Travel LaSpezia to Riomaggiore

You can do either. Obviously, you are traveling by train to La Spezia Centrale from somewhere. Have you purchased this ticket online? If yes, you can easily purchase the ticket for the 8 minute ride to Riomaggiore at La Spezia Centrale. The cost should be about 1.50Euro. A taxi is really not needed. The trains in the CT are almost all Regionale trains. Buy your ticket, validate it at the little yellow box in the train station, get on and find your own seat. If no seats, you can stand. Trains don't usually run full in Italy except in places like the CT during high season. The trains can be quite full but just get on. It's only a few minutes between towns on the train. One other thought while you are in the La Spezia Centrale station. There is also a Travelers Information (TI) there (or used to be) in the station. At the TI, you can buy the Cinque Terre Treno card. They come in 1, 2, 3 & 7 day versions. This Treno card provides unlimited rides on the train between La Spezia and Levanto, covers the fares on the trails (yes, there are trolls who want money to pass) and rides on the mini-buses in the towns. If you buy this pass first when arriving at La Spezia, you won't need to buy the ticket to Riomaggiore.

many thanks, Larry.
We will look into the Treno Card before we make a purchase.

Catherine, As Larry mentioned, the best method would be to buy your ticket in the location you start from (although you could certainly buy it in La Spezia). As the train to Riomaggiore will likely be a Regionale, be sure to validate in the yellow machine. The trains from La Spezia run frequently, and it's a very short trip. I wouldn't bother with a Taxi, unless you have a very generous budget and don't care about the cost. Travel by train is a much better option (and much cheaper). Happy travels!

Catherine, I tried to add this to my first reply, but the system wouldn't accept it. When the train arrives in Riomaggiore, some cars may stop in a tunnel. If 8 or 9 minutes has elapsed and the train has stopped, it's time to get off! From the station plaza, you'll need to walk through the small pedestrian tunnel (runs parallel to the tracks) to reach the main part of town. Cheers!

Thanks for this info.
I will look into purchasing a ticket for this last leg when we meet up with our friends in Milan. That way we can all purchase together and make sure we are on the same train.

Catherine, the ticket for the Regionale train will not have a train number, departure date or departure time. Just the names of the departure station, destination station and the class of travel. It's an "open" ticket that's good on any Regionale train making that run for 60 days. That means that you can buy this ticket earlier and when you get to La Spezia Centrale, you can use it on the next train through. Note, however, that once you validate the ticket in the little yellow box in the station, the ticket is live and is good for only 4 hours beyond the validation time.

Thanks again. Your tips are very helpful.
I think we'll be ready to just hang out by the time we get to Rimaggiore rather than hopping on another train that first night.. so we might just get the train ticket and then figure out the CT tren card the next day. No way to know ahead of time whether the traveler info office at La Spezia Centrale will be open when we get there

Catherine, you can get the Cinque Terre Treno card all over the CT. You don't have to go back to La Spezia to get one. Secondly, there used to be another card there just for the park and trails. It did not have the word Treno on it. Just be sure you get the right one. It does cost a slight bit more.

Right. I remember those cards from my previous trip. Since some responders here and on Trip Advisors indicated best to get our ticket at the point our trip originates, I was thinking that we would just get the train tickets to Riomaggiore and then the next day sort out the CT cards.
After a long day of travel, we'll likely want a light meal, a dark wine and a bed.

Catherine, As I recall, you can also buy the Cinque Terre or Cinque Terre Treno cards at the T.I. office in Riomaggiore, which is in the station plaza, right across from the famous (infamous?) Mama Rosa Hostel. I can't remember for sure, but I believe when you're facing the building (Hostel behind you), it's the door on the left (I wasn't really paying attention when I was there last year). There are ATM's in the station plaza also.

Thank you, Ken.
I will look for it.