Sights from Pisa to Genoa train ride?

Not sure about scenery in general, but the Cinque Terre is served by regionale trains, so I doubt that you would see much of it on the Freccia lines. I recall changing to regionale trains in La Spezia.

Mary,

If you want to go from Pisa to Milan via the Cinque Terre, that's certainly possible. The primary criteria is not the type of train you're using, but rather the route.

For a trip from Pisa to Milan, the Bahn.de website seems to always choose a route through Florence. However if you were to specify an intermediate stop in Monterosso for one hour, the route changes to La Spezia and then north to Milan. It's very easy to choose whichever route you want.

North of La Spezia the coast is very rugged and the line is alternatively by the sea or in tunnels; the Cinque Terre stations are sort of glimpses between tunnels. All the way up to Genoa the railway is never at a distance from the sea, that is on the left side as the train rides. Yes, the railway is scenic, but if wonder if it deserves all the extra trouble and time, when you consider that the fast line between Florence and Milan is under two hours, you will be traveling at 185 mph that is a feat in itself and you are left time to do something in Florence or Milan.

On the Freccia train from Pisa to Genoa, you could see the Carrara marble quarries in the distance (right side) and would pass through Santa Margherita Ligure and other resort towns north of Cinque Terre. The train would likely travel more slowly through the Cinque Terre towns due to the configuration of the platforms and tunnels, so you might be able to catch a glimpse of some of the towns as you pass. The sea will be on your left, but won't always be in sight. The tracks turn inland north of Genoa, and I don't recall there being anything special to see on that stretch of track. If you want to stop in any of the Cinque Terre towns, you'd need to switch to a regional train in La Spezia and then change to another regional or an intercity train further north (or double back to La Spezia) to continue on to Genoa.

The La Spezia to Genoa rail line is almost all tunnels, the views are few and far between. Go the quickest rail route.

Thanks for all the responses. I know it seems almost sacrilegious in Italy to choose landscapes over city-scapes and the art therein. But our men are farmers and prefer seeing different outdoor scenery with less time in cities, and by then we'll likely have reached their city limit.

Which prompts another question: I was going to have us go to the Leaning Tower just because we would be passing through Pisa, but honestly, I think we'd all be happy with one good glimpse of it and then maybe spend those hours along the coast instead. Going through Pisa, do you ever see the tower from the train?

I'll research La Spezia but if any of you have suggestions for just a couple of hours there or elsewhere along that line, I'd be grateful.

If you want to see the tower of Pisa you need to get off the train and go there. It's not along the railway.

Thanks Roberto. I could see from the map that it wasn't close to the tracks but didn't know if perhaps you got a clear view of it at any point along the way. Appreciate the info.

The tower is in a beautiful green "field of miracles"......even though there might be a lot of people, it's a lovely setting. I grew up in central Iowa, so I hear ya

We got off the train to see the tower and then went back to the train station in less than 2 hours. We were fine with just a quick view.

Hello to my fellow Central Iowan, even if you don't live here now!

Becky, that's exactly what I thought we might try to do. Glad to hear the plan works!