La Spezia to Florence

Obvious, train is best and easiest. Luggage storage at the train station is always safe. Sometimes it can be a little annoying for long lines to either pick up or drop or both.

pam,

One night won't allow much time to see the five towns of the Cinque Terre. That will only provide a partial day to "do" the Cinque Terre.

Transportation for eight people with luggage would be best by train, unless you have a very large travel budget. There is a Deposito Bagagli (luggage storage) at Pisa Centrale, although as mentioned previously there could be long queues for dropoff or pickup.

There are numerous trains every day between La Spezia / Pisa / Florence. You may need to buy separate La Spezia > Pisa and Pisa > Florence tickets, depending on which trains you use. If you haven't used trains or other public transit in Italy before, there are some expensive caveats to be aware of. If you need further information, post another note here.

One night won't allow much time to see the five towns of the Cinque
Terre. That will only provide a partial day to "do" the Cinque Terre.

I'll agree with this. It sounds like you are coming into La Spezia from another location, dumping your luggage at a hotel and then heading off to the see the CT (you'll likely be using trains)? Staying the night in L.S. and then heading to Pisa/Florence the next morning?

Depending on where you're coming from, you could have little CT sightseeing time to work with. But as above, trains are your best option for transport from L.S. to Pisa and from Pisa to Florence. Explore your options on:

https://www.trenitalia.com/en.html

The stations you'll be using are La Spezia Centrale, Pisa Centrale and Firenze Santa Maria Novella.

Thank you for the responses.
Yes we are coming from Rome, spending the night in La Spezia and seeing what we can of CT the next day before moving on to Florence. I realize it’s not ideal but feel I can’t be this close and not at least get a solid day experience in before moving on to Florence and Venice.

....can’t be this close and not at least get a solid day experience
in before moving on to Florence and Venice.

Except you won't get a "solid day" if you're trying to squeeze Pisa into the same day, and with luggage to manage both in Pisa and the CT.

pam,

I agree with Kathy. You won't be getting any kind of a "solid experience" with that Itinerary. Trying to fit Pisa in after a full day in the Cinque Terre is going to be difficult. You'll have to check out of your La Spezia hotel by about 10:00. Where are you planning to store your luggage while you're touring the C.T.

With this Itinerary, you'll be arriving in Florence quite late. Be sure to tell the staff at your hotel that you'll be a "late arrival", so they don't give your room away when you don't show up at the usual check-in time.

Thank you for all the advice. Yes I realize the CT experience is not ideal and will look forward to a return visit and a proper amount of time in the CT. Thinking we may bypass Pisa and just call it a day and head straight to Florence for a late dinner.

pam,

Your plan to skip Pisa this time is a good idea under the circumstances as I doubt you'll have the time.

I vaguely recall that La Spezia Centrale has a Deposito Bagagli so you can leave your luggage there while you tour the five towns (for a charge of course). It would probably be an idea to get started right after breakfast at the hotel. Be sure to note the business hours for the luggage drop.

Given that you're only travelling to Florence, my suggestion would be to start in Riomaggiore and work your way north. Allocate more time for Monterosso (the last town to the north) as it's the largest of the five and has two parts, an "old town" and a "new town". That would be a great place to stop for a nice dinner in one of the excellent restaurants there, and perhaps try some Pesto in the area where it was invented. Cantina di Miky (close to the station in the new town) is a big favourite with many here, including me.

An alternative would be to take your luggage directly to Monterosso and store it there. I believe there's a laundromat close to the station that will store luggage, but I'd have to do some checking on that. Hopefully one of the others can confirm that. After you've stored the luggage, take the next train back to Riomaggiore and then start working back to Monterosso in time for dinner. There are departures from Monterosso to Firenze S.M. Novella at 19:07 and 19:42. Be sure to note the business hours of the luggage drop, and retrieve your luggage before they close for the night.

The 19:42 departure uses three Regionale trains. With locally purchased tickets, BE SURE to validate them prior to boarding the train on the day of travel, or you'll be subject to hefty fines which will be collected on the spot!

Hope this helps.