LaSpezia port day

Melani,

There may be time for both but my suggestion would be to focus on the five towns of the Cinque Terre, as that will provide more than enough to do for one day. Spending about 2-3 hours getting back and forth to Pisa and perhaps only an hour or so at the Tower is not an efficient use of time, considering you only have one day.

Happy travels!

I would just to Cinque Terre. Take a taxi from the port to the train station (Centrale). There is a train that leaves at 9.510& 10.06 for Riomaggiore only a 8 minute ride so don't sit down too long or you will miss your stop. You can explore this steep village and then take the walk along the seaside path to Manarola have lunch then go further along the trail to Corniglia (by pass this and continue on to Vernazza) This in MHO is the quaintest of all the 5 towns. Sit and have a cocktail on the small Piazza at the sea and then head up the hill to the train station for your ride back to La Spezia. There are trains leaving at 3.27,4.31, &5.35. Taxi back to the ship. Not knowing how far it is from the station to the ship I would schedule yourself to be back an hour before departure.

In Pisa there is not much to do after you have done the tower and the Church other that walk the streets.

Cinque Terre views and charm will last you forever.

Enjoy

Thank you so much for the advice. This is my first trip to Europe, and I think I'm having a hard time with the realization that I can't see it all. :) It's taken 20 years (my husband promised me he would take me to Europe by our 20th anniversary--this year is our 20th so he just made it :) ) to schedule this trip, so I'm just worried that it'll be 20 more before I make it back!

Cinque Terre definitely seems more intriguing to me, so I think I'll follow your advice. I'll have to get my super touristy picture of me holding up the tower some other time. LOL.

Melani,

Since this is your first trip to Europe, a few other points to mention....

• The "seaside path" mentioned in a previous reply is the famous Via dell' Amore, which may or may not be open during your trip. When is this taking place? Note that a Park Pass is required to walk any of the No. 2 trails, which you can easily buy at any of the stations in the area (or even at the small booth at the beginning of the trail, as I recall).
• You can easily get to each of the five towns using the inexpensive local trains. Note that these will most likely be Regionale trains, so DON'T forget to validate your tickets in the small trackside machines prior to boarding the trains.
• You may find it helpful to pack along a copy of either the Italy 2014 Guidebook or at least the smaller Cinque Terre version. You can have a look at all the Guidebooks at THIS website. Note that some are also available in E-book format for Kindle, iBooks and other formats.

Be sure to keep track of your time in terms of getting back to the ship prior to departure. You can check the rail schedules either at the local stations or the Trenitalia website.

Cheers!

I think that's a good call. I too wanted to try to squeeze in both on our cruise stop, but have decided on CT only. I guess you could get both in, but... seems too rushed. I think you would have more fun just focused on one and really enjoy it!

Kim

Yes, yes, walk the CT for the views! Good advice above, but take the RS book advice ( copy and carry it with you!).
First, wear your very best comfy padded shoes and read the description of how the paths between the cities VARY in the CT. ( one direction can be easier than walking the opposite way). Second, take water and take your time enjoying the views and friendly people on the trail.
About boarding the train: the trains at peak times are very full of tourists ( keep your possessions close). Very likely you may need to walk forward from the train station track into the tunnel to insure getting on trains back to the port. There was a feeling of hurry to get on, stand like sardines on the second to last train back to port. All in good fun but don't wait till the last scheduled train.
On the other hand, 4 -8 people banded together and got a taxi to one town, walked to another town, got another taxi back to the ship, for not much more than what the train fare was, and with less waiting. Lovely area, hope you have a good day with only one ship in port!

Forgot to mention there is also a boat ride you can take to several of the towns, but if the water is rough then it does not operate until it is calm- meaning it might operate in the morning but not the afternoon or viceversa. You can play it by ear. I'm assuming the rough water (and the 2 or 3 ships in port ) were reason why the trains were so very full. I was on Holland America last summer and the ship offered a similar trip using public transportation.- you just had the babysitter to make sure you did not get lost looking for the ferry service.
As I remember the tourist office in La Spezia was good.

Melani,

Be sure to try some of the excellent food in the C.T. while there, especially Pesto in the area where it was invented. Two of my favourites are Trofie al Pesto (somewhat unique to that area) and Pesto Lasagna (and of course some Vino as well). The food in that area includes a lot of seafood, although other items are also offered.

I can recommend some restaurants in Monterosso if you're interested (lunch?).

I'm interested in lunch recommendations in Monterosso or vernazza! :)

I highly recommend Belvedere right by the coast near the old city in Monterosso, especially if you like seafood. We had dinner, but I assume they are also open for lunch. Their web site says they are closed on Tuesdays during the winter. The "amphora" dish is incredible -- mixed fish and seafood cooked in a clay pot -- especially if you have a number of people. With three hearty appetites we managed to finish it off. I think it is designed for four people, would clearly be too much food for two.

@Kim,

I can't provide any information on restaurants in Vernazza, but hopefully one of the others can provide some comments on that. Some of my favourites in Monterosso include:

• Cantina di Miky: right on the main drag, a short distance from the rail station. They have both indoor seating as well as a small patio overlooking the ocean. The patio tends to be "crowded" at times, but that's usually a lot of fun as travellers tend to visit and compare food and travel information. The owners are wonderful and I always enjoy seeing them on each visit. One of my favourites there is the Pesto Lasagna. One point to clarify - there's also a Miky restaurant, which is a different restaurant at the far end of the new town. As I recall, it's owned by the father of the owner of the Cantina. The menu has a lot of seafood and it's quite pricey (not sure if they're open for lunch?).
• Ristorante L' Alta Marea: a short distance uphill on Via Roma in the "old town". Again, they have both indoor seating as well as a small patio on the street. I've always found the food there to be excellent, and the owners are wonderful. One of my favourites there is Trofie al Pesto (which is typically the first meal I always have when returning to the Cinque Terre and Monterosso).
• Ristorante Belvedere: in the old town, directly across from the beach and fishing boats. I usually only go there for supper, so not sure if they're open for lunch? As Larry mentioned, the Amphora dish is somewhat spectacular although I've never tried it as there's a lot of seafood there, and it would probably take a group of at least four to finish it (I usually travel solo so not an option for me). The restaurant tends to get VERY busy at times which results in slower service, so some patience is necessary. I've seen the Servers actually running to try and keep up, so they do try to provide the best service possible.
• Ristorante Al Carugio: in the old town in a small side street off Via Roma. Again, I've always found the food to be excellent, although the service can occasionally be a bit slow.

As previously mentioned, some of the restaurants typically close one day each week so you'll have to adjust for that. I can't remember which days those are for each of the restaurants I mentioned. There are a LOT of restaurants in Monterosso, so you won't have any trouble finding a good meal.

Buon Appetito!

All of this help is absolutely amazing. Thank you all so much. I am so excited!