I am planning a day trip from Florence to Cinque Terre on a Saturday in June leaving early in the morning and returning late in the evening. Is that a train I need to book more than a day in advance? I am booking all of the longer trains months out. Also any advice on one day in Cinque Terre would be appreciated.
Posted by
Italy
3812 posts
You can save money buying in advance the tickets of all Freccia and Intercity trains. On the day you will pay the top Base fare.
Regional trains' prices are fixed, you can get tickets up to 15 minutes before the scheduled departure time.
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
16133 posts
As Dario said, there is no benefit in buying Regional Train tickets in advance, and train seats don't sell out, as there are no reserved seats on Regional Trains (they are like commuter trains or subway trains in America).
There are numerous options to get from Florence to the Cinque Terre villages, most of them are Regional trains. There are some options that may have a faster InterCity train in the portion between Pisa and La Spezia or even from Pisa to Monterosso.
There is only one option to travel fully on a high speed FrecciaBianca train from Florence to La Spezia, but that train leaves early in the morning (after 7am) from Firenze Campo di Marte station (not the main Firenze Santa Maria Novella). This would be the fastest option and if you buy in advance you can get a discount. However if you book a high speed train on a discounted fare\ then you must ensure you take it, because if you miss it or change your mind, the discounted ticket is not refundable or changeable.
If you are not sure about the exact time you want to go and come back, I'd buy at the station the day of travel and pay the full price. The price is not that huge.
Posted by
872 posts
Take the train from SM Novella at 7:34, or at Campo di Marte at 7:54--that's the quickest way to get there. Return to SMN. For approximately 4.5 hours in one of the villages, expend to spend up to 7.5 hours on trains and going to and from stations. If at all possible stay at least overnight, or arrange your itinerary so that you can stay there longer.