viaggiatrice

We will be traveling to Italy with group of 6 or 7. My husband and I and 4 or 5 young people ages 15 - 22. We are hoping to minimize the amount of moving from place to place.

Considering Lucca as one of our bases. I think the kids would also love Cinque Terre.

How difficult would a day trip to Cinque Terre be from Lucca? Too much? Feasible?

For some reason planning this trip is making me want to pull my hair out and I usually love trip planning!. So far I've got - starting in Venice, ending in Rome. Per a couple of suggestions we are also considering the Lakes area.

We have two full weeks on the ground. Not counting the travel to and from days.

Palenque

are you going by car or train - in any case an easy enough day trip - train via Viareggio change then to La Spezia, change to milk train that stops at all 5 Cinque Terre villages - you can buy a hiking trail pass and hike between the five or some - about 7 miles between all - pass includes free train travel between all as well i think.

Not sure kids that age will find much of interest here but they can at least be up to the hike i guess. The best beach is at Monterosso so maybe folks that age would rather hang out there than hike?

Lucca is a great base - Montecatini Terme, next door is one of Europe's primo spa towns - a park-like setting dotted by thermal establishments - Collodi, above Lucca is home of Pinnochio i guess and of course Pisa - by train get off at the Pisa secondary station a short walk from the Leaning Tower - one stop before Pisa Centrale - thinking it may be called San Lorenzo but not sure.

bobthenavigator

Very feasible. With a car, I would go to Portovenere and then take the ferry from there---hop on/off all day.
By train, I would start in Monterosso and still take the ferry from there.

iris1745

Hi; I agree it's very doable by car or train from Lucca. We drove to the first town, Riomaggiore and left the car. Then took the ferry from Riomaggiore to Vernazza with twelve people. That first section was strenuous, with very high 'steps'. Some of the twelve [five] then took the train back to Riomaggiore. For us that finished the walk, it was lovely. My granddaughters at the time were 14 and 18. At one of the towns along the way, they took a dip into the ocean. It was a long day, as we left at 9am and returned to the villa at 8pm. Alberto had our dinner waiting. Great day. Richard http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/cinque_terre and www.cinqueterreonline.com/

zoecat

I have taken the train from Lucca to Riomaggiore, hiked, rode the public boat and explored the villages, returning to Lucca by dinner time. I did catch a very early train from Lucca- it left around 6:15 and required 2 changes, both very easy. I think I arrived in Riomaggiore around 8:30.

The nice thing about the Cinque Terre is that you can fill the day with as much (hiking) or little (hang around the villages, eating, shopping, people watching) as you prefer and still enjoy. With a large group, you can split up depending on interests.

The train station in Lucca is located just outside the city wall, so you can walk there.

>>How difficult would a day trip to Cinque Terre be from Lucca? Too much? Feasible?<<

I felt the trip was easy and very enjoyable. You and the kids will love it!

cruiseluv

I did it by train and was also back in Lucca by dinner time. However, I remember only having to change trains once?? This was in 2006, I wonder if there were better train connections then? In any event, even with teh two train changes , it seems to be a little over 1.5 hr. I would do it.

Palenque

there is the odd IC train from Viareggio that may go thru to Monterosso and or Riomaggiore but most connections involve an easy change at La Spezia Centrale to the 2-3/hr local trains that shuttle between La Spezia and all 5 Cinque Terre villages.

michele_d

Hi there,
We were just in the CT and loved it. From there we went to Lucca for the day and then on to San Gim. Renting bikes in Lucca and riding along the wall was great fun, very easy. They give you a lock so you can get on and off the wall where you want and then continue on your way. I think it is 2 1/2 miles around, took us just under an hour at a leisurely pace.

Regarding the CT: please read my recent post regarding the train rules. It would be horrible for you to misunderstand the passes and tickets and get a huge fine like we saw many people get. If you know the rules, you can relax and enjoy your day.

Taking the boat was also a way to get a great view in the CT. It only runs in calm weather. I think it was like 5 euro pp.

Have a great time,
Michele