Will be in La Spezia port from 8:30 am-8:30pm and wondering if it would be possible to take the train down to Pisa and back up to CT to visit Monterosso and Vernazza.. This is the rail Europe itinerary that I have been playing around with..any thoughts?
10:06 AM La Spezia Centrale
10:56 AM Pisa Central
1:42 PM Pisa Centrale
2:52 PM Monterosso
5:11 PM Monterosso
5:14 PM Vernazza
6:44 PM Vernazza
7:05 PM La Spezia Centrale
I wouldn't recommend it though certain it could be done. You do have a bit of a walk from the Pisa station to the piazza and back that will make things quite rushed and then arriving at 3 PM in Cinque Terre doesn't give you much time to see much there.
If you want to see the Cinque Terre skip Pisa is my advise.
The Cinque Terre is going to be quite crowded, as many people from the cruise will undoubtedly be doing the same thing. When I was there last summer, it was so crowded you could barely walk. There are trains every half-hour from La Spezia to Levanto, stopping in each Cinque Terre village along the way, so it's easy to do, but most likely, this is what most others on your cruise will be doing. I agree with mreynolds and wouldn't try and do both the Cinque Terre and Pisa in the same day. What you might consider doing instead would be Pisa and Lucca. Lucca will probably me much less crowded, so I'd go there first, then Pisa. You can do the whole thing by local trains. Just buy tickets at the station upon arrival. See www.trenitalia.com/tcom-en for schedules.
Your original plan puts you in Pisa for lunch, which is a bad idea if you are in the Leaning Tower area. If these are the places you want to go, I would go to Cinque Terre first and then hit Pisa later in the afternoon. If you can part with Cinque Terre, you can go to Lucca in the morning, have lunch there, and go to Pisa in the afternoon.
Also note that Rail Europe doesn't list every train, as far as I know, so you may be able to amend your itinerary.
Thank you, kindly, for the responses! I am now leaning toward one or the other. Why is CT such a hotspot, in your opinions? I've seen the photos of each of the villages, which are quite beautiful, but other than hiking/sightseeing, what is the big draw? I guess I am just trying to see where our time would be best spent.. All CT for the day OR Pisa/Florence.. IF it helps with giving advice, my husband and I are 32/33, active, love seeing unique places, such as little markets and great photos ops, love visiting wineries (Napa was a favorite vacation of ours), enjoy souvenir shopping, and hate enormous crowds, i.e., Herding cattle type environments. I know the last part sort of comes with doing touristy things, so a little bit of herding can be tolerated ; )
Looking forward to hearing your responses!!
mds0927, just curious: what time of year will you be traveling? It could make a bit of a difference for the CT.
Why is CT such a hotspot, in your opinions? I've seen the photos of
each of the villages, which are quite beautiful, but other than
hiking/sightseeing, what is the big draw?
One big reason is sheer proximity to a major cruise port (La Spezia). It's within very short range of that port thus a no-brainer for ship's tours. That's a big reason why it's become so overrun during the day. A recent expansion of that port means huge ships unloading thousands of passengers at a time, and the tiny villages weren't built to handle those sorts of numbers, especially when adding in the numbers of tourists who are staying in the accommodations or day-tripping for Florence/other locations in the region.
Yes, it's very pretty/extremely photogenic: the millions of appealing photos out there on the net are compelling. It's also fast and easy to travel between all 5 villages as it's only 7 miles from one end to the other.
Rick Steves elevated awareness of this area years ago when it wasn't yet a hot destination. His guide books and TV shows have contributed to the mass...although in fairness, I think many of the readers come to spend a few days rather than do it as a day trip: the best way to 'do' the CT.
What is appealing about the Cinque Terre?
If you are very familiar with Napa Valley, what is your opinion of somewhat nearby Big Sur, do you find that beautiful/appealing?
If so you will like the Cinque Terre, if not then skip it.
Basically cliffs rising from a beautiful sea make a positive impression on people. Add some colorful houses impossibly built upon each other give it a very unique look that when added together make it more breath taking than the Big Sur in California in my opinion.
Also, the Pesto there is to die for.
Of the 5 villages, I would do Vernazza, Manarola and Corniglia all ahead of Monterosso if you are prioritizing only seeing a few of them but that is my opinion only.
I highly recommend buying your tickets online for the Pisa tower. We did and encountered a super long line however with our tickets in hand we were able to skip the line and go in front.
