Venice Cruise Terminal to Train Station: which Alilaguna line?
 

Hello, DH and I will be disembarking from a Seabourn Cruise in September. We arrive at 7:00am, and will need to go through Customs, which I have been told means that we will be "free" around 8:15 am. We plan to take a train to Florence that day. The cruise line will transport us to the train station for $160/pp! That seems outrageous, so I'm looking for alternatives.

The Alilaguna was recommended on another post as a good way to get to the Cruise terminal. I'm looking at their website https://www.alilaguna.it/en/lines/line-timetables but not sure which would be the correct line to take to the train station. Does anyone know the name of the stop for the Santa Lucia train station? Or would you recommend another way to get there?

Thank you so much for any advice!

Update: I clicked on the map for Alilaguna Blue line https://www.alilaguna.it/en/linea-blu/map, and originally thought of getting off at S. Marco and transferring... then I noticed that it looks like we could practically walk to the Ferrovia?

Does anyone know if there is a People Mover between the Cruise Terminal and the Ferrovia, or if it's possible to take a land taxi between them?

Yes, you can literally walk to the Stazione. There is also a people mover that connects the cruise terminal with Piazzale Roma (which is the car park/bus terminal), The Venice train station Venezia S. Lucia is one simple bridge over the Grand Canal

The Alilaguna is a long distance water bus service that runs between the cruise terminal, points in Venice, and the airport. Regular water buses are calle Vaporetto (from the original Vapor, or steam boat days).

Ferrovia is railroad. (or iron roadway, literally). The station is referred to by it's name, Stazione di Venezia Santa Lucia, or Venezia S.L.

J62--Thank you for your reply. I did the route on Google Maps, and it shows a 14 minute walk 1.1 km. I think we would normally walk more quickly than that. However, we will be rolling our bags. Do you know if there are a lot of steps on the bridge?

Another option suggested to me was to take a land taxi to Mestre station and catch our train from there. That might be easier if it is a challenging walk with bags.

That "bridge" is basically inclined without any steps as I recall...go to YouTube and search for Venice Cruise Terminal...you'll get first-hand PICTURES including ones showing the people mover

Well, if you do that (taxi to Mestre to board the train), be aware that trains only stop at Mestre for a few minutes, so you'll need to be quick lugging your bags onto the train, then lugging them through the train to find your car & seat. I don't know if there are steps up to the train or not - others can weigh in on that.

Or worse, you may have to go down-stairs then back up again to get to your assigned track.

If you board the train at Venezia SL, then you can board at your leisure, right into the proper car, as that's a terminal station where the trains begin.

Just be careful overthinking this and then outsmarting yourself.

I have rolled my luggage up and over the Calatrava Bridge from Piazzle Roma and past Santa Lucia Station plenty of times. I have rolled my luggage up the Lista di Spagna to Tre Archi.

I have made it from Tre Archi to the #5 bus at P. Roma in 13 minutes.

Thin🎓

Mestre route: If there are taxis waiting at the dock, this is the easiest if not the cheapest way to get to a train station especially if you have a lot of luggage like a typical cruise person, too hot to walk, or raining.The taxi fare from the cruise port to Mestre is a FIXED charge. Look at the sticker posted on the back seat window of the taxi and look at the line with a picture of a cruise ship. It should say "Stazione Marittima Crociere <-> Mestre Centro/Ferrovia".
Santa Lucia route: The people mover station at "cruise" port can be a major trek from your boat. Depending on how many ships arrive at the same time, you would encounter a long line buying 1.50EU tickets for the people mover.The taxi from the cruise port to the Santa Lucia station is also FIXED charge. Cheaper than going to Mestre, but requires you crossing the same bridge.

Thank you for the additional advice and food for thought!

J62, I had wondered about boarding the train in Mestre for the exact reason that it only stops for a couple of minutes. I hadn't even thought about possible stairs at the station or dragging our luggage through the train. We've done both, and it isn't fun!

Thin, did you have large or heavy luggage on your treks? DH's main concern is navigating the steps on the bridge. (We made the mistake of thinking we didn't need a porter in Positano last year and nearly collapsed by the time we made it to the bottom of the hill!)

greg, thanks for your summary of the options. I think we'll take a taxi to Piazzale Roma, then cross the bridge to S. Lucia station.

As always, Fodorites are a wealth of support. Thanks again!

The Calatrava Bridge is a plexiglass bridge. The steps are on the side and the middle is smooth for your roller bag. The bridge has been specially designed for roller bags.

I have no idea how much luggage you have and how old you are.

I am athletic and 49.

Thin🥫

What is the size of your Seabourn ship? Are you certain that it will dock in the main Maritima port or perhaps will it be at the San Basilio where smaller ships dock? The two do not connect and it is more convoluted to reach the train station from the San Basilio. Your cruise documents should state where disembarcation will be. Should it be into San Basilio, I would recommend a water taxi.

Thank you for the additional information!

aliced, I called Seabourn and our ship, the Odyssey, is scheduled to disembark at Maritima Terminal of Venice. They told me that it "sometimes moves to San Basilio" but that they would let us know in advance. Good call on that--thanks!

Thin, I searched for the Calatrava Bridge on Google Maps, and it looks like just another name for the Ponte della Costituzione. The photos match your description, so are they the same bridge?

We'll probably have 1 large, 1 medium and at least 1 carry-on bag, but more likely 2 carry-ons. I'm active, fit and healthy in my mid-60's, and my husband is a fit and active 71. He did hurt his wrist with the Positano luggage/stairs issue, so he just needs to be careful wielding bags on the bridge. It looks like no matter what option we choose, steps are part of it.

So, to avoid waiting in line, we are looking into booking a driver to meet us at the port and take us to Piazzale Roma. Then we'll make the trek to S. Lucia.

Could anyone give me an estimate of how much time we should allow to do this so I can look at a realistic train to catch to Florence?

Thanks again!

Hello again,

After a lot of research, I thought I could share some helpful information.

I looked at reviews and photos of the Ponte della Costituzione and discovered that it was designed by Calatrava, so that settled the confusion about being the same bridge. Many people posted about how dangerous it can be to cross, since it is plexiglass and can be quite slippery in the humid conditions of Venice, not to mention rain. We really do not want to get hurt dragging bags, as we will still have about 2 weeks left of our trip.

I looked into porter services and found the following:
http://www.ekiprent.com
http://www.portabagaglidelporto.it
http://www.trasbagagli.it/en/main

However, all of these in addition to a taxi would end up being fairly expensive for us and 4 bags. Plus, we would still need to cross the bridge in possibly rainy conditions.

So, the only way that we could avoid the bridge entirely is to take a water taxi. To avoid waiting in a long line (hopefully) I precooked one at this website: http://www.veneziaturismo.net/en
The cost is 100€, which probably wouldn't be much more than all the other options. Best of all though is: no bridge! Plus, it will be lovely to cruise through Venice, especially since we won't be staying there this trip.

I hope this might help others planning similar trips. Thanks again to all who offered information.

Holy Cr#$#@$@!

100€ to get you a total distance of about 1/2 mi as the crow flies. Better than the cruise line asking $160pp, but still.....

>>> Best of all though is: no bridge! Plus, it will be lovely to cruise through Venice, especially since we won't be staying there this trip.
I hate to disappoint you, but that short section of the canal is rather industrial. :-(
Also in the spirit of full disclosure, understand that using a water taxi is not barrier free. This is usually not even an issue for those with sure footings, but you need to take two rather tall steps to get in and out without a full handrail like this Attachment 2658.
This is a no go for person like my father-in-law. He cannot take such tall steps, and he panics when he cannot hold onto a sturdy handrail.
Also, you are not assured to be able to dock in front of the Santa Lucia station. One time, the taxi dropped us here where we had to carry our luggage over these steps on this tiny dock. https://goo.gl/maps/cBDtHLjHqE2kvoaY7

J62--I know it's still not inexpensive, but seems worth it since DH really has a hard time with a bad wrist.

greg, we have taken water taxis before, and I agree that getting in and out is not as easy as it seems. However, we have been around boats a lot so we're kind of used to it. The luggage has been a bit of a challenge with water taxis, as the drivers don't like to help with it, but we have managed. I hope that we can be dropped off without steps at the end, but we'll be okay with just a few. They did look a little rickety in your photo!

Thanks Peter. That would have been something to see when you were moving the bookcases over the bridge! Good to know that it can be done.

Greg, You got me a little concerned with your image of the drop-off place. So, I contacted the water taxi people and asked where we would be let off. She responded with an image which I attached.

Then just to be sure, I checked it out on Google Maps, and here's the satellite image of the dock:
https://www.google.com/maps/@45.4413...7i13312!8i6656

Looks a bit less scary than yours--thank goodness!