One Day in Portofino
Jun 6th, 2007, 12:48 PM
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One Day in Portofino
Our cruise ship will be in Portofino for one day next October. Is it difficult to get to the train I've heard about which goes to all of Cinque Terra? I have great difficulty walking distances or hills so the train is my only hope of seeing the villages. Thanks.
Jun 6th, 2007, 05:47 PM
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Hi Hawk,
There are boats that go between Portofino, Santa Margherita Ligure and the Cinque Terre villages. The service in Oct might be less than during peak summer months though.
We visited in May and took the boat from SML to Portofino, so you can do the reverse. The train station is not too far from the marina, but there are some stairs to go up. Not too many.
Once you know the boat schedule, you might want to train one direction and boat the reverse.
It's beautiful, buon viaggio!
There are boats that go between Portofino, Santa Margherita Ligure and the Cinque Terre villages. The service in Oct might be less than during peak summer months though.
We visited in May and took the boat from SML to Portofino, so you can do the reverse. The train station is not too far from the marina, but there are some stairs to go up. Not too many.
Once you know the boat schedule, you might want to train one direction and boat the reverse.
It's beautiful, buon viaggio!
Jun 6th, 2007, 06:00 PM
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If your ship is docking in Portofino (versus really being SML), getting to the train station in SML could be a pain for you (boat or bus to SML and then an uphill hike to the station). Then once you get to CT, there is a fair amount of walking. It's not a big deal if walking isn't an issue. If it turns out to be too much walking for you, it could turn a great day horrible really fast.
I love Portofino, so I would just stay there or do an excursion through the ship if you really need to do something else. If you haven't already, you should check out Cruise Critic as it is a great resource for cruise ships, ports, etc.
I love Portofino, so I would just stay there or do an excursion through the ship if you really need to do something else. If you haven't already, you should check out Cruise Critic as it is a great resource for cruise ships, ports, etc.
Jun 8th, 2007, 02:56 AM
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Thank you both so much Doyle and Golfergal! I'm getting a much clearer picture (I think) of what's "on the ground" when we get there. I wonder if you can tell me just how big a hike it is "up the hill" to the train station (from the marina) in SML? Is it a flight of stairs like in someone's home or 1/4 mile? 1/2 mile uphill but with something here and there to rest on?
I'm going to go to Cruise Critic next. You're right, I've been a member there for years and they're very helpful but I usually get great information here first!
>
I'm going to go to Cruise Critic next. You're right, I've been a member there for years and they're very helpful but I usually get great information here first!
>
Jun 8th, 2007, 06:04 AM
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I just visited Portofino last week from the CT. First off, I think any hope of catching a boat from Portofino to the CT will be dim. Last week, June, the boats were only running this route on Sundays. We took a taxi from the train station at SML to Portofino for 30E. It took about 15 minutes or so. On the return we boated from Portofino to SML and then walked uphill to the train station from the marina. I did not see stairs, we just followed the road. I would call it about 1/2 mile uphill. If you have "great difficulty walking" I would just get a taxi from Portofino to the SML train station. Make sure you get the train times first so you aren't waiting around forever for a train. Although in Italy they may be way off schedule anyway . . .
Jun 8th, 2007, 06:10 AM
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It's been a long time since I was there, but we took a bus from SML to the train station as we had luggage. Otherwise, there are a lot of stairs to the train. Here is my trip report and photos:
www.travelswithdiane.homestead.com/italy6.html
www.travelswithdiane.homestead.com/italy6.html
Jun 8th, 2007, 09:51 AM
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You could probably take a taxi from the SML ferry dock to the train station. Again to really see CT, there is a lot of walking.
While I don't usually suggest a ship's tour, this might be one to consider. At least they would coordinate all the travel. Plus you would be safe of any transportation issues getting back from CT on your own. When we went there was a fire near the tracks and we sat on the train for hours. Usual, of course, but it would have been disaster if we had been on a cruise.
One year we spent several days in SML and visited Portofino. The next year we took a Windstar cruise that stopped in Portofino. We were very excited just to go back to Portofino for the day. We slowly walked around, had an amazing lunch at Hotel Splendido, and sat in a couple cafes. It was a welcome break from the more packed touring days of the cruise .
While I don't usually suggest a ship's tour, this might be one to consider. At least they would coordinate all the travel. Plus you would be safe of any transportation issues getting back from CT on your own. When we went there was a fire near the tracks and we sat on the train for hours. Usual, of course, but it would have been disaster if we had been on a cruise.
One year we spent several days in SML and visited Portofino. The next year we took a Windstar cruise that stopped in Portofino. We were very excited just to go back to Portofino for the day. We slowly walked around, had an amazing lunch at Hotel Splendido, and sat in a couple cafes. It was a welcome break from the more packed touring days of the cruise .
Jun 8th, 2007, 10:24 AM
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My wife and I have easily walked To and from th SML train station and Portofino. We are 70 years old.
As an alternative you can take a taxi.
Sample train schedules are :
From SML Arrive Monterosso
0822 0902
1024 1106
Monterosso to SML
From Monterosso Arive SML
1455 1537
1655 1737
It's a beautiful area.
As an alternative you can take a taxi.
Sample train schedules are :
From SML Arrive Monterosso
0822 0902
1024 1106
Monterosso to SML
From Monterosso Arive SML
1455 1537
1655 1737
It's a beautiful area.
