Livorno port info please

[porrah]

We will be on the Equinox in a few weeks and I am finalizing our plans. In Livorno we want to get the bus to the station to go to Pisa. from what I have read you are not allowed to walk out of the port and have to take Celebrity's shuttle at whatever price they choose. So basically, that means you have to pay Celebrity to be able to leave the ship(unless of course you are doing one of their excursions). I find this hard to believe. Can anybody tell me the situation please?

[chefcaw]

We will be on the Equinox in a few weeks and I am finalizing our plans. In Livorno we want to get the bus to the station to go to Pisa. from what I have read you are not allowed to walk out of the port and have to take Celebrity's shuttle at whatever price they choose. So basically, that means you have to pay Celebrity to be able to leave the ship(unless of course you are doing one of their excursions). I find this hard to believe. Can anybody tell me the situation please?

 

It has been about a year since we were in Livorno but at that point there was a free port shuttle that moved us through the port to the gate. The tour guides and cabs were there.

 

Chris

[Project_gal]

We will be on the Equinox in a few weeks and I am finalizing our plans. In Livorno we want to get the bus to the station to go to Pisa. from what I have read you are not allowed to walk out of the port and have to take Celebrity's shuttle at whatever price they choose. So basically, that means you have to pay Celebrity to be able to leave the ship(unless of course you are doing one of their excursions). I find this hard to believe. Can anybody tell me the situation please?

 

I have no experience of Livorno yet because will will not be their until November but it is almost invariably that the restrictions about access in a port are set by the port authorities rather than the cruise line. Many ports are industrial areas and not safe to walk around. The shuttle bus will be provided by the port authority and not the cruise line.

 

It may be that there are taxis close to the ship or they may not be allowed to access the port area either. Private tour operators will usually be allowed into the port area but may have to pay a fee. As you do not appear to want to book a private tour if you cannot take a taxi, your only options are to take the shuttle or a ship's excursion.

 

Sue

[Wine-O]

We will be on the Equinox in a few weeks and I am finalizing our plans. In Livorno we want to get the bus to the station to go to Pisa. from what I have read you are not allowed to walk out of the port and have to take Celebrity's shuttle at whatever price they choose. So basically, that means you have to pay Celebrity to be able to leave the ship(unless of course you are doing one of their excursions). I find this hard to believe. Can anybody tell me the situation please?

 

The best way to get from the pier to the train station (I'm assuming you mean train station) is to catch a taxi. There are several on the pier who will want to take you on an excursion, but you need to find one to take you to the train station.

 

The taxi fee to the train station is a fixed price. It's around 20 Euro or so. They are 8-pax taxis, and whether they take 8 people or just one person, the price is the same. So, I would suggest hopping on your Roll Call. There should be a group of people going to Pisa, Lucca, and/or Florence on their own. Hook up with a group and share the taxi fee.

 

Here's a link to the Italian local train schedules. You want to catch the train from Livorno Centrale to Pisa. There are two train stations in Pisa. The first stop is Pisa Centrale. From there, you will have to catch a taxi to the Leaning Tower because it's about a mile away.

 

The second station is Pisa S. Rossore. This station is only a couple of blocks away, and in walking distance. If you plug Pisa S. Rossore into the below link as the destination, you will have to change trains in Pisa Centrale. You just have to find the correct track once you transfer.

 

Just plug in Livorno Centrale and Pisa S. Rossore into the below link. The default time is 10 (am), so just change it to 8. The Italians work on a 24 hour clock.

 

Don't forget, once you purchase your ticket from the ticket booth (they speak English), there is a red box on the train platforms. You have to punch your ticket into the machine to cancel the ticket. If you forget and get caught, it's a big fine.

 

Hope this helps.

 

http://www.trenitalia.com/cms/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=ad1ce14114bc9110VgnVCM10000080a3e90aRCRD

[Texed]

Great advice Wine-O. :)

[CathyCruises]

It was easy to find folks to share the taxi with, and it was 25 euros. Taking the shuttle to the bus to the station is way too cumbersome for us.

 

You can easily go to Florence first, then hit Pisa on the way back. Although I really like Pisa and have stayed there, for a day tripper there's not much to do but see/climb the tower and visit the Field of Miracles. An hour there is plenty.

 

OTOH there's lots to see and do in Florence, although unlike the rest of the world, Florence is not on our list of favorite places. But it's certainly worth a visit and most people love it. Our favorite thing to do there is to visit the Officina Profumo Farmaceutica and buy pomegranate soap!!

[Hlitner]

Just to set the record straight,, there is no bus from the port to the Livorno train station. Most of the cruise lines operate a shuttle bus to the center of Livorno...but these buses will often not begin running until past 8:30.. it can cost over $5.....and you would still have a long hike from the bus drop to the station ...or you would have to catch a local bus to the station (or perhaps find a taxi). We have been to the Port of Livorno over 20 times...and there were always taxis at the pier. Many of these taxis will refuse the short haul to the train station, but if you are a bit assertive (be polite) you will usually find a taxi within a few minutes (you can also ask the taxi drivers who will not do the short haul to please call another taxi). The cost of 4 sharing a taxi to the station will be no more then 25 Euros which can turn out to be less then paying for the shuttle bus, and then still needing another bus or taxi to get you to the station.

 

Hank

Edited July 14, 2013 by Hlitner

[mickey89]

We will be on the Equinox in a few weeks and I am finalizing our plans. In Livorno we want to get the bus to the station to go to Pisa. from what I have read you are not allowed to walk out of the port and have to take Celebrity's shuttle at whatever price they choose. So basically, that means you have to pay Celebrity to be able to leave the ship(unless of course you are doing one of their excursions). I find this hard to believe. Can anybody tell me the situation please?

 

My wife and I were there on the Equinox last month and Celebrity charged 10 euro for the return shuttle from the ship to town, near to a main bus stop to get to the station. (5euro/pp)

 

Totally agree that they is no other way to leave this port - NO walking and unable to get a taxi (they said it was an uneconomic journey for them) so you have to take the Celebrity shuttle or stay aboard.

 

On my return I went to the Guest Relations desk and requested a refund and was given a credit of 12$ back to my ship board account. More people should do this as celebrity has an obligation to transfer its passengers to a safe accessible point ashore.

[euro cruiser]

On my return I went to the Guest Relations desk and requested a refund and was given a credit of 12$ back to my ship board account. More people should do this as celebrity has an obligation to transfer its passengers to a safe accessible point ashore.

This never occurred to me, but it makes sense. I wonder if it's buried somewhere in the contract that they can charge you to get to shore? I never looked to see if I was told in advance that certain ports would require an additional fee ...

[Hlitner]

My wife and I were there on the Equinox last month and Celebrity charged 10 euro for the return shuttle from the ship to town, near to a main bus stop to get to the station. (5euro/pp)

 

Totally agree that they is no other way to leave this port - NO walking and unable to get a taxi (they said it was an uneconomic journey for them) so you have to take the Celebrity shuttle or stay aboard.

 

On my return I went to the Guest Relations desk and requested a refund and was given a credit of 12$ back to my ship board account. More people should do this as celebrity has an obligation to transfer its passengers to a safe accessible point ashore.

 

The taxi issue is always an "interesting experience." We have been to this port many times and have always been able to get a taxi to the station...but at times it is not easy. Keep in mind the drivers want you to hire them for the full day (at several hundred Euros) so will often tell you that nobody will take you to the station. It has never proven true, but we have a strategy. We are often among the first off the ship (since if we are taking a train (our other option is that we rent a car) it will probably be to Florence. When the drivers say no....we just keep asking other drivers (there is often a man that will help). I cannot recall ever waiting more then 15 min before we would find a taxi to take us to the station..which usually meant we were on a train at least an hour before the first shuttle bus even left the port. Keep in mind that if you truly could not get a taxi you could always just take the later shuttle bus (although you would have lost over and hour or port time). In almost every case we find other folks wanting a taxi so usually get a taxi with 4..which means are cost to the station is about 6 Euros per person.

 

Hank

[mickey89]

Hlitner, I think you are missing the point - The question is whether Celebrity should charge to take you to a point of civilisation !!!

[Hlitner]

Hlitner, I think you are missing the point - The question is whether Celebrity should charge to take you to a point of civilisation !!!

 

You need to understand that these so-called shuttle buses are really not under control of the cruise lines. There apparently is some kind of deal with the local authorities (and rumor says that some of the local businesses even help subsidize the buses) and the drop point is a done deal....and not open to negotiation. They hope that folks will use that shuttle bus as a way to get into downtown Livorno...and hopefully do some shopping and perhaps eating. I suppose the cruise lines could charter a bus to go to and from the train station.....but there is no incentive for the cruise line since they make a hefty profit on selling their own excursions to Florence and have no interest in helping passengers get to the trains.

 

If you would search back on some of my posts over the past years you will find that we consistently recommend not using the town shuttle bus for going to the train station.

 

Hank

[tobagoo]

Is there a shuttle bus operating from Livorno port to Livorno Central(train station),we are in port during July 2015?

[hopeless holiday booker]

My wife and I were there on the Equinox last month and Celebrity charged 10 euro for the return shuttle from the ship to town, near to a main bus stop to get to the station. (5euro/pp)

 

Totally agree that they is no other way to leave this port - NO walking and unable to get a taxi (they said it was an uneconomic journey for them) so you have to take the Celebrity shuttle or stay aboard.

 

On my return I went to the Guest Relations desk and requested a refund and was given a credit of 12$ back to my ship board account. More people should do this as celebrity has an obligation to transfer its passengers to a safe accessible point ashore.

 

IF you don't mind me asking - what did you say when you went back on board - that they had that obligation?

[Hlitner]

Is there a shuttle bus operating from Livorno port to Livorno Central(train station),we are in port during July 2015?

 

We have never been to that port on P&O, but when we were on Princess, RCI, Celebrity, HAL, etc. there was never a shuttle bus to the train station. On many of those cruises there was a bus (for which you had to pay) that infrequently went from the port to a central point in Livorno which was more then 1 mile from the train station.

 

Hank

[Chloe1500]

Yes, we were there in June and there is now a shuttle bus from the port to the train station running in the morning and afternoons. I don't recall how much they were charging. Princess announced this in our nightly newsletter.

Edited July 27, 2015 by Chloe1500

[realtrip]

NCL also offers the shuttles.

We were on the Jade and docked July 19th, 2015

There are three.

1. to the parking lot entrance where there are car rentals ( they really don't want you to take this shuttle and make it very hard to get on it)

2. the city center shuttle is 10 euro. We took this one.

3. the shuttle to the train station is 15 euro.

We got the info in the cabin with the dailies. NCL said the port was running things not them but who knows.

[Hlitner]

NCL also offers the shuttles.

We were on the Jade and docked July 19th, 2015

There are three.

1. to the parking lot entrance where there are car rentals ( they really don't want you to take this shuttle and make it very hard to get on it)

2. the city center shuttle is 10 euro. We took this one.

3. the shuttle to the train station is 15 euro.

We got the info in the cabin with the dailies. NCL said the port was running things not them but who knows.

 

We find your post interesting. If the shuttle to the port entrance (where there is a building (sometimes called the Shopping Center) that has at least one rental car desk, is the so-called internal port shuttle we have never seen it actually run. Would love to know if anyone on earth has ever found this shuttle :).

 

As to the shuttles to both town and the station, one might consider that a taxi (shared by 4 persons) is substantially less expensive. For example, a shared taxi to the train station would be 5-7€ per person. But of course the catch is that you must get a taxi to make that short haul trip.

 

Hank

[magicwanderer]

NCL also offers the shuttles.

We were on the Jade and docked July 19th, 2015

There are three.

1. to the parking lot entrance where there are car rentals ( they really don't want you to take this shuttle and make it very hard to get on it)

2. the city center shuttle is 10 euro. We took this one.

3. the shuttle to the train station is 15 euro.

We got the info in the cabin with the dailies. NCL said the port was running things not them but who knows.

 

I'm on the NCL Epic in November. Please tell me, do the port to train station shuttles begin at 7am or so, or are they more like 8:30am? I think it's the latter. A taxi to the train sounds like a great way to get a very valuable extra hour in Firenze.

 

Thanks!

[Adventures ahead]

Yes, we were there in June and there is now a shuttle bus from the port to the train station running in the morning and afternoons. I don't recall how much they were charging. Princess announced this in our nightly newsletter.

 

From the Regal Princess last September, there were two shuttles operating from the port. We were in port from 7am to 7pm. The following information was in the Patter (summer 2014):

 

One shuttle (not operated by Princess) went to Piazza Grande and started at about 8am. The last shuttle left for the ship at 6pm. The RT shuttle pass (unlimited rides) was 5 Euros pp. Tickets could be purchased only on the pier from the shuttle service coordinator (cash only).

 

The second shuttle (also independent) made one RT run from the ship to the train station, leaving the port at 8:15am (for the 9:12am train) and picking up passengers arriving at the train station at 4:48pm. The shuttle was 12 Euros pp, also purchased in cash on the pier from a person standing by the bus. You could not get on that bus unless you had a RT ticket stub! We used this DIY method to re-visit Florence.

 

Good to hear that this service will be available again this fall when our plan is to go to Lucca.

 

PS - The Patter also stated that taxis at the pier may be limited in the early morning and may only take fares to either Florence or Pisa.

Edited August 4, 2015 by Adventures ahead
PS

[Adventures ahead]

We may consider taxis, rather than the RT port shuttle to the train station, and find someone on our roll call to share.

 

We plan to return from Lucca by train by mid-afternoon and are in port from 7am-7pm.

 

Hank,:) Have you always found taxis on hand at the train station to take you back to the ship?

[mississauga]

Can someone post how much the cost is for the train to Florence and how frequently do the trains run?

Edited September 6, 2015 by mississauga

[Hlitner]

Can someone post how much the cost is for the train to Florence and how frequently do the trains run?

 

We will do better and show you how to get the timetables :). Go to the "Trenitalia.com" web site (this is the Italian Railroad). On the upper right side you will see a littile "Italiano" which you should just change that to "English" for English. They do not post the schedules too far in advance but the schedules have not changed much over the years so you can just look at any upcoming date (pick the same day of the week that you will be using the trains) to get an idea of the schedules. For Livorno you want "Livorno Centrale" and for Florence you want "Firenze S. M. Novella." We suggest ignoring the expensive intercity trains (which require reservations) and just look at the "Regionale" and "Regionale Veloce).

 

As to the cost, they do not post the cost of the Regionale trains since there are no reservations or online advance purchase (no need). I am not sure of the current cost but assume it is about 20€ round trip...which can vary if they have any kind of specials. We used to be able to save some money by purchasing a one-way return ticket, but not sure if this is any longer available. At the train station you can buy tickets at the ticket window (they are used to dealing with English speaking cruisers) or out of vending machines.

 

Hank

[mississauga]

Thank you Hank. You are a wealth of information for DIY on these boards. Like you, we like to DIY also. Although we are not well travelled like you in Europe. Have taken the train to Rome and to Pisa. This time we want to go to Florence from Livorno.

 

Wish we were on cruises with you and you wife and could do the DIY's in all the ports with you. We find that is more fun than planned excursions.:D

[Hlitner]

Thanks for the kind words. Noticed a typo in my other post and should have said "one day return" not (one way). DW and I have been into the DIY stuff all of our lives (and we are now seniors) but seldom get involved with groups during port days. Even when we have cruised with good friends we would often go our own ways during the day. The problem with groups is that "compromise" can often leave everyone a little unhappy. So when we are on our own we just do whatever feels right at the time. In fact, I have sometimes "preached" on CC that a DIYer can often do better by simply knowing lots of options..but not making a decision until the spur of the moment. For example, if we were planning on going to Pompeii and it turned out to be a blistering hot day we might change our mind and grab a hydrofoil to Capri rather then the train to Pompeii. But when it comes to Livorno, for those who have not been to Florence it is an amazing city and a place not to be missed.

 

Hank