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A practical guide to choosing the right La Spezia shore excursion, based on real logistics, years of experience, and the kind of day you actually want to have - By Andrea Barsotti, Founder of Kiss from Italy
Every week, some version of this message lands in my inbox. A couple or a family is arriving by cruise ship into La Spezia. They haven't looked at a map. But they already know what they want: Pisa and Cinque Terre. And so they want to know: can we do both in one day?
It's a fair question. On paper, it looks doable. In practice, the answer depends on two things, and most travel blogs will only tell you about one of them.
First, how many hours is your ship actually in port? The math matters, and I'll give it to you straight.
Second, and more important, what kind of day do you actually want?
Because if the goal is to cover ground, to say you stood in front of the Leaning Tower and walked through a Cinque Terre village, then yes, with the right logistics and enough port time, you can do both. But if what you want is to actually enjoy your day, to slow down enough for a place to get under your skin, then the answer is different, regardless of how many hours your ship stays.
I've been running private tours out of La Spezia for years. I've seen both kinds of traveler. This article is my honest recommendation for each of them.
La Spezia's Location: Why You're Closer to Cinque Terre Than You Think
La Spezia sits at the eastern edge of Liguria, tucked into the Gulf of Poets between the Apennines and the sea. It's not a glamorous city, it's a working port town with a naval base and some history, but its position on the map is almost unfairly convenient.
Cinque Terre begins at your doorstep. Riomaggiore, the southernmost of the five villages, is less than 20 minutes by car from the cruise terminal. By train from La Spezia Centrale, you're there in under ten minutes. The other villages stretch northward along the coast: Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, Monterosso — the farthest, Monterosso, is about 25 minutes by rail. For anyone arriving at La Spezia by ship, Cinque Terre is as close as it gets without the ship docking inside one of the villages.
Pisa is a different story. It sits about 75 kilometers south, across the regional border into Tuscany. By car or private transfer, you're looking at roughly an hour each way — closer to an hour and fifteen if traffic cooperates less than expected. By train from La Spezia Centrale, it's around 55 minutes on a direct service. Not far, but not around the corner either.
If you're still deciding whether Cinque Terre is right for you, we've also written a comprehensive guide covering the five villages, how to get around, hiking trails, boat tours, and practical tips for planning your visit. See our Cinque Terre Travel Guide: What to See, How to Get Around, and the Best Things to Do.
How Many Hours Do You Need to see both Cinque Terre and Pisa? The La Spezia Port Time Reality
Cruise ships at La Spezia dock at Molo Garibaldi or Molo Varicella. The port is a working cargo facility, which means passengers can't simply walk off the ship and out onto the street, instead you board a free shuttle to the cruise terminal building, then walk or taxi into town from there. Budget 20 to 30 minutes from gangway to freedom, more if your ship has a long disembarkation queue.
Then there's the return buffer. Most experienced cruise travelers know you need to be back on the ship at least 45 minutes before departure. Many cruise lines push for an hour. The ship will not wait. So whatever your port time is, subtract at least an hour from the end before you start calculating what's possible. If you want to be safe, and take into account possible train delays, road congestions and whatnot, better consider two hours before departure.
Here's what that means in practice:
Under 10 hours in port: Pick one destination. With disembarkation and return buffer eating the ends of your day, you have roughly seven to eight hours of usable time. Cinque Terre or Pisa — both work, neither should be rushed. Trying to do both usually means doing neither particularly well.
10 to 14 hours in port: Technically possible to do both. You will be moving quickly, will be more functional than leisurely,, and at least one of the two places will feel like you passed through rather than visited. Some people genuinely don't mind this. Others will feel, somewhere around the return drive, that they didn't quite get what they came for.
14 or more hours in port: Now you have enough time to enjoy both places rather than simply check them off.
With a private driver, a well-sequenced itinerary, and an honest commitment to the schedule, you can do both without punishing yourself or your family. This is where I genuinely start recommending the combination instead of merely saying it's possible.
Most Mediterranean cruise itineraries allocate eight to ten hours at La Spezia. So most of the time, you're choosing one.
Cinque Terre vs Pisa vs Tuscany: What Each Place Actually Gives You
This is where logistics stop being the point.
Cinque Terre is not a sightseeing destination in the conventional sense. There is no single monument, no one thing to stand in front of and photograph. The five villages — Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, Monterosso — are strung across 18 kilometers of vertical coastline, and each one is genuinely, almost absurdly pretty: colored houses stacked up cliff faces above small fishing harbors, narrow caruggi opening suddenly onto sea views, boats pulled up on stone ramps below vineyards that shouldn't exist at that angle. Every corner is a photograph. The light in the morning, the light in the late afternoon, they’re just so beautiful.
But the point isn't just the pictures. It's the pace. You swim off the rocks in water that's clear enough to feel like a reward. You sit down for lunch in a sea-view restaurant and order the anchovies and the local white wine and you do not rush it, because nothing about the view in front of you suggests you should. You walk from the harbor up into the village and find a gelateria and eat it standing up looking at the sea. These are not complicated pleasures. They are, however, the kind that require time, and that evaporate entirely if you're watching the clock.
Three of four hours in Cinque Terre will give you photographs. Six or seven will give you a day worth remembering.
Pisa is structurally the opposite. It is a place built around a single, extraordinarily powerful image: the Piazza dei Miracoli, with the Cathedral, the Baptistery, and the Tower arranged on an improbably green lawn. The Leaning Tower is one of those rare monuments that actually delivers on its reputation: the lean is more vertiginous in person than in photographs, and the ensemble of Romanesque buildings around it is genuinely magnificent. You can climb the Tower (book in advance, timed entry, slots fill up), walk the Piazza thoroughly, and feel like you've done Pisa justice in about two hours.
Then most visitors get back in the car. This is the part that's slightly wasteful, because Pisa beyond the Piazza is worth knowing. The city straddles the Arno, has a proper historic centro with palaces and piazzas, and contains more than twenty other medieval churches that almost nobody visits because they're still staring at the Tower. That said, if time is short, the tower is the tower, and you won't feel cheated.
Florence is, of course, another natural pairing with Pisa, and many cruise passengers choose to dedicate their day to those two iconic Tuscan cities. It makes for a rewarding excursion, particularly if it's your first visit to Tuscany and seeing Florence has long been on your wish list. The journey is longer than to Lucca, however, and the day naturally becomes more focused on ticking off two major highlights rather than enjoying a slower pace.
If you're planning a Tuscany day rather than visiting Cinque Terre, Pisa can be paired with several wonderful destinations. Florence is the classic choice and certainly deserves its reputation. Personally, though, if you've already visited Florence, or simply prefer a quieter, more relaxed day, I often recommend Lucca.
Lucca it's 25 minutes from Pisa by car, and it's a city that looks like someone designed medieval Italy the way it should look and then forgot to let time ruin it. The entire old city sits inside a ring of Renaissance walls, four kilometers, wide enough to drive a cart on top, and the city center is almost entirely car-free. The Piazza dell'Anfiteatro, built on the footprint of a Roman amphitheater, is one of the most elegant public spaces in Italy and is never as overcrowded as its counterparts in Florence or Siena. Lunch in Lucca, on a terrace overlooking the piazza, is one of those experiences that sounds simple and turns out to be the thing you talk about when you get home.
If you've been to Florence already, Pisa and Lucca together, from La Spezia, make a natural and genuinely satisfying Tuscany day, provided you have enough port time to do it without spending most of the day in the car.
My Recommendation: Do Cinque Terre First, Save Pisa for Next Time
If you're on a cruise and you have one day at La Spezia: do Cinque Terre. Leave Pisa and Tuscany for next time.
Here's why.
Cinque Terre is here. It's specific to this coastline, to this particular corner of Liguria, to this stretch of cliffs and fishing villages and vertical vineyards above the sea. You cannot approximate it from any other cruise port. When your ship is anchored two kilometers away from it, the answer to what you should do with your day seems fairly obvious to me.
Pisa is surprisingly easy to include on a future trip to Tuscany. It pairs naturally with Florence, Lucca, Siena, San Gimignano, Volterra, the vineyards of Bolgheri, and many other destinations that deserve more than a hurried visit. You can see Pisa next time. The Tower will still be leaning. Because at the end of the day, the best tour from La Spezia depends far more on what you enjoy than on what happens to be famous.
There's a type of traveler — and I mean this with genuine respect — for whom the goal of a port day is to accumulate experiences efficiently. To maximize coverage. To come home having seen the most possible things. If that's you, I understand it, and if you have 14 hours in port, I'll help you do both and I'll make it work.
But if you're asking me what I'd tell a friend standing at the cruise terminal with a single day in front of them: I'd tell them to point themselves north, take the train to Riomaggiore, catch the ferry back along the coast, find somewhere to eat focaccia above the harbor, and stop trying to optimize.
Italy rewards the people who stop trying to optimize.
When a Tuscany Day from La Spezia Makes More Sense Than Cinque Terre
Of course, every recommendation has its exceptions. A few situations where my recommendation above changes:
You've already done Cinque Terre on a previous trip. Then absolutely, a day exploring Tuscany may be the better choice. Whether that means Pisa and Lucca, Florence and Pisa, Siena, or another itinerary depends on your interests and the time available.
You have mobility limitations. Cinque Terre is built on cliffs. The villages involve stairs, cobblestones, and steep paths. It is manageable for most people, you don't need to hike the trails, but it requires honest self-assessment. Pisa, by contrast, is flat and compact. The Piazza dei Miracoli involves no significant climbing. For travelers who need to be thoughtful about terrain, the Tuscany day is often the better fit.
Your ship is in port 14 hours or more. With an early start, a private car, and a sensible sequence, Pisa in the morning and three Cinque Terre villages in the afternoon, it's possible to come home feeling like you actually saw both. This is the version I'd help you plan.
Private Tours from La Spezia Cruise Terminal: How Kiss from Italy Does It
Kiss from Italy runs both tours with private pickup directly from the La Spezia cruise terminal: no shared buses, no fixed group schedules, no counting heads before departure.
For the Cinque Terre day, we get to the villages by train, it's genuinely the right tool for this particular job, and trying to do it by car makes no sense given that the villages are car-free and there isn’t a road that connects them. The way we do it is plan the sequence carefully: which villages, in which order, and when to switch from train to the public ferry between villages. Arriving at Manarola or Vernazza by boat, watching the village come into view from the water with the cliffs rising behind it, is one of those moments that earns the whole day.
Every Tuscany itinerary requires a slightly different approach. A day combining Florence and Pisa is planned differently from one featuring Lucca, Siena, San Gimignano, or the Bolgheri wine region. Rather than following a fixed schedule, we sequence each itinerary to reduce time spent in traffic, avoid the busiest moments whenever possible, and create a day that feels relaxed rather than rushed.
If you're not sure which day makes sense for your trip, tell us your port time window and we'll tell you exactly what's realistic. We'll tell you honestly what we'd recommend, even if that isn't the itinerary you originally had in mind.
If you're still exploring your options, you may also enjoy our complete guide to the best private shore excursions from La Spezia, where we compare the region's most rewarding destinations—from Cinque Terre and Tuscany to Portofino, wine country, and beyond.
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Frequently Asked Questions: Pisa and Cinque Terre from La Spezia
How far is Cinque Terre from La Spezia cruise port?
Very close. By train from La Spezia Centrale, you can reach Riomaggiore — the nearest village — in under ten minutes. The furthest village, Monterosso, is about 25 minutes away by rail. The train station is roughly a 20–25 minute walk from the cruise terminal or a short taxi ride. Of all the shore excursion options from La Spezia, Cinque Terre requires the least transit time.
How far is Pisa from La Spezia cruise port?
Pisa is about 75 kilometers (47 miles) south of La Spezia, across the border into Tuscany. By private car or transfer, allow roughly one hour each way. By train from La Spezia Centrale, there are direct services that take around 55 minutes. Visiting Pisa means spending over two hours of your day in transit alone, something worth considering when planning your shore excursion.
Can I do Cinque Terre and Pisa in the same day from La Spezia?
Technically, yes — if your ship is in port for around 14 hours or more. With a well-planned private itinerary and an early start, you can visit Cinque Terre and Pisa without missing your ship. But if your port time is shorter, I generally recommend choosing one. Trying to do both usually means spending too much of the day in transit and not giving either destination the time it deserves.
What is the minimum port time needed to visit Cinque Terre from La Spezia?
If your goal is simply to see one or two villages, you can do it with about 3 to 4 hours in Cinque Terre itself, although the pace will be quite rushed and leave little time to relax or enjoy a meal.
A much better experience is to spend around 6 hours exploring the area. This allows you to comfortably visit three villages, enjoy lunch, and soak up the atmosphere. Outside the busiest days, it is often possible to visit four villages in about six hours without feeling rushed.
Keep in mind that these timings refer only to the time spent in Cinque Terre. You'll also need to allow for disembarkation, the transfer from the cruise terminal to La Spezia station, and a comfortable safety margin for returning to your ship. As a general rule, add 2 to 3 hours to your planned visit to account for these logistics. This means that a truly enjoyable Cinque Terre shore excursion is best suited to cruise calls of 8 to 10 hours or more.
Can I visit all five Cinque Terre villages in one day?
Technically, yes. In practice, I rarely recommend it. The main reason is Corniglia, the only village that isn't directly on the sea. Its train station is at the bottom of the hill, while the village itself sits high above the coastline. Reaching it means climbing a long staircase or waiting for the shuttle bus, so visiting Corniglia adds a disproportionate amount of time compared to the other villages.
Corniglia is charming, authentic, and generally less crowded, so it's certainly worth visiting if you have plenty of time. But if your day is limited, as it usually is on a cruise, I think you'll have a much more enjoyable experience exploring three or four villages at a relaxed pace, with time to wander, enjoy lunch, and simply soak up the atmosphere, rather than trying to squeeze in all five.
Is it better to do Cinque Terre by train or by car from La Spezia?
Train, almost without exception. The Cinque Terre villages are essentially car-free, with very limited vehicle access and no practical road connecting the villages themselves. The regional train is the fastest and most efficient way to travel between them. Depending on the season and sea conditions, I often recommend combining the train with the public ferry, which offers spectacular views of the villages from the water.
Which Cinque Terre villages are the most beautiful?
Each village has its own character. Vernazza is often considered the most picturesque, Manarola is famous for its dramatic cliffside setting, Riomaggiore offers one of the most iconic harbors, Corniglia is the least crowded, while Monterosso has the largest beaches and is ideal for swimming. There isn't a single "best" village, the ideal itinerary depends on your interests, the season, and how much time you have available.
Do I need to book the Leaning Tower of Pisa in advance?
Yes. Climbing the Leaning Tower requires a timed-entry ticket, and popular time slots — particularly during the cruise season and summer months — often sell out days or even weeks in advance. Minimum age to climb is 8 years old . If climbing the Tower is important to you, I strongly recommend booking before you travel. The rest of Piazza dei Miracoli can generally be visited without advance reservations, although queues can form during busy periods.
Is Cinque Terre suitable for visitors with mobility limitations?
It depends on your mobility and on which villages you plan to visit. Cinque Terre is built on steep terrain, and uneven cobblestones, staircases, and hills are part of the experience. You don't need to hike between the villages, and many visitors with moderate mobility enjoy the area without difficulty, but it does require an honest assessment of your comfort level. For travelers with significant mobility concerns, Pisa is generally the easier choice, thanks to its flat and compact layout.
What is the best time of year to visit Cinque Terre from a cruise?
May, early June, and September offer the best balance of pleasant weather, open walking trails, and lighter crowds. July and August are beautiful but can become extremely busy, especially on the regional trains. If your cruise visits during peak summer, an early start and a carefully planned itinerary make a significant difference.
Besides Pisa, what other day trips can I take from La Spezia?
Pisa is only one of many possibilities. Depending on your interests, La Spezia is an excellent gateway to both Liguria and Tuscany. You might spend the day exploring the medieval streets of Lucca, San Gimignano, Volterra, or Siena, enjoy a private wine tasting among the prestigious vineyards of Bolgheri, or head north along the Ligurian coast to elegant Santa Margherita Ligure and the iconic harbor of Portofino. The best excursion isn't necessarily the most famous one: it's the one that best matches the kind of day you're hoping to have.
If you'd like a more comprehensive comparison of the many possibilities, including Cinque Terre, Portofino, Tuscany, and wine tours, take a look at our complete guide to the best private shore excursions from La Spezia.
Can Kiss from Italy pick us up directly at the La Spezia cruise terminal?
Yes. We meet our guests directly outside the cruise terminal and take care of all the logistics from there. There are no shared buses, no meeting points to search for, and no groups to wait for. Simply tell us your ship, arrival and departure times, and what you're hoping to experience. If we think your original plan is too ambitious, we'll tell you honestly and suggest an alternative that will make for a much more enjoyable day.