We will be taking a transatlantic cruise to Rome and one stop is Livorno. From the cruise port, is there a way to get tp Porto Venere to spend the day?
Posted by
11130 posts
Rent a car or take a train. We loved spending time in that beautiful city, great idea.
Posted by
Green Bay
20017 posts
Never haven taken a cruise, how much time do you really have? When can you get off the ship and when do you have to be back on?
For the train, you need to get a cab across town to Livorno Centrale. Trains take about 1 1/2 hours to La Spezia. Then you will need to walk down to the docks (or taxi) and get a ferry to Porto Venere. Ferry boats go every hour and take 30 minutes. By now, it is noon i everything goes to plan. Figure another 3 hours to get back, so how much time does that give you?
Renting a car probably will not save a whole lot of time, given getting to the agency, filling out the paper work, driving unfamiliar roads.
You be the judge.
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
15144 posts
By train plus bus, it’s at least 2.5 hours one way when everything is said and done (if all planets align). If you drive a car and you know where you are going, you can make it in less than 2 hours easily, but then you would need to add the rental car pick up and return bureaucratic process. Knowing these facts you can decide if the cruise stop gives you sufficient time.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32198 posts
Charlie,
As the others have mentioned, Porto Venere is not an ideal place to go for a day trip as the transportation links are slower. As an alternative you might consider visiting one of the Cinque Terre towns instead (Monterosso?). Aside from the time it takes to get from the ship to Livorno Centrale, there are trains from there to Monterosso with travel times as short as 1H:36M (often one change at La Spezia Centrale). Times will be slightly shorter to the other C.T. towns.
Be sure to research the train times carefully and allow lots of time to get back to the ship.
Posted by
OP
Ventura, CA, USA
297 posts
We will be staying in the CT during our Stay in Italy. So we were looking for something close to Livorno for the day. Is there any place close by worth visiting?
Posted by
Washington DC
27059 posts
Pisa: 16-20 minutes. Frequent trains until 10:12 AM, then less frequent.
Lucca: 60-70 minutes with change in Pisa. Frequent trains until 10:12, then less frequent.
Florence: 72 - 81 minutes. Frequent trains until 10:12, then less frequent.
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
15144 posts
If you love the sea, and you didn’t get enough at the Cinque Terre, then Castiglioncello, just minutes away from Livorno by train, is a quaint coast village.
https://images.app.goo.gl/osjg1RK7eaECfAeZ6