Manarola by train from La Spezia

[Missus Makkem]

Looking to take the train from La Spezia to Manarola in November 13.

 

what is the advantage of a special ticket

thanks for any advice

[slidergirl]

Could you tell us what you mean by "special ticket"? I've never heard of that.

 

The train from La Spezia to Manarola is pretty simple and inexpensive. It's a regional train, so no assigned seating or reservation needed. It takes around 15 minutes or less to do the trip.

[Tansy Mews]

There is a special National Park card that gives you access to the paths as well as the trains all day.

http://www.cinqueterre.eu.com/en/cinque-terre-card

The National Park info booth is at the train station in La Spezia in a hallway off platform 1. It cost 12 Euros for a one-day train/hiking pass - (as of June 2013).

Someone posted on CC: "We bought our passes at the train station in La Spezia at the Cinque Terre information centre. This is not in the entrance hall of the station but on platform 1, walk a bit to the right. There are signs to it. In the train there were some tourists who didn't know they had to validate it (the pass) and they were fined."

 

I emailed the National Park last month. This office is open from 8/8:30 a.m. until 7pm.

 

BTW, if you plan to hike along the coast, check first. Many paths near the shoreline were damaged by the huge storm a few years ago. Many are open again. Again the Info people should be able to update you but the info is also available online.

 

About trains - it is only about 11 minutes from La Spezia to Manarola. Check the train website. http://www.trenitalia.com/

You can select English - top right corner. If you stay on Italian, be sure to pick Tutti Treni.

 

On a great review of a RCCL Serenade of the Seas trip, a CC member said:

Well, once the shuttle bus drops you off, there are info stands with nice people handing out free maps of La Spezia. They even had a little stamp added to the map which said “you are here”. That helped immensely since we thought we’d be dropped off at the other side of the harbour where the cinque terre ferries start. Bummer. This meant we had a longer walkway to the train station. But it was a very nice walk indeed. First you stroll through a walkway alongside the harbour with big palm trees until you get to the ferry station. Here you turn right and just keep walking straight ahead. This will lead you through the shopping pedestrian street pretty much all the way to the train station. This walk at LEAST takes 30 minutes from the shuttlebus drop off point!"

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1890431&page=11

 

Hope this helps. The Cinque Terre is wonderful. We hope to see a few towns, especially Manarola, Riomaggiore and Vernazza.

[Missus Makkem]

thanks,

the ticket info very helpfull,

taking the train from La Spezia, but read that the lifts from station in Manarola up to town had a charge unless you bought a special ticket @La Spezia station

Edited October 29, 2013 by Missus Makkem

[Tansy Mews]

Here is the latest from the National Park on footpaths:

http://www.parco****onale5terre.it/sentieri_parco.asp?id_lingue=2

 

Train schedule - looks right to me, based on my check yesterday on Trenitalia.

http://www.cinqueterre.eu.com/images/stories/cinque-terre-timetable-2013.pdf

 

It would be nice to go one way by water but we will be there in next month and I think the season for that is over (only from April until October).

[slidergirl]

Tansy Mews - thank you for posting!!! With all the ships starting to port in La Spezia, the more info CCers can provide to cruisers, the better!

About the lift in Manarolo; unless you have mobility issues, you don't need to use the lift. That's why I was confused - I never used a lift anywhere in CT. Now, if you want go to Corniglia and don't want to walk up the 300+ steps from the train station up to the actual town, you do need the pass to be able to take the shuttle busses up/down the hill.

[Tansy Mews]

It would be nice to go one way by water but we will be there in next month and I think the season for that is over (only from April until October).

 

Here is the website and schedule for 2013 ferries in Cinque Terre. Only goes until the first few days of November.

http://cms.cnpstudio.it/USER_CONTENT/49/pdf/tratte_pdf_eng_7.pdf?cache=851131,618022919

 

The website: http://www.navigazionegolfodeipoeti.it/home.asp?lang=eng

Edited October 29, 2013 by Tansy Mews

[Tansy Mews]

Train schedule - looks right to me, based on my check yesterday on Trenitalia.

http://www.cinqueterre.eu.com/images/stories/cinque-terre-timetable-2013.pdf

 

Just double-checked. When I will be there in mid-November, the actual train schedule is slightly different. Check for yourself on the Trenitalia website or you will just miss the train. If using the Italian site (default), be sure to check Tutti Treni. (There is a link top right corner to English.) I believe the Cinque Terre card only covers the Regionale trains.

http://www.trenitalia.com

[Missus Makkem]

we too will be on the S O S 15 NOV may see you on the train

[bigeck]

Looking to take the train from La Spezia to Manarola in November 13.

 

what is the advantage of a special ticket

thanks for any advice

 

We just got off Serenade last Sunday. I know I should have replied sooner. I don't see any advantage of getting a ticket or park pass.

In La Spezia we got a free bus along to the centre of the port. The station is quite a walk from there. We got the ferry which left from the other end from we docked. The ferry aloud us to get off at any port and get the train back. We stopped first at Portovenere which you cant be done by train and had an hour there. The walk from Riomaggiore to Manarola is still closed. We ended up in Monterosso where we had some lunch.

We got the train back which was uneventful as it goes through a lot of tunnels. The train is only minutes between villages.

http://www.navigazionegolfodeipoeti.it/home.asp?lang=eng

 

I emailed them for new times and they replied immediately.

Edited November 11, 2013 by bigeck