Times to visit Cinque Terre

If you are on the cruise, you will be visiting with everyone else. If you are not on a cruise, it may not be possible to avoid the cruise ship excursions. Cruise ships are not the only ones taking excursions as there are day trips from other cities as well.

I would recommend staying in the Cinque Terre, before 10:00 a.m. and after 4:00-5:00, you will be able to enjoy the beauty of the Cinque Terre. When we visited in early June, we only had two days. Our strategy for avoiding crowds. Note we did not hike as we had two people with injuries.

• Get up early and visit the two most crowded towns first: Monterosso and Vernazza. We were out of Vernazza by 10:30, just as the crowds were arriving and then headed over to the smaller towns (Manarola and Corniglia) where there are fewer big crowds.

• Get on the water and reserve a private tour. We had six people, so we reserved Fish & Chill for a Sunset tour, but they also have daytime tours : http://www.cinqueterreboat.com/index_eng.html. There are other tours as well and you a unique view. On a normal tour, you stop for snorkeling, walking around Vernazza, and dinner and/or lunch.

Hope this helps.
Sandy

I was in Cinque Terre today and it was a zoo by lunch time. Trains were delayed and it was extremely hot. They say during the week is better but we went today because, when I checked earlier, there were no cruise ships listed as being in either port. I can’t imagine what it would have been like if cruise ships were in town. The ports have websites showing what cruise ships will be in port what days and base your visit around that information. It was still jam packed for us but it is August after all.

Thanks all, I will actually be staying at a Agriturismo in Siena from Sept 18 - Sept 25. Was looking to be one of those day trippers. ;) Have not picked the day yet. Know all days were crowded but was hoping for the minimal. Thanks again for the info.

ViaMichelin.com estimates the driving time from Siena to Monterosso at over 3 hours. That's without stopping, getting lost or looking for parking. That strikes me as too far for a day-trip, especially since you'd want to visit multiple towns.

Train time is over 3-1/2 hours from Siena.

OP, you can check the cruise ship schedule for La Spezia to see how many cruise ships may be in port the days you're interested in. That way maybe you can avoid a really heavy day. I don't see any ships in port on the 18th of Sept and only one or two on your other days so it may not be as horrible as you anticipate.

slaterdon,

"I will actually be staying at a Agriturismo in Siena from Sept 18 - Sept 25. Was looking to be one of those day trippers."

As mentioned earlier, visiting the Cinque Terre as a day trip from the Siena area is not an ideal method, due to the travel times involved.

Better days than others.... midweek on a day when there are no cruise ships in the area is probably the best idea.

Last year and this year, a very large cruise ship docks every Wednesday. As others have said, crowding is not solely caused by the ships. Once you know your day, consider getting your Cinque Terre Treno card online so you can avoid the line for them at La
Spezia Centrale station.

"I will actually be staying at a Agriturismo in Siena from Sept 18 - Sept 25. Was looking to be one of those day trippers."

A trip from Siena to Cinque Terre will not give you much time to visit. You will spend more time traveling. Check the distance and train time. If you are in Siena, why not visit some Tuscan hill towns instead.

Thanks to all for the replies and information. It appears that, if I want to avoid the "cruisers", the best days to visit would be Thursday or Friday. As I read the replies, it became more and more evident of what a long day it would be taking a day trip from Siena to Cinque Terra. The thought of riding a bus for over six hours became overwhelming. I believe I will take the suggestion of staying local and having a glass of wine.

Again, thanks all for your information and recommendations.

Now that you've decided to stay close to home, there are a number of hill towns near Siena that may not be a breathtaking as CT, but hold their own charm.

I did a quick check on public transportation to Montepulciano, Montalcino, Volterra, Radda and San Gimignano. You may be better off taking a tour. You could do a food and wine tasting tour of the area. We had a car so scooting off to one of the hill towns from our agriturismo near Greve was easy.

Thanks DougMac,
I will have a car also. We are staying at an Agriturismo almost dead center between Siena, Montepulciano, and Montecino. I will certainly be visiting many of the local areas and "sampling" the food and wine. :-}

Thanks DougMac,
I will have a car also. We are staying at an Agriturismo almost dead center between Siena, Montepulciano, and Montecino.

Great! Having a car gives you so much more freedom. Bone up on driving in Italy. If you are a confident and defensive driver who can follow some basic signage and rules of the road, you should have no trouble. I found driving easy and enjoyable. Yes, there are ZTLs, but I found them well marked and had no trouble avoiding them. For hill towns, I just assumed anything within the walls was ZTL.