La Spezia - Hop on Hop off Train

[CRUSINGFAMILY]

Hi all

 

I have read there is a hop on hop off train touring around La Spezia.  Has anyone done it?  Was it good/worth the money/time?  We are staying in La Spezia and wondering about interesting and cool things to do there.  It happens to be our anniversary as well.  Any little known places etc.

 

Thanks!

[9265359]

If there is then La Spezia isn't that large of a place that you actually need to use it to see everything there is there.

 

Realistically the town itself doesn't have that much in it, as it is mainly used as a convenient port stops for Cinque Terre.

 

Within the town itself, other than the usual parks, there are few sights. There is a small castle with a museum that may interest you, with grave markings from the local area - 

 

 

And an air-raid shelter that has been converted into an installation (the town was bombed heavily in the Second World War because of the port).

 

But that's not to say it isn't a nice place for a stroll around, and there are some lovely cafe's doing excellent coffee and pastries (but get off the main street and away from the tourist places).

 

And being a small town in Italy it does matter what day of the week you are there, as on Sunday most of the shops will be closed.

[edinburgher]

7 hours ago, CRUSINGFAMILY said:

We are staying in La Spezia and wondering about interesting and cool things to do there

Thinking you could do better than staying in la Spezia, as it is more of a "gateway" port than a "destination" port. If you have not already found this past thread when you searched for "la Spezia" in past threads I think you will find this an interesting read as it is full of suggestions and info.  You only need ignore the reference to driving in the subject line as it isn't that at all.

 

See what you think.

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2911139-la-spezia-anything-to-do-within-a-short-drive/#comment-64723978

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[euro cruiser]

Maybe what you're thinking of is the Cinque Terre Trenitalia card:

 

Cinque Terre Treno MS Card allows unlimited travel in 2nd class on regional trains between Levanto and La Spezia (and vice-versa) plus access to the services offered by the Park Authority (for more information on Park services, please see www.parconazionale5terre.it).

 

More here:  Travel around 5 Terre - Trenitalia

[DLWood]

On 8/3/2024 at 11:12 AM, 9265359 said:

If there is then La Spezia isn't that large of a place that you actually need to use it to see everything there is there.

 

Realistically the town itself doesn't have that much in it, as it is mainly used as a convenient port stops for Cinque Terre.

 

Within the town itself, other than the usual parks, there are few sights. There is a small castle with a museum that may interest you, with grave markings from the local area - 

 

 

And an air-raid shelter that has been converted into an installation (the town was bombed heavily in the Second World War because of the port).

 

But that's not to say it isn't a nice place for a stroll around, and there are some lovely cafe's doing excellent coffee and pastries (but get off the main street and away from the tourist places).

 

And being a small town in Italy it does matter what day of the week you are there, as on Sunday most of the shops will be closed.

We will be there tomorrow, a Sunday. Will shopping on the pedestrian strip be open?  Do you have a recommendation for a restaurant for a good pizza or pasta?

[9265359]

54 minutes ago, DLWood said:

We will be there tomorrow, a Sunday. Will shopping on the pedestrian strip be open?  Do you have a recommendation for a restaurant for a good pizza or pasta?

 

When I was there recently on a Sunday the bars, cafes, and restaurants were mostly open, as were the more tourist shops, but a lot of the 'normal' shops were closed.

 

As for recommendations - sorry, only had a coffee and a pastry there. 

[Over from NZ]

If you're going to go to the CT.. another one to mention is Porto Venere. Often overlooked as the lesser substitute to the CT.. but well worth a visit and we enjoyed it just as much. We caught the Ferry there round from La Spezia. We also did an easy day-trip on the train to Pisa and of course, spent a few days in and out of the CT. 

[budbo]

The Hop on Hop off train in La Spezia is one of those little tourist train rides that runs on the street.  It picks up right outside the building where you'll be dropped off by the shuttle.  It's inexpensive but you get what you pay for.  It does give you a brief view of the city with a running commentary but ours had very bad speakers and it repeats the same commentary in several different languages.  They call it a Hop on Hop off but when we rode it, it actually only stopped in one place to let riders get on and off.  

There are quite a few information booths located in the building where the shuttle drops you off.  If you're looking to do something on your own in La Spezia or Cinque Terre, you can get some good information there.