La Spezia (Florence/Pisa)- what's there to do?

[rotman253]

I there,

gonna be there next week with my wife on a RC cruise .

I know the RC shore excursions are very pricy ,

 

my question is what can we do there by our self?

or event better , is there any cheaper shore excursions solution?

 

Thank you very much

[Hlitner]

You might consider just going to one or more of the Cinque Terre villages. It is easy to hop a train for the short ride from La Spezia to Riomaggiore (the closest of the 5 villages) and then you can use the train or boats to get between the various villages. Unfortunately, the famous walking path between Riomaggiore and Manarola is still closed (due to a rock slide) or we would suggest this short hike.

 

We suggest you simply Google (Cinque Terre) and read about the villages (very picturesque and charming). You can also search this forum where you will find a lot of previous posts about the area.

 

Hank

[CruiserBruce]

A little reading on the board would be very helpful, as we don't know your interests, limitations, budget, etc. Florence, Pisa, Lucca, etc. There are private tour venders recommended.

[euro cruiser]

I agree with Hank, you're right there at the edge of the Cinque Terre, take advantage of the location.

 

Although the cruise lines promote this stop as Florence/Pisa, it's 100 miles from Florence, about two hours in normal traffic. Pisa is closer and you could get there easily and inexpensively by train (one hour each way on the high speed Frecciabiana, 9 Euro each way), if Pisa is important to you.

[maggieq]

We just got back from the same cruise. We got lucky and joined a shared tour with romeinlimo and did Pisa and Florence. It was a great day.

[rotman253]

I agree with Hank, you're right there at the edge of the Cinque Terre, take advantage of the location.

 

Although the cruise lines promote this stop as Florence/Pisa, it's 100 miles from Florence, about two hours in normal traffic. Pisa is closer and you could get there easily and inexpensively by train (one hour each way on the high speed Frecciabiana, 9 Euro each way), if Pisa is important to you.

 

as a matter of fact , this is what I've thought..

we want to see the "pisa tower" so I thought we should take the train to pisa and from there it's a walking distance from the tower... so we would go there , take a self guided walking tour of about 2 hours and then go back to the port... how does it sounds?

[CathyCruises]

as a matter of fact , this is what I've thought..

we want to see the "pisa tower" so I thought we should take the train to pisa and from there it's a walking distance from the tower... so we would go there , take a self guided walking tour of about 2 hours and then go back to the port... how does it sounds?

 

Yes, it's easy to do. Remember that La Spezia is a tender port, so it could take a while to get off the ship. You can walk to the train station, takes about 15 minutes, or grab a cab if you can flag one down on the promenade where the tender will drop you off.

 

Also about a 15 minute walk to the tower and Piazza dei Miracoli.

[rotman253]

that's sound great!

Thank you for your help.

 

Can I ask the same question about another port in Italy?

that would be : Naples (Capri)...

 

Thanks again for the help

[CathyCruises]

that's sound great!

Thank you for your help.

 

Can I ask the same question about another port in Italy?

that would be : Naples (Capri)...

 

Thanks again for the help

 

This is what we did:

 

Great Naples Port Day

Just wanted to report on our DIY day in Naples a few weeks ago now. We had heard that the bus to Herculaneum was no longer running, which was my #1 option. But right at the port entrance we were able to buy a combo tram/train ticket for I believe euro 2.90 each. Walked to the middle of the road and hopped on just as the tram was leaving. The only tricky part was figuring out where to get off--I happened to see a small sign that said Circumvesuviana and we jumped off at the last second. I believe it was the first stop after the tram turns left and goes up the hill.

 

Got on the train and weirdly ran into my daughter who was headed to Pompeii! The ride to Ercolano takes about 20 minutes IIRC. When we got off we had no idea which way to go, but I recalled a post where somebody said to head downhill, so we did, and after 10 minutes or so we arrived at the entrance. I LOVED Ercolano--to me it was much more interesting and intact than Pompeii, and I loved being able to actually walk into and around the houses rather than just peering in through grates. We did rent the audioguides (E. 10 for 2) which helped a lot. We spent 2+ hours wandering about and really enjoyed it. Very uncrowded as well.

 

To save our tootsies, we took a cab/bus back up to the train station (I have a slowly recovering broken foot to deal with). We had asked the girl who sold us the train tix about going to Sorrento and she told us it was about half an hour beyond Ercolano, so we decided to go for it. To my dismay, it was 24 stops down the road!!! Took over an hour. But so worth it when we got there.

 

We wandered around this beautiful town, had a great lunch, shopped, took photos, just loved it there. I'd move tomorrow if I could figure out a way to support myself! But to avoid the long train ride back, we hopped on to the ferry for E. 9/pp, which took about 45 minutes, and dropped us right at the port next to our ship! Ended up being a great day, minimal cost, and we thoroughly enjoyed it. There's really no need to spend hundreds of dollars in this port to see and do a lot!

[euro cruiser]

tCan I ask the same question about another port in Italy?

that would be : Naples (Capri)...

What do you want to do at this port? There are so many options.

[kuldalai]

Caveat Emptor. Do not just bowl up to the Leaning Tower at Pisa and expect to get in . Numbers are very limited and controlled by ticket . To save time and be sure to get in you pre book your admission tickets by date and time via Leaning tower website . You print out a voucher at home and exchange it for a ticket on arrival, just be sure to be there 15 minutes minimum before you booked admission time. Admission bookings open 2 months in advance .

[Tansy Mews]

Caveat Emptor. Do not just bowl up to the Leaning Tower at Pisa and expect to get in . Numbers are very limited and controlled by ticket . To save time and be sure to get in you pre book your admission tickets by date and time via Leaning tower website . You print out a voucher at home and exchange it for a ticket on arrival, just be sure to be there 15 minutes minimum before you booked admission time. Admission bookings open 2 months in advance .

 

Here is the website;

http://boxoffice-v2.opapisa.it/Turisti/

Looks like a change in ticket sales period.

The site says: Tickets can be purchased online between a maximum of 20 days and a minimum of 12 days prior to the date of the visit, subject to availability.

It also says: Time Online tickets are limited in number. If the time chosen is not available, you can try at the ticket offices on site.

 

We thought that the Baptistery was wonderful. I would book the Tower tickets ahead of time if you plan to climb it.

[Tansy Mews]

Yes, it's easy to do. Remember that La Spezia is a tender port, so it could take a while to get off the ship. You can walk to the train station, takes about 15 minutes, or grab a cab if you can flag one down on the promenade where the tender will drop you off.

 

Good news! Evidently there is a new dock in La Spezia and people are reporting that they docked.

See: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1839497

and

http://www.ilsecoloxix.it/p/la_spezia/2013/04/07/APpXglCF-crociere_spezia_prima.shtml

In the posts (link above) there is also mention of a free shuttle.