How to get around in the Cinque Terre

The only way to really experience the Cinque Terre and breathe the atmosphere of this corner of the Riviera is to visit all the villages there. Below is some information on the various ways to move around between the villages.

By train in the Cinque Terre

You can get to any of the Cinque Terre villages quickly and easily by train. The stations in the villages are often located right in the center. Corniglia is the only place where the station is located outside the village, so those people wanting to visit this little village will need to take the bus that leaves from the station every 10 minutes. Or you can walk there in about twenty minutes. But since this village is located 100 m above sea level you will have to climb 400 steps.

The trains run non-stop with a break only between one o’clock in the morning and 4.00-5.00 am. During the peak tourist season (in 2022: from March 26 to November 1), because of the large number of visitors to the Cinque Terre, extra runs are added for the "Cinque Terre Express" between La Spezia and Levanto. Thus, trains to the Cinque Terre depart approximately every half hour, and at peak times even more often.

You can view train timetables on the trenitalia.com website. If you check the times more than a month before your arrival in the Cinque Terre, remember that very probably not all trains will be listed on the site!

The ticket costs 5 euro, regardless of the distance traveled within the boundary of the park. It’s free if you purchase the Cinque Terre Card + Train.

Do the Cinque Terre trains run on time?

Unfortunately, due to the large number of tourists, trains sometimes do not comply with the timetables; for this reason it can be very useful to check the timetable with the Trenitalia APP. Important: If the train is late, the platform number may change. So you should always check the information on the board and listen to the announcements.

If you don’t intend to move between the villages by boat, but prefer to use the walking trails and the train a couple of times, consider purchasing the ticket called “Cinque Terre Card + Train”. which will save you some money. In fact, it gives you the possibility to make an unlimited number of trips by train and access the trails for a whole day.

We recommend that you take a printout of the train timetables with you. It is available at the tourist center in the station for free. Or download the Trenitalia APP on your cell phone to check on trains.

How to save (weekly tickets)

Once it was possible to buy the economical weekly ticket, but from summer 2016 the rules have changed and now this ticket is only available for local residents. So it’s best to buy the “Cinque Terre Card + Train”.

By boat in the Cinque Terre

Although not the easiest way to move between villages, the view from the sea is simply fantastic. All the Cinque Terre villages have ports (except Corniglia). You can also reach Portovenere by ferry. The runs start in mid-March and continue until the end of October, but the greater the number of tourists, the greater the number of boats in service. As a result, schedules can change each month. The new schedules are published only a week before they come into effect and are immediately published on our site. You can view the archive of the timetables of past years to understand how often the ferries operate during the month of interest to you.

Current times of departure and arrival for the ferries (from June 15 to September 15, 2022): see the photo. The new schedule will be available on our website about a week before the expiry of the current one.