Civitecchia to Cinque Terra

[Marianna49]

Does anyone know if it is possible to travel to Cinque Terra from Civitecchia? Or is it better to go to Rome first.

We are cruising July 17 2011 and were planning on going to Italy before the ship departs from Civi. Any suggestions?

[GSPLover]

Does anyone know if it is possible to travel to Cinque Terra from Civitecchia? Or is it better to go to Rome first.

We are cruising July 17 2011 and were planning on going to Italy before the ship departs from Civi. Any suggestions?

 

Yes it is possible. Take the train to Pisa. In Pisa, switch trains and go on to La Spezia. Once there, switch trains and go on to Riomaggiore and the other villages. Depending upon your departure time, you can catch an IC or Eurostar train that will take yo to La Spezia on one train. Trip is around 3 hours. The IC and Eurostar trains originate from Rome, so that is an option also.

 

We will be in CT on Oct 14th.

[pmacher61]

I asked this question on tripadvisor's Cinque Terre forum and go this answer re trains to one of the towns, Monterosso. Apparently no need to go via Rome. For schedule see the link. http://trenitalia.it/homepage_en.html

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There seem to be no direct trains from Civitavecchia to Monterosso: you need to change at La Spezia. There is no need to buy in advance, and it would not be a good idea as you do not know exactly when you will get off the ship.

To get Sunday train times, say you want to travel on any Sunday: 8 August would be good, as you will then see the prices of all trains. Times will not change until December.

As shown on the Trenitalia site, you can travel either first or second class. There is little difference, and first class is a waste of money.

Each of the five Cinque Terre villages has its own station, so you can go to any of the villages. Monterosso is one of them.

[Hlitner]

Reading the prior post brings up a thought. Not sure why anyone would want to take a train to Monterosso from Civitavecchia. Riomaggiore is the closer (and faster) end of Cinque Terre and is easily accessed by train from La Spezi a. The problem when comingfrom Civitavecchia is that its just too darn far to make it practical as a day-trip. For cruisers a day trip to Cinque Terre makes the most sense if you are disembarking in La Spezia or Livorno.

 

Hank

[Marianna49]

I am certainly becoming more and more confused and am almost at the point of saying...Is it really worth it? I am wondering if maybe I can get there from Florence easier. At this point, it is wide open.

It seems like the train is the preferred method of transportation. Does anyone know if there is a train from Florence. Also, can I get from Rome airport to Florence easily...or at least not crazy difficult.

How long from Rome airport to Florence? And, how long from Florence to Cinque Terre?

Our cruise ship (NOTS) leaves from Civitavecchia - can I stay there instead of in Rome? How far from Rome is the port? And, lastly, can I take a train from Rome to the port?

Phew...I guess I am almost at my 20 questions. Thanks for the help.

Fondly, Marianna:p

[GSPLover]

I am certainly becoming more and more confused and am almost at the point of saying...Is it really worth it? I am wondering if maybe I can get there from Florence easier. At this point, it is wide open.

It seems like the train is the preferred method of transportation. Does anyone know if there is a train from Florence. Also, can I get from Rome airport to Florence easily...or at least not crazy difficult.

How long from Rome airport to Florence? And, how long from Florence to Cinque Terre?

Our cruise ship (NOTS) leaves from Civitavecchia - can I stay there instead of in Rome? How far from Rome is the port? And, lastly, can I take a train from Rome to the port?

Phew...I guess I am almost at my 20 questions. Thanks for the help.

Fondly, Marianna:p

 

Yes, there is a train from Florence. Take a train to Pisa. Change to a train to La Spezia. Change to a train to Riomaggiores (southern most village in CT. Total travel time around 3 hours.

 

FCO to Florence. Leonardo Express into Roma Termini (30 min). Take Eurostar to Florence (about 1h 45m).

 

There are a couple of nice hotels in Civitavecchia. Train to port from Rome is 45m to 90m depending upon type of train. It's about 60 miles.

[euro cruiser]

I am certainly becoming more and more confused and am almost at the point of saying...Is it really worth it? I am wondering if maybe I can get there from Florence easier. At this point, it is wide open.

It seems like the train is the preferred method of transportation. Does anyone know if there is a train from Florence. Also, can I get from Rome airport to Florence easily...or at least not crazy difficult.

How long from Rome airport to Florence? And, how long from Florence to Cinque Terre?

Our cruise ship (NOTS) leaves from Civitavecchia - can I stay there instead of in Rome? How far from Rome is the port? And, lastly, can I take a train from Rome to the port?

Phew! Okay Marianna, first, take a deep breath. It's confusing at first, but really not at that difficult.

 

Please don't be offended, but you probably ought to get yourself a good guidebook for Italy, where you can get an overview of the country and the various places you are interested in. You've mentioned a pretty large terrain in your post.

 

Is Civitavecchia your only port in Italy? If you are stopping at Livorno, this is closer to Florence and to Cinque Terre than is Civitavecchia.

 

For perspective, Civitavecchia is about 40 miles from the airport in Rome (FCO, aka Leonardo da Vinci, aka Fiumicino); it is also about 40 miles from downtown Rome. Civitavecchia is about 150 miles from Florence, and Florence is about 180 miles from Rome.

 

In other words, Italy is a lot bigger than I suspect you think it is.

 

Trains are an easy way to get around Italy. From the airport to Florence, the most direct train route is the express train to Rome's Termini station, changing there for a high speed train to Florence. It takes about two and a half hours, and costs 58 Euro in second class, or 76 Euro in first class.

 

From Florence to Riomaggiore, the southernmost of the five Cinque Terre villages, takes between three to three and a half hours, and requires at least one change of trains (usually at La Spezia).

[Marianna49]

Our only port in Italy is, sadly, Civitavecchia and Messina in Sicily. Thank you everyone for the answers to my questions. I am still not sure, but I think the best plan is to take the train to Florence from Rome airport and stay there at least two nights in order to do a day trip to Cinque Terre. We can then make our way back to Rome and visit the Vatican and make a day trip to Salle (my father's birth town). I am pretty sure we will need to rent a car for that trip - it is remote. Our ship leaves on Sunday the 17th so I guess we will plan on traveling the previous week to Italy.

Of course my next series of questions will deal with where to stay in Florence and Rome. Any suggestions? Hmmmm. Does that mean I get another 20 questions?

Happily, Marianna:D

[euro cruiser]

I am still not sure, but I think the best plan is to take the train to Florence from Rome airport and stay there at least two nights in order to do a day trip to Cinque Terre.

Cinque Terre must be pretty important to you - that's a lot of travel for one day. The best case is a 7:30 train from Florence that puts you in Riomaggiore a little after 10 AM, with changes in Pisa and La Spezia. Most of the return trips only require one change, in Sarzana, and take about two and three quarter hours. Once you add on time to get to and from your hotel in Florence, you're probably looking at nearly six hours of travel for six or eight hours on the ground in Cinque Terre.

 

 

We can then make our way back to Rome and visit the Vatican and make a day trip to Salle (my father's birth town). I am pretty sure we will need to rent a car for that trip - it is remote.

You're right about the car - the nearest train stops are at least a half hour away, and not in places where taxis are likely to be readily available.

[Marianna49]

Since the first time we visited Italy in early 90's I have wanted to visit Cinque Terre. It is on my bucket list unfortunately. My poor husband.

Thanks for the help.

 

Marianna ;)

[euro cruiser]

The heart wants what the heart wants, as they say. I hope the Cinque Terre meets and exceeds your dreams.

[Marianna49]

I was thinking maybe we can do a day bus trip with a tour group. Will explore that as an option. Thanks for the help.

Marianna:o

[euro cruiser]

If you spend a little time googling, you'll find providers like Viator who offer day trips from Florence to Cinque Terre. I think the Viator one is around $100 per person.

[Hlitner]

Be very careful if you do pick-up a rental car in Rome. This city (along with some others such as Florence and Pisa) have extensive ZTLs which are zones that prohibit unauthorized cars to enter their streets. These ZTLs are often only marked with a small street sign (easy to miss) and the penalty for happening to enter one of these ZTLs is a hefty fine that will be applied to your credit card months after you return home.

 

Hank

[euro cruiser]

Be very careful if you do pick-up a rental car in Rome. This city (along with some others such as Florence and Pisa) have extensive ZTLs which are zones that prohibit unauthorized cars to enter their streets. These ZTLs are often only marked with a small street sign (easy to miss) and the penalty for happening to enter one of these ZTLs is a hefty fine that will be applied to your credit card months after you return home.

Good point Hank. The good news is that all of the car rental offices that I am aware of are outside of the ZTL; however, you need to be careful that you don't stray back into the zone after picking up your car.

 

For Marianna, who will be heading WNW out of Rome, the offices at either Termini or along Via Tiburtina will be close to the route she'll need, and outside of the zone (Tiburtina more so than Termini).

[Marianna49]

What does that mean? Even if you're a dumb American you still have to pay a fine?

Marianna:confused:

[euro cruiser]

Yep - that part of the law works the same way everywhere, in that ignorance is no excuse.

 

ZTL stands for Zona a Traffico Limitato (Limited Traffic Zone).

 

You can read about the ZTL zone here: http://www.agenziamobilita.roma.it/en/ztl/ztl.html

[kuldalai]

Trying to do the Cinque Terre from Rome or its Port in a day is a big ask, and whilst doable you will spend half your day travelling . Also Italian trains can be late time runners, sort of "heart attack" stuff as you sweat on getting back to your Port City in time .

 

If you can arrange time in Italy before or after the cruise then best is to allocate 2-3 days and base yourself in La Spezia . Frequent trains link La Spezia to all 5 towns that make up this spectacular coastline.

 

You can get to La Spezia by train from Genoa, Pisa, Florence, Rome or Milan.

Hope this helps.

[Marianna49]

Trying to do the Cinque Terre from Rome or its Port in a day is a big ask, and whilst doable you will spend half your day travelling . Also Italian trains can be late time runners, sort of "heart attack" stuff as you sweat on getting back to your Port City in time .

 

If you can arrange time in Italy before or after the cruise then best is to allocate 2-3 days and base yourself in La Spezia . Frequent trains link La Spezia to all 5 towns that make up this spectacular coastline.

 

You can get to La Spezia by train from Genoa, Pisa, Florence, Rome or Milan.

Hope this helps.

This is most helpful. Of course, more questions...Can you recommend an affordable hotel that is travel-convenient from the train station? Maybe we could go to La Spezia from Milan and then travel to Rome and then to Civitavecchia.

Thanks for all the help everyone.

Marianna:o