Bestseller
Florence: Cinque Terre Day Trip with Optional Hiking or Pisa
From 55,00 €
Buy the ticket
The Cinque Terre is one of those places you really ought to visit at least once in your lifetime: five fishing villages — Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso al Mare — clinging to sheer cliffs above the Ligurian Sea, connected by scenic walking routes and designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. The good news is that you can easily visit them as a day trip from several major Italian cities without needing to stay overnight. The bad news is that poor planning means wasting hours on crowded regional trains or finding yourself on the hiking trails at eleven in the morning when the sun is already blazing. This article has everything you need to plan a day excursion to the Cinque Terre from three different starting points: Florence, La Spezia (by boat) and Milan.
Before choosing your starting point, it’s worth establishing some general guidelines that apply regardless. The five villages are connected by the Cinque Terre Express, a regional train run by Trenitalia that from 14 March to 1 November 2026 operates up to 99 services daily on the Levanto–La Spezia route, stopping at all five villages. To move between the villages and access the National Park trails, you’ll need a Cinque Terre Card, available in trekking and train+trekking versions: it’s worth buying it online in advance to avoid queuing at the station. In a single day you can comfortably visit two or three villages without rushing: try not to cram in everything, or you risk not enjoying any of it.
The distance from Florence to the Cinque Terre is around 160 km, which takes between 2 hours 30 minutes and 3 hours by train, with at least one change. The most convenient option is to depart from Firenze Santa Maria Novella and change at La Spezia Centrale, from where the Cinque Terre Express takes you directly to Riomaggiore in 7 minutes — the southernmost village and the first you encounter arriving from the east. Alternatively, you can change at Sarzana. Frecciabianca trains cover the Florence–La Spezia route in about 2 hours. To reach Riomaggiore by 10:00 — the ideal time to start exploring before the villages get busy — you need to leave Florence no later than 7:00-7:30.
If you’d prefer to avoid arranging transport yourself, you can choose one of the numerous day tours departing from Florence. The meeting point is almost always at Santa Maria Novella station, transfer is by coach (faster than train as it’s direct, around 2 hours), and a guide takes the group through two or three villages on a programme that includes train travel between towns and often a short boat trip. Return to Florence is in the evening, usually between 7:00 pm and 9:00 pm. Be prepared: it’s a long day, but it’s doable.
Visiting the Cinque Terre by boat departing from La Spezia is perhaps the most spectacular way to discover the five villages: you see them first from the sea, with colourful houses climbing the rocks and terraced vineyards cascading down to the water, then you stop to explore them on foot. The boat service is run by Navigazione Golfo dei Poeti, operating from late March to early November. Boats depart from La Spezia port and connect Riomaggiore, Manarola, Vernazza and Monterosso — Corniglia has no direct sea access and isn’t included in the service. Daily tickets, which can also be purchased online, allow you to board and disembark from the motorboats an unlimited number of times during the day. The unlimited daily ticket for the Cinque Terre alone costs £42 per adult; the same fare includes the option to visit Portovenere and La Spezia. A 20% discount is available for tickets purchased after 2:00 pm.
For those starting from La Spezia, the most efficient combination for a day trip is: morning boat trip from La Spezia to the Park villages, with your first stop at Riomaggiore or Portovenere (depending on your chosen itinerary); subsequent travel between villages, choosing each time whether to take the boat or train for the next leg; return to La Spezia by boat or train in the late afternoon. Our tip is to depart on the first available boat of the morning — around 9:00-9:30 — to make the most of your time. The voyage through the Golfo dei Poeti offers views of Lerici and Palmaria island that you won’t see by train.
The most convenient option from Milan to the Cinque Terre is the Trenitalia Intercity departing from Milan Centrale and arriving directly at Monterosso al Mare with no changes, in around 3 hours. Monterosso is the largest village and the one with the most extensive sandy beach — Spiaggia di Fegina — and is the ideal starting point for those arriving from the west, as you can then travel eastwards with the Cinque Terre Express. Intercity trains to Monterosso depart from Milan Centrale in the early morning: to arrive by 10:00 am you’ll need to take one of the first available services, generally around 6:00-7:00 am. The last Intercity to return to Milan departs from Monterosso in the late afternoon or early evening: check the updated timetables on Trenitalia.com before you travel.
As an alternative to the direct Intercity, you can reach the Cinque Terre from Milan with a change at Genova Brignole, from where regional trains reach Monterosso in around 1 hour 10 minutes along the coast. This option is useful if the direct Intercity trains are fully booked or if you’d rather leave earlier and make a stop in Genoa en route. A coach option from Milan is also available, with various operators running the route, but the journey times (around 4-5 hours) make it less convenient than the train for a day trip.
Whatever your starting point, some practical advice applies in every case. Avoid July and August weekends: the Cinque Terre villages reach such crowding levels during those periods that it’s hard to enjoy the experience — and Cinque Terre Express tickets are more expensive on peak days (the so-called “C days”). Spring (April-June) and early autumn (September-October) are the ideal periods for a day trip: mild weather, accessible trails and manageable crowds. Bring comfortable shoes with non-slip soles if you plan to walk part of the Sentiero Azzurro: the routes between villages include uphill stretches on stone paving. Water, sunscreen and a light change of clothes complete your essential kit.
For those wanting to extend the experience beyond a single day, our guide on where to stay in Liguria offers a selection of accommodation in the villages and nearby towns such as Levanto, a convenient and less crowded base compared to the five villages. For a complete overview of what to see in the area, also check out our page on the Cinque Terre.
Hotel 
Budget accommodations 
Apartments 
Family Hotel 
Luxury Hotel 
Resorts