Is a Day Trip to Cinque Terre Worth It?
If you’re wondering if a day trip to Cinque Terre is worth it, we’re here to tell you that it surely is! Trust us. 🙂
While we still think that you’ll get a better experience by staying in Cinque Terre overnight and exploring it with more time, we understand that not everyone has the luxury of time. After all, there are so many beautiful places to explore in Italy and Europe.
So, if you only have time to do a day trip to Cinque Terre, do it! It’s worth it! And if you end up loving it, you can easily return someday. 😊
In this guide, we’ll share the best day trip tours to Cinque Terre (with the best itineraries) from nearby cities in Italy, including Florence, Milan, Pisa, La Spezia, and Livorno.
Quick Overview of Cinque Terre Day Trips
If you’re in a hurry, here is a quick overview of the best day trips and links to book.
FROM FLORENCE
- Small Group Cinque Terre & Pisa – reserve your spot here
- Cinque Terre with Street Food – reserve your spot here
- Only Round-trip Transfer – reserve your spot here (select the option of only transport)
FROM LA SPEZIA
- Half-day Cinque Terre Tour by Boat – reserve your spot here
- Full Day Cinque Terre Tour by Boat – reserve your spot here
- Full Day Cinque Terre Tour with Limoncino – reserve your spot here
FROM PISA
- Small Group Cinque Terre Tour – reserve your spot here
FROM MILAN
- Full Day Cinque Terre Tour with Cruise – reserve your spot here
FROM LIVORNO
- Day-trip to Pisa & Manarola in Cinque Terre – reserve your spot here
Italy trip
MUST-HAVE ✔
💳 Save money when changing currencies or taking out cash by bringing a backup travel card. Oh, and in case an ATM swallows your card. Yes, it happened to us. 🤦♂️
🔌 Bring a Universal Travel Adapter with fast-charging capabilities (45W and Power Delivery).
📶 Stay online by getting an eSIM. You can get our favorite eSIM at a 10% discount.
List of Best Day Trips to Cinque Terre
There are endless options for day trips to Cinque Terre, and many follow a pretty much similar itinerary.
In this list, we hand-picked the best day trips with the best ratings (4+) and reviews from other travelers.
On most day trips, you will have some free time in the villages, so read our guide to the best things to do in Cinque Terre for inspiration. 😊
Good to know: These day trips are pretty popular, so if you’re sure of your travel plans, reserve your spot in advance. There’s usually a free cancellation option in case you change your mind.
From Florence
Depending on what you want, you can choose to visit more Cinque Terre villages or combine a visit with Pisa for the famous Leaning Tower of Pisa.
Alternatively, you can choose a tour that visits only a few of the Cinque Terre villages (meaning more time in each), or visits almost all of them (but less time for each).
Depending on your personal preferences, you can choose the itinerary that best suits your travel style.
Cinque Terre & Pisa Small Group
⭐️ Rating: 4.9/5
⏰ Duration: 12 hours
📍 Places visited: Manarola, Vernazza, Riomaggiore & Pisa
✅ Includes: ferry ride & train tickets in Cinque Terre
📝 Notes: Small group with only 8 participants!
Cinque Terre with Street Food or Only Round-trip Transfer
⭐️ Rating: 4.5/5
⏰ Duration: 13 hours
📍 Places visited: all villages except Corniglia (but has an option of transfer only, where you can explore all places on your own)
✅ Includes: ferry ride & train tickets in Cinque Terre
📝 Notes:
- You can choose only the round-trip transport to Cinque Terre & then explore on your own, or choose a guided tour through the villages with a ferry ride included. There’s also an option of street food as an add-on.
- The tour is also available in more languages.
Our favorite Italy eSIM
Fast Speed and Reliable Signal
Ever since we got phones that support eSIMs, we have been hooked and never looked back. 📶
We always get the best value-for-money eSIM we can, based on reliable signal, fast internet speeds, and coverage across the country. 🌐
Now that eSIM plan prices are more than reasonable compared to regular phone plans (which are more of a hassle to get), we really see no reason not to get one for each trip.
From La Spezia
La Spezia is very close to the Cinque Terre villages, so it offers a bit more day-trip options. You can choose a half-day or full-day tour, depending on the time you have.
It’s generally easy to explore Cinque Terre from La Spezia on your own, but if you want a guided tour for the experience (like a boat tour) or to learn more, these are your best choices.
Half-day Cinque Terre Tour by Boat
⭐️ Rating: 4.8/5
⏰ Duration: 4 hours
📍 Places visited: scenic views of all 5 Cinque Terre villages + Porto Venere, free time in Monterosso
✅ Includes: round-trip transport by boat + captain/guide
📝 Notes:
- Private or small-group tours available
- This tour is by boat only
Full Day Cinque Terre Tour by Boat
⭐️ Rating: 4.4/5
⏰ Duration: 8 hours
📍 Places visited: Riomaggiore OR Porto Venere (you choose), Monterosso, and Vernazza
✅ Includes: return ferry tickets + guide
Planning an active trip?
Don't risk it without travel insurance
We never travel outside our home countries before getting travel insurance. And sure, we don’t count on anything happening. But it can when you least expect it! 🤕
For example, Arijana twisted her ankle just because she took a wrong step when going down completely normal stairs. 🤦♀️
In those situations (and hopefully nothing worse), travel insurance comes in handy so you don’t have to pay the medical costs.
Plus, since it costs about 3 USD/EUR per day, it’s not a crazy expense, and definitely not something to ignore. 😷
Full Day Cinque Terre Tour with Limoncino
⭐️ Rating: 4.4/5
⏰ Duration: 8 hours
📍 Places visited: Vernazza, Monterosso and Riomaggiore
✅ Includes: train tickets, guide, limoncino
📝 Notes: Tour available in English or Spanish
From Pisa
Small Group Cinque Terre Tour
⭐️ Rating: 4.7/5
⏰ Duration: 9 hours
📍 Places visited: Riomaggiore or Manarola to catch a ferryboat (weather permitting) to Vernazza, and Monterosso
✅ Includes: ferry ride & train tickets in Cinque Terre, multilingual guide
📝 Notes: You can choose a private or small shared group tour.
From Milan
Full Day Cinque Terre Tour with Cruise
⭐️ Rating: 4.3/5
⏰ Duration: 13 hours
📍 Places visited: Monterosso, Manarola, boat cruise from La Spezia
✅ Includes: boat trip & train tickets in Cinque Terre
📝 Notes: Tour available in English and Spanish
From Livorno
Day-trip to Pisa & Manarola in Cinque Terre
⭐️ Rating: 4.3/5
⏰ Duration: 8 hours
📍 Places visited: Manarola and Pisa
✅ Includes: tour guide, map of Pisa
📝 Notes: Perfect for passengers on cruise ships as it has a guaranteed return on time.
Tips before booking a day trip to Cinque Terre
- Be prepared for a long day. Most of these tours last the whole day, since the travel time to Cinque Terre is about 2 hours each way (depending on your departure city, of course).
- Read tour descriptions to see what’s included. For most tours, main things like ferry or boat trip and train tickets are usually included, but it’s good to double-check.
- Some of the tours include boat or ferry rides. It’s good to know that these are weather-dependent. So, if there’s bad weather, you might not have this experience.
- Carry some cash in euros for any expenses on the trip and coins for toilets. Some places accept cards, but not all. We also recommend getting a Wise card for travelling abroad. It has low conversion fees, and it’s a great backup card (once, our card got “swallowed” by an ATM, so it was great that we had a backup).
- We recommend installing an eSIM, so you can easily be in touch with your guide if needed. This is our favorite (tested) eSIM for Italy, and you get a 10% discount through this link. 😊
- Cinque Terre day trips are pretty popular. Book your tour in advance to secure your spot. Most of these tours also have free cancellation, so you can easily cancel up to a day before if your plans change.
- If you can, choose a small group tour. You’ll have a much better experience than in big tour groups.
- However, big group tours (like this one) are usually cheaper.
- If your budget allows it, book a private tour. This is great for families or bigger groups. You’ll have a nicer experience and a tour guide just for yourself.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, a private day trip to Cinque Terre is worth it. You’ll have a better experience with a tour guide just for you, without having to wait for other travelers or similar. However, they do come at a higher price. But, if you’re a family or a bigger group, it might not be that big a price difference from a group tour in total. Check this private tour with great reviews.
Most day trips to Cinque Terre run year-round (except the ones entirely operated by boat). The best time for a visit is anytime, but for the best weather, try to avoid the winter months. And if you have a problem with heat, avoid the peak summer months (July and August).
If you visit during the winter months or fall and spring, you can also expect more manageable crowds than in peak summer.
Italy Packing List
Without these things, we could not travel (comfortably or effectively)…
🔌 Universal Travel Adapter with fast-charging capabilities (45W and Power Delivery) – essentially covers us for the whole world.
⚡ We never travel without our 10.000 mAh powerbank, which is perfect for charging our phones multiple times.
💦 Filling up an insulated water bottle for days out exploring is a must.
☀🧴 We always buy a reef-safe sunscreen that applies well.
🤳 Forget selfies, having a phone tripod is the new game (easy to pack, carry around & set up).
🌦 After getting a travel-friendly raincoat (poncho), we never have to worry about staying dry.
🦟 Preventing bites with a DEET-free (picaridin) mosquito repellent is a great idea if you don’t want to cover yourself in poison.
🛄 We pack our stuff smarter with affordable packing cubes.
😎 We are active travelers, so sunglasses don’t survive long. So we bought these cheap polarized sunglasses that are travel-friendly and feel good to wear.
🔊 Countless times, we had trouble with noisy neighbors, loud streets, incredibly loud AC, rattling refrigerators, and more that kept us awake at night. Then, we finally bought some cheap earplugs – done!
📱💔 Slippery phone = broken phone. Get a phone case.
🎒 We love a good belt/crossbody bag, so we don’t always have to carry a backpack (fits our phone, wallet, tissues, candy, etc.).
📸 To capture some cooler photos and videos, a drone is a must (if used wisely). And for active stuff, our action camera – it’s so small and easy to use.
Final Thoughts
If you have limited time and still want to experience the charm of Cinque Terre, joining a day trip is the best option.
As long as you set your expectations and keep in mind that Cinque Terre is very busy (especially during the day and in peak season) and travel times there can be long, you can still have a great time!
The towns are really special and picturesque and worth a visit! 😊 Just don’t forget, reserve your spot in time!
Hopefully, this guide with the best day trips to Cinque Terre has helped you plan your trip. 🥰 If you have any questions or updates, feel free to leave a comment below and help fellow travelers.
Continue your Cinque Terre trip planning
Must-read
Hiking
Where to stay
How to visit
