecided. We could take the class and go right back to Florence and stay the night and the next day take the Tuscany tour OR stay in Cortona and take the Tuscany tour from there. That seems to make more sense but it means moving luggage an extra time and adding a hotel at Cortona instead of just staying three nights in Florence. Not sure if a day trip to Cortona for the class would be too much for one day but it would be nice to keep the hotel in Florence. Thoughts? I really appreciate the advice.

My answer encompasses this latest question from you:
Posted by stlevine on 05/18/16 09:02 AM

Looks like taking a train from CT to Cortona is very difficult. Three trains and about 6 hours. We will be traveling on a Sunday too. We will be in Monterosso, CT and want to get to Cortona. We would also like to stop in Pisa to see the tower for a brief time. Do you suggest we just get to Florence and spend the night and leave for Cortona early the next morning? OR go all the way to Cortona in one day? That would get us there late and it may be difficult to get a ride to the city from the train.
Should we get a private car to take us? Would it be worth the cost?

From Monterosso to Cortona station by train only takes five hours and several departure times allow you to make the trip with just two connections, at Pisa and at Florence. If you take a 9:00 departure and get to Pisa about 10:15, you can easily leave your luggage in storage and spend a couple of hours there before proceeding onward. Connecting trains are a good reason to pack light, but should not otherwise be difficult. No, a private driver would not be worth the cost.

Now that you've laid out the full issue, I find it pretty clear that sleeping in Cortona would be better than making a second stay in Florence.

[Edited 11:40 ] I see that you did not get an answer to one of your questions from a couple of weeks ago about a private guide for more Tuscan villages. A strong recommendation from Rick's guidebook and many forum users is Tours by Roberto. I question whether you're working too hard to accommodate all of these tour companies.

How to Look Up Train Schedules and Routes Online gives you the DB train schedule link and tips for using it. Use a current date, not later than June 11.