La Spezia & Cinque Terre: Your Transport Guide
A Little About Us
Hi! We are Justin and Lu and we moved to Italy from Australia. Since moving here we’ve been busy discovering the La Spezia, Cinque Terre, and The Gulf of Poets. We now realize that there’s so much to see and do that the average tourist is missing out on!
Our travel tips and transport guides are your key to unlocking what’s beyond Cinque Terre.
Buon Viaggio!
Timetables, Tips and Advice
How To Get To Cinque Terre
Many tourists stay in La Spezia to enjoy the advantages of the city and choose to take day trips to Cinque Terre. Accommodation is also cheaper and travelling from La Spezia to Cinque Terre is incredibly easy. The best options are either by boat or by train.
Ferries to Cinque Terre leave from the dock near the harbor promenade and marina. There are usually only four or five boats per day between La Spezia and Cinque Terre.
Cinque Terre trains go from La Spezia Central station and stop at Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, Monterosso al Mare, and Levanto. During summer, there are 3 or 4 trains every hour throughout the day from early until late.
The train ride is quick and convenient but queuing for a ticket can be a buzzkill and chew into your precious holiday time. If you plan on using the train from La Spezia to Cinque Terre, then it’s easy to buy your tickets online and avoid the crazy queues.
There are many options to travel to Cinque Terre including driving. We have a full post covering this topic in detail so you can plan your trip.
Related Posts
How To Get To La Spezia
La Spezia is within easy reach of a dozen or so cities around Liguria, Tuscany, and Emilia Romagna, with the added benefit of being situated along the Ligurian coast, close to countless seaside towns and villages including Cinque Terre (Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso al Mare).
One of the reasons we chose to move to La Spezia is because of the great transport connections. You can reach La Spezia easily from several major airports (Pisa, Genoa, Florence, Parma) by train or by car.
If you are driving, there are a few major freeways close to La Spezia including the E80 running between Genoa and Livorno and the E33 running between Parma and La Spezia.
Getting Around La Spezia
If you're looking for day trips from La Spezia then you will be spoilt for choice. You can head west towards Genoa and visit many beautiful towns along the coast, including Portofino. Or go south along the Gulf of Poets to Italian holiday towns like Portovenere, Lerici, Tellaro, and San Terenzo. There are many transport options for visiting these local towns.
Other popular day trips from La Spezia include visiting Pisa or Florence. The best option for traveling from La Spezia to Pisa or Florence is by train.
La Spezia Cruise Passenger Travel Guides
La Spezia Cruise Terminal has become one of THE cruise stops in Italy. It’s not hard to imagine that cruise tourists find the lure of Cinque Terre Florence, Portofino, and Tuscany an appealing place to stop.
For passengers arriving by cruise ship into La Spezia, you will dock at the La Spezia Cruise Pier. Depending on your cruise, there are usually free buses between the Cruise Pier and the Cruise Terminal. From here you can walk into town under the shade of the giant palm trees that line the harbor promenade. Alternatively, if you’re planning a quick trip to Cinque Terre, you can organize a taxi to drop you at the La Spezia Central train station for around 15 Euros.
Our detailed guides for Cruise Passengers are designed to get you organized your port stop at La Spezia.
How to Use Local Public Transport
Catching Trains
La Spezia Central train station is well connected to the major cities and airports around such as Genoa, Pisa, Parma, and Florence.
This is also a good starting point for a day's adventure. As well as regular trains to Cinque Terre, there are trains that will take you to towns such as Sarzana, Levanto, Sestri Levante, Chiavari, Santa Margarita, and Portofino.
If you want to visit further afield then there are daily trains going all over Italy. Pisa and Florence are popular day trip destinations.
You can purchase train tickets online or at the train stations. In peak tourist season you can expect to queue for the tickets. Some trains may also be fully booked, so planning ahead and booking a ticket is advisable if you have to be at a destination at a specific time.
You can find train times, routes, and make bookings using Trenitalia or Omio.
You may also like our guide on how to travel by train in Italy for beginners.
Buy tickets through OMIO - Book easily & pay in your preferred currency!
La Spezia Buses
The ATC bus service has routes to the local towns of interest. The buses are regular and convenient.
However, buying bus tickets and understanding the routes can be a challenge for tourists. You’ll find some key information on this page, and you can watch our YouTube video specifically on this topic. You can check routes and the bus timetable on the ATC website.
Useful Tourist Bus Routes
There are a few routes that are useful to visitors. The buses go out and back along the same (or very similar route depending on one-way roads).
Line L: Fossitermi – La Spezia (Via Chiodo) – Lerici
Line S: Fossitermi – La Spezia (Via Chiodo) – Lerici – Sarzana
Line SA: La Spezia FS (central train station) – Sarzana
Line 11: Porto Venere – La Spezia (Via Chiodo) – Sarciara
Line P: Porto Venere – La Spezia (Via Chiodo) – Sarzana – Casano
Useful Tourist Bus Stops
The main bus stops that tourists find useful are:
- Via Chiodo, La Spezia (near the marina and public gardens)
- Piazza Europa (near Cruise Terminal)
- La Spezia (FS) Via Fume (near the central train station)
- Piazza Verdi, La Spezia
- Viale Fieschi (near Alberto Picco Stadium), La Spezia
- Via Giuseppe Garibaldi, Porto Venere
- Lungomare, Porto Venere
- Piazza Garibaldi, Lerici (near old town)
- Hotel Byron, Lerici
- Piazza Martiri, Sarzana (near old town)
How to Buy Bus Tickets
You can buy tickets from local vendors such as tobacconists (Tabacchi) and the newsstands in town or from the central bus office located near Piazza Chiodo.
You need to ask for the right type of ticket. There are three main types of tickets used by tourists in La Spezia:
60-minute ticket (biglietto 60 minuti): Valid for 1 hour on any bus within the La Spezia Municipality (the zone covering the city of La Spezia only). This ticket costs €1.50
Single trip ticket (biglietto corsa semplice): A type of ticket for a km distance or range. Each ticket has a code according to a set distance. This is the ticket you need to go to areas outside of the city. For example:
- La Spezia to Porto Venere or La Spezia to Lerici, ask for a code 03 ticket (10 – 14 km). The cost is €2.50
- La Spezia to Sarzana, ask for a code 04 ticket (14-18 km). The cost is €2.80
Other codes exist for other distances. The km range table is available online at the ATC site. If you’re unsure about the km range or which code to use, then buy a extraurbano 1 corso that costs 3.00 Euro.
All day ticket (biglietto Intra Rete): Valid for all routes, all day and the cost is €7.50
Ticket Booklets: The 60-minute and single-trip ticket types above can be bought as singles or as a booklet of 10 tickets (carnet). When you buy the booklet of 10 tickets, you pay the equivalent of 9 trips and get 1 extra included. You can share a booklet of tickets between a group of people if you’re traveling together.
Onboard the bus there is a ticket validation machine that will stamp a date and time on the ticket. You must validate the ticket when you start your journey!
Driving In Italy
Driving in Italy is not for the faint-hearted! We know lots of expats who have moved here and given up driving. Having said that, it’s also a convenient way to get around, so if you want to drive, then here are some things you should know:
- Many of the freeways are toll roads. Most toll machines take credit cards, but always have some cash handy in case of technical issues.
- Italians can drive aggressively and very fast on freeways. Don’t get fooled into thinking that speeding isn’t against the law. There are speed traps and cameras around that you may not see.
- Parking can be tricky! Parking spots are usually painted with blue, yellow or white lines. In La Spezia blue paint represents paid parking, yellow is resident only, white is free! If parking is in a paid zone, then there should be a sign to explain the costs. The EasyPark app is widely used throughout Italy to pay for parking. Otherwise, you can use cash or credit card.
- Many Italian towns have restricted no-entry (ZTL) zones. In La Spezia this is a zone in the southern corner of the city around the Piazza Chiodo that extends up to Piazza Verdi. There are signs on the streets that are affected. Surrounding towns like Lerici and Porto Venere also have ZTL zones. There are hefty fines for entering these areas!
Driving in Italy is something you should plan for to make your trip more enjoyable. We have a blog post about driving in Italy, where to park in La Spezia, using the EasyPark app, and how to avoid getting fines!
Catching Taxis
Outside of the major cities, taxis are less commonly used in Italy. I’ve only caught a taxi a handful of times from the train station and didn’t have any problems. But I’m told that if you have late-night or early-morning travel plans, then book ahead.
There is only one taxi company that I am aware of called Radio Taxi La Spezia. They operate 24/7 365 days a year (Tel: +39 0187523523).
Taxi fares seem a little more expensive than in other countries and travelling by taxi isn’t an economical option for multiple trips. But the taxis do have meters and standard rates are available on their website.
As a guide, here are some typical taxi rates:
- La Spezia Piazza Europa to La Spezia Picco Stadium (3 km / 5 minutes by car) will cost around 12 Euros.
- La Spezia to Riomaggiore (16 km / 25 minutes by car) will cost around 40 Euros.
- La Spezia to Pisa Airport (80 km / 55 minutes by car) will cost around 200 Euros.
Interactive Map of La Spezia Main Tourist Area
Experience La Spezia By Water
Since La Spezia is by the sea, you have the option to travel around by water. The cheapest and most convenient is to use the public ferries (operated by Navigazione Golfo Dei Poeti) that go around the Gulf of La Spezia, Cinque Terre, Viareggio, and the UNESCO islands close to Porto Venere.
A private tour around the harbor and coastline is also quite special but can be expensive. Or look for a group tour like the popular La Spezia Hop Hop Boat Tour which includes sites of the area and a chance to cool off with a swim in one of the Gulf's hidden coves.
Most boats leave from the harbor front promenade (lungomare) or from Porto Mirabello marina.
