Hello!
We are a group of 13 (11 adults and 2 very small children) planning to travel from Zurich to Cinque Terre on Aug 31st.
I see flights are non-stop and expensive. So, which rail system do you recommend? How long would it take to get us closest to CT?
Posted by
Sweden
6470 posts
Not sure what you mean by rail system, but you can find tickets at www.trenitalia.it
Posted by
Paris
6921 posts
The easiest train option to 5 Terre would be Zürich-Milan Centrale followed by Milan Centrale-Levanto: only one change of trains at Milan Centrale.
Total travel time should be around 6.5 hours depending how long the transfer waiting time is in Milan.
Pisa would take quite a bit longer to reach (also, you'd need 3 trains not 2) and it is not very close to the 5 Terre anyway.
Posted by
Ontario, Canada
4919 posts
Why would you want to go to Genoa or Pisa if you want to end up in the Cinque Terre? Are you wanting to stop there to sight see enroute? Use the website for either the Swiss ( Sbb) or Italian (Trenitalia) rail company for train times and costs. Enter your departure city (Zurich) as well as your final arrival city (?Monterosso?). It will give you the train options for that day, and will say, in the drop down, where any connections (train changes) will be. It's too early for August, so to get an idea, pick an early morning time and the same day of the week within the next 2-3 months.
If you don't know how European trains operate, familiarize yourself with the information available on the man in seat 61 website.
Posted by
Edmonds, WA 🌨 ☂
11240 posts
How long do you plan to stay in CT? Hopefully 3 nights as otherwise it looks like a LOT of effort for very little return.
Zurich to CT travel is going to eat up ~ 8 hrs ( possibly more) from the time you leave your Zurich lodging until you arrive at the one in CT.
Posted by
Minnesota 🎒
15856 posts
Kathryn, given one of your earlier posts, I sincerely hope that if you are going to the CT, you are going to do so for at LEAST two nights, given the amount of time it's going to take you to get there. Genova is still over an hour AT BEST away from Monterosso (the most northern of the 5 CT villages).
The CT is likely to be positively heaving with tourists in August, and you need to book your accommodations NOW. These little villages have few hotels as you know them: most are smaller guesthouses and apartments, and trying to find rooms for a large group may be no easy task. Air conditioning will be a must in August and not all accommodations will have it or have efficient enough systems to cool to a level you may be used to.
You could stay in Levanto; not the CT but closer than Genova, and sees some positive reviews. Still, if you are only looking at one night, it's not enough time if you want to sightsee the villages; especially if fighting the high-season crowds...which can look like this:
https://www.dreamstime.com/manarola-italy-april-central-street-village-crowded-tourists-cinque-terre-region-image149309675
https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-crowds-of-people-tourists-queue-for-the-boat-water-taxi-at-vernazza-70493498.html
https://johnhendersontravel.com/overtourism-in-italy-vernazza/. (top 2 shots on the page).
As we've said earlier, the trains and ferries to/from the villages will also be packed so keeping all of you together would be stressful. Eating together would be next to impossible. Carrying your toddler and infant would be easier than a stroller.