How to take a day trip to Cinque Terre from Florence by train and ferry, best towns to see and practical considerations to help you plan your day at best.
Taking a day trip to Cinque Terre from a home base in Florence is a popular options for visitors on a tight schedule and, in some cases, the only way add to your itinerary a glimpse of the famous colorful cliffhanging villages of Instagram fame.
I adore Cinque Terre and I understand the desire to add it in pretty much no matter what.
The area truly is adorable and you won’t find it anywhere else, so if it is a dream to see it, you do what you have to do to get to it!
However, I feel it is important to know this: tour operators and fast tourism have normalized the idea of a day trip from Florence to Cinque Terre as a way to enjoy this area, but the two places are not a natural day trip from one another and a quick hop here from Florence is not the best way to experience Cinque Terre.
The towns are far from Florence, the connection is not even direct and since there are five of them, a day trip here is a whirlwind at most.
Such a day trip is very much a: ‘if you must’ scenario.
However, I know we all work around the time we have and we don’t always have control over how long we can stay away from so today I decided to go about this guide in two ways.
I tell you exactly how to plan you day (because I want you to have the best time!) and I share my thoughts about how to go about it better.
I hope my intention with this doesn’t come across as discouraging: I am absolutely not telling you it cannot be done (it can) and I do not want to rain on your parade if you are excited about it!
I just feel it is honest of me to share a couple of thoughts, so you can make an informed decision.
Because this is what I genuinely want for you: having an amazing time that makes you fall in love with this area and feel how unique, beautiful and significant it is!
In this article, you have both: how to do it and why not to do it!
I hope you enjoy it and it help you get the most of this beautiful area!
Day trip to Cinque Terre from Florence to make the most of your time: exact itienerary
The best way to take a day trip from Florence to Cinque Terre is do it without an organized tour and by train / ferry.
This approach allows you to be casual, have moments of relaxation and spontaneous exploration while still allowing you to see the best places in the area.
The schedule in this post is correct according to ferry and train schedule at the time of travel.
| Please note: if you want to fit in a hike, boat trip or a pesto class, you can: however, in that case I recommend to make that the focus of your day, adding an extra town as a quick stop at most. |
Early Morning (between 7am and 8am)
Take the early morning train from Florence to La Spezia. Once at La Spezia station, look at the sings to find the platform for the train to Manarola (in most cases it is just the one in front but even it isn’t, this change is very easy)
Mid Morning Manarola
The train arrives in Manarola between 10.30a and 11.30 depending on which one you take and leaves you right in the town: from the station, you can easily stroll and take in this pretty town, wandering at leisure.
The station is at the top of the town so you will find yourself wandering downhill towards the dock. Once on the shoreline, I recommend you go up to your right and follow the path and signs so Nessun Dorma.
This very short walk will lead you to a stunning view points (and kids’ playground), form where you can enjoy the landscape and capture a photo with the iconic Manarola skyline.
Manarola is small and full of cafes for a coffee and a snack should you want a short stop.
12.30 or so Ferry to Vernazza (at present, ferry is at 12.45)
You are likely to be happy to move onto the next town after about 1 -1.5hours in Manarola and the second town I recommend you visit is Vernazza.
My favorite way to get to Vernazza is by ferry, for several reasons.
First of all, it allows you to get an appreciation of the actual position of these towns and what marvels they truly are.
The dock in Manarola is right at the cliffs: it is scenic and also a great place to get a sense of the challenges the terrain here posed to anyone who lived and developed agriculture here.
The second reason is that it allows you to see the pretty Vernazza port from the water, a lovely vantage point and a great photo opp!
Vernazza is tiny and you do not need a long time to visit; however, it is very scenic and I strongly recommend you walk up to the start of both hiking trails at the top of the town, so you can get stunning views.
Since you will get here at about 12.30, you will likely want to have some lunch!
Depending on your style, you can have delicious and cheap focaccia and fried seafood for any of the many places in the town or you may want to book at one of the more known restaurants.
Places you may enjoy are Il Pirata (both breakfast and lunch, including American breakfast), Il Gattaccio (seafood), Pippo, Lunchbox (also has vegan and gluten free options).
Please to take into account the ferry schedule and plan around the time you have before committing to a full sit down meal so you don’t have to rush. Casual lunch places do not require and, in most cases, do not accept reservations.
2.30 pm or so (ferry is at 2.40pm at present)
After lunch, get the ferry again (or the train) and reach Monterosso.
The town of Monterosso is flatter than the others and, at first, glance, it may seem less scenic.
However, it is very pretty to visit, especially in the old part, and it has a scenic beach that is perfect if you want to get into the water or even just take pretty photos.
I recommend your stroll to the viewpoint above the beach (left and up from the port, it’s a short walk) and then wander and relax in the old town close to the port for the best experience.
4.30 pm Ferry to Riomaggiore
Towards 4.30pm you can get the last ferry to Riomaggiore and I recommend you do, as this allows to quickly see one more town, albeit briefly, and catch some lovely photos.
The ferry from Monterosso passes in front of all the towns so if you want to get additional photos from the water, this is a good chance.
Once you arrive in Riomaggiore, you will find yourself right in the most scenic corner to the town: the port.
All the photos of Riomaggiore are taken here and you can get lovely views from both sides of the port.
From there, a short walk will get you to the station from where you an catch the train back to La spezia and then Florence, chatching one of the trains in the late afternoon (currently between 5.50 and 6.30 pm) to arrive back in Florence between 8.30 and 9pm.
Shorter day trip options
If this day trip is too long for you and you prefer to get back to Florence earlier, you can swap the ferry with the train: between the two means of transport, you have plenty of choices to make your way back at any stage suits you best.
Why I don’t recommend a day trip to Cinque Terre from Florence – and recommend to stay the night instead
The itinerary above makes for a lovely day, so much so that I almost feel bad recommending it not to do it, but there is a reason why I want to add this paragraph to this guide (and also why, as you can see, I am NOT trying to sell you expensive tours to the area).
I recommend against seeing Cinque Terre as a quick day trip on a few accounts: distance, enjoyment, significance
Distance is easy to explain: Florence and Cinque Terre are about 3 hour by train one from the other, so you are looking at 6 hours on the train in one day. A very long day out!
Now, I appreciate many of you come from places where distances are immense and you are not shy of long travel days – my American and Australian friends, I see you!
But please do not underestimate what 6 hours on a train do to you in a context of being on the go for days and walking most of the time in between: it is very tiring!
Enjoyment: Cinque Terre are not a place with much to do at all, the experience here is all about being.
Being on the beach, in the water, at an outdoor table dunking focaccia in your cappuccino (yes, it’s a thing!).
Like all experiences, this takes a while so a whirlwind stay is likely to look good on photos but often falls short of giving you the feel you traveled all this way for.
Significance: Cinque Terre is a Unesco listed area, selected as a unique cultural landscape due to the peculiarity of its geography and human settlements.
To truly appreciate what this place is, you need to have the time to see its agricultural terraces, experience its waters, feel its identity or the whole place may juts feel like a pretty photo backdrop at best (at worst, it’s potentially pretty photo backdrop ruined by overtourism)
Thankfully, overcoming all of this is relatively easy as all it takes to stay here (or nearby) even just one night.
If you can have a night in the area,
- you will see the towns at their prettiest, in the early morning and sunset, when crowds go
- you will have a chance to visit a vineyard and understand the deep connection between the geography of this area, its people and production and hear stories of families who still live here and are proud keepers of this area
- you will be able (in the good season) to jump in the water, as important to this area as its rocky cliffs.
- You will be a more sustainable type of tourist and will give a chance at preserving this stunning area
Most of all you’ll be able to truly experience this place and give it a chance to claim a little piece of your heart, which is what a successful trip is all about!
