La Spezia

From the moment you get off the ship it is at least 2 hours to Pisa and at least 3 to Florence. That's because you need to wait for a taxi to take you the station, wait for a train, then ride the train (1.25-1.5 hours to Pisa). Pisa to Florence is an additional 1 to 1.25 hour train ride from Pisa. Then from the station in Florence you need to walk to the sights (at least 15 min walk to the Duomo/Signoria area).
I don't know how much time you have before you must return to the ship, but you won't have much time to see Florence if over 6 hours go on the travel time alone. I would visit only Pisa (just a short visit of the tower and Duomo) and nearby Lucca. Both are closer than going all the way to Florence.

I don't know if I can give you a full answer to your question, but I'll help with some of it. Visiting both Pisa and Florence is not doable in one day, especially with the restricted window a cruise allows. Florence at a minimum will take a full day for a bungee visit to a few key sites. It is also located farther away from La Spezia which will increase your travel time. I don't know the travel time from La Spezia but would imagine it's at least 90 minutes to 2 hours. Unless this will be your only trip to Italy, I'd pass on Florence so you can enjoy it without time pressure. Pisa is closer - maybe 30+ miles down the coast. It also has fewer sites making it a better choice in my opinion.

One other option to consider is the Cinque Terre. It is right next to La Spezia and easy to get to by train or by a ferry that connects to it via Portovenere. If you take the ferry, there is a ticket office in the port (cash only for tickets) and the dock is a short walk away.

Have fun with whatever you decide.

Agree with the folks above. Florence would be a long trip from the boat and might not see everyhting you want. Pisa is doable. You'll have plenty of time to see the 3 sights and take your customary picture propping up the leaning tower. For me I would do what Rob suggests and visit the Cinque Terre. You are real close and can visit multiple little towns that are connected well with the train between them.

If you really want to see Florence check with the ship. They may have a tour at a premium price and will get you back before the ship departs.

From our perspective, any stop in La Spezia means you are headed to the Cinque Terre. Trains run roughly twice per hour from La Spezia Centrale station and take about 20 minutes to reach Vernazza, for instance. Rick's Italy book has an extensive chapter on the Cinque Terre, or the chapter is sold as a separate Snapshot book in paper or in Kindle edition.

nora,

Did the cruise ship literature specify that the ship would be docking at La Spezia. I asked one of my friends that used to work on the cruise ships, and he said they usually dock at Livorno.

To answer your question, I'm not sure whether it would be worthwhile to visit both Pisa and Florence on the same day, as your time will be limited. If the ship is in fact docking in Livorno, these are some options you could consider......

• Visit Florence - I don't know how far the dock is from the rail station, so you'd have to allow time to get from the ship to the central station. There are direct trains from Livorno Centrale to Firenze SMN with a travel time of 1H:08M to 1H:39M each way (depending on which train you connect with). Those will mostly be Regionale trains so DON'T forget to validate your ticket prior to boarding the train, or you'll face hefty fines!
• Visit Pisa - that would be very easy, as there are a few direct trains from Livorno Centrale to Pisa S. Rossore (which is closest to the tower) are only 22 minutes. There are numerous other trains with one change at Pisa Centrale. You could also take one of the direct trains to Pisa Centrale (15 minutes) and then take local transport to the Tower.
• Visit the Cinque Terre - this is also possible, although travel time from Livorno Centrale to Monterosso will be about two hours in each direction, with one or two changes. I used Monterosso as it's the largest of the towns. You could start there and work your way south using the local trains, before returning to the ship.

Of the three locations, Florence would provide the greatest number of sightseeing options, galleries, history, etc. If you decide that you'd like to visit the Uffizi or Accademia, reservations would be highly advisable (information in the Italy guidebook). Michelangelo's statue of David is at the Accademia. The San Lorenzo street markets are interesting to walk through (but watch for pickpockets).

@Ken - I had a friend get back in June from a cruise out dog Barcelona on royal Caribbean that stopped in La Spezia. I told her to check out Cinque Terre but they opted for Pisa. Couple weeks ago her brother did the same cruise and he opted for Cinque Terre to explore. Check out the link below. Interesting is RC has a 12 day cruise out of Barcelona but that one says the port if call of Livorno. Looks like RC stops in both ports depending on the ship.

http://m.royalcaribbean.com/cruise-details/7-night-western-mediterranean-cruise_LB07M250-1407038400/

@robert,

I wasn't sure which cruise line the OP was using or whether the port she would be using was going to be La Spezia, so wanted to clarify that. As I usually travel solo, I don't "do" cruises but wanted to pass on the information from someone that used to work on the ships that ply that route. Of course, if the ship is docking in La Spezia the transportation times will be different.

Thank you everyone!
@Ken: yes, our RC cruise itinerary specifically says "La Spezia" and most cruises do stop in Livorno.

Again, thanks to everyone for good suggestions!

We docked this summer at La Spezia and opted for Cinque Terre. We took the train to Riomaggiore, then the boat up to Monterosso. Had lunch and went back to the boat - kids were melting down. But we could have easily also stopped at Vernazza and had some beach time in Monterosso if the kids would have held out!

Some people we met on the boat took a tour to Pisa for 1/2 day and enjoyed it.

Kim

if you want to climb the tower at Pisa you MUST have advance tickets cuz they only let 30 people go up per hour. alternatively, you can pay a smaller amount to tour church or baptistery. (I did baptistery cuz I hate heights of any type) its easy to get those tickets online before you leave the states, just present your printed voucher at the line for your chosen site. there is no fee to get into the grounds, and the ticket office has air conditioning and a free video of attempts thru the yrs to straighten the tower (shown in English) I did have a hard time finding a restroom on the grounds, FYI, and it is very sunny with no shade.

nora,

Thanks for the clarification on the port for your cruise. As you'll be docking in La Spezia, the travel times listed by Roberto in the first reply will be applicable.

You might clarify with the cruise company whether they offer any transportation from the docks to La Spezia Centrale, as that will reduce your travel times somewhat. The actual trip from La Spezia to Florence is about two hours each way depending on which trains you connect with. There's usually one change at Pisa Centrale. If you can connect with one of the Freccia departures from La Spezia, the trip to Pisa will be about 50 minutes. Other trains will be about an hour each way.

I taking a day trip on your own, you'll have to plan very precisely so that you're back to the ship at the appointed time. If you have a large budget, you could also take one of the excursions offered by the cruise line, as that will guarantee that you'll be back in time.