Livorno, Italy - Cinque Terre & Pisa

1. It depends on how long you want to stay in Pisa. There is a train every 30 min from SP to PI. Journey time is 45 to 72 min. depending on type of train (*). *Regionale, Intercity, Frecciabianca are the types of train (from slower to faster; price increases with speed ) 2. How long you want to stay in Pisa? From La Spezia to Pisa is 72 min max, from the station to the tower add 10 min by bus. Time taking pictures? I don't know. 30 minutes? Back to the station another 10 min. Train from Pisa to Livorno takes 15-18 min., also in this case there is a train every 30 min.
Assuming you want to stay about 30 min. at the tower, you have to leave La Spezia no later than 4pm. 3. It's 25-30 min walk. By bus, 10 min. By taxi even faster.

Beth, With only a very short 12-hours and having to allow for train schedules, I probably wouldn't bother with "famous pictures" at Pisa. While it may be feasible, if there's any "complications" in the route, you could miss your sailing. Cheers!

Thank you both for replying so fast!! We do only want to take a couple pics to say we were there and saw it... so it will be in and out, fast! I think we will decide that day if we stop or not.. if we want to spend a bit more time in Cinque Terre we might just bypass Pisa, glad to know that a train runs by frequently in case we do stop.
For some reason, I'm having a hard time finding a clear train schedule for that area online.

This: " .. if we want to spend a bit more time in Cinque Terre we might just bypass Pisa" would be my suggestion.

Beth, You'll have to decide if the time, cost and risk of missing your sailing is worth a couple of pictures to "say you've been there". It would be easy to spend a full day exploring the five towns of the Cinque Terre using a combination of the local trains and boats. You could also hike one or two of the trails. The famous Via dell'Amore from Riomaggiore to Manarola is a big favourite with many, and it's more of a "stroll" rather than a hike as it's mostly flat, level and paved (you'll need a Park Pass though, which you can buy at the start). There's a small Bar close to the Manarola end, where you can stop for a "cool one" and enjoy the gorgeous views. One other factor to consider is that in my experience the trains in that area are not always "punctual", so it would be a good idea to allow a comfortable "cushion" for getting back your cruise ship. Cheers!

"For some reason, I'm having a hard time finding a clear train schedule for that area online." Those are regional trains, and so the schedules are only posted a week in advance. Look at something within the next 7 days, on the same day of the week as you will be in port at Livorno.

We just did a cruise that stopped in Livorno. Here are some things you should know. To get to the train station from your boat, you have to first take a shuttle from the boat to the middle of town. From there, you transfer to a bus which takes you to the train station. Total time is less than 30 minutes, however, that will chew up one of your hours. Some friends of our went to the Cinque Terre and they had to go fast and only made it to three of the towns and did not stop in Pisa and barely made it back in time. If you are going to CT and your train goes through Pisa, you will have a good view of the tower as you go by. Not a picture worthy view, but you can see it. If you decide to get off and see it, plan on that taking at least 60-90 minutes from the time you get off the train to the time you get back on a train to the boat. Having said all that, if you want to do it, it can be done, but you will not really get to relax in the CT, which is most of the fun (we went there on another trip, not as part of a cruise). Another option to consider is to go to Lucca, rent bikes and see that wonderful town, which is what we did on our Livorno port stop. I hope you have a good trip!!