Held hostage in Livorno port!!

[texancruzer]

Yes, private tour companies who are registered with the port can enter and pick up dockside. Of course the tour buses can also.

 

Taxis cannot.

[ROCruiser]

This is my last post on this thread…..

 

but I would bet $100.00 that it WAS posted in the daily on the ship.

 

and……. I, too, would love to read the salad spinner thread :D

 

I was not aware of this shuttle problem on our cruise last month because we had arranged for a private driver who picked us up right outside the terminal. I went and checked my photos of the dailies. Yes, it was on the Freestyle Daily for day 2. "Going ashore on your own in Livorno?....." with the shuttles information and cost, etc. I suppose I did not pay attention to this because of the pre-arranged transportation and thought it did not concern us.

[texancruzer]

i was not aware of this shuttle problem on our cruise last month because we had arranged for a private driver who picked us up right outside the terminal. I went and checked my photos of the dailies. Yes, it was on the freestyle daily for day 2. "going ashore on your own in livorno?....." with the shuttles information and cost, etc. I suppose i did not pay attention to this because of the pre-arranged transportation and thought it did not concern us.

 

yep.

[Hlitner]

Yes, private tour companies who are registered with the port can enter and pick up dockside. Of course the tour buses can also.

 

Taxis cannot.

 

I am not sure what you are trying to say. Granted that we have only been to the Port of Livorno about 20 times so I guess we are not experts. But there have always been taxis at the pier in Livorno on all of our trips, and we have often taken local taxis from the Livorno train station right to the pier. In fact, there will actually be a taxi queue in the morning and there is often a man who serves as a "taxi starter" trying to help organize folks into groups if necessary. For example, when we try and get a taxi to the local stazione (Livorno Centrale Train Station) many drivers will not take that short fare. But we usually find one driver who will do that short haul for about 25 Euros (which can be split among all the passengers).

 

And the times when we have rented cars at the pier (usually from Sifracar who is the local Hertz franchiser) we not only got our car at the pier, but were easily able to drive back into the port (right past the main gate security) and drop the car near our ship.

 

 

Hank

Edited March 16, 2015 by Hlitner

[texancruzer]

I am not sure what you are trying to say. Granted that we have only been to the Port of Livorno about 20 times so I guess we are not experts. But there have always been taxis at the pier in Livorno on all of our trips, and we have often taken local taxis from the Livorno train station right to the pier. In fact, there will actually be a taxi queue in the morning and there is often a man who serves as a "taxi starter" trying to help organize folks into groups if necessary. For example, when we try and get a taxi to the local stazione (Livorno Centrale Train Station) many drivers will not take that short fare. But we usually find one driver who will do that short haul for about 25 Euros (which can be split among all the passengers).

 

And the times when we have rented cars at the pier (usually from Sifracar who is the local Hertz franchiser) we not only got our car at the pier, but were easily able to drive back into the port (right past the main gate security) and drop the car near our ship.

 

 

Hank

 

Hank go back and read the VERY FIRST POST. No taxis. Bus tour, private tour or shuttle to get out of port area.

 

While I have only been to Livorno once there were no taxis at the ship. There were tour buses (ships tours) private tour vans/cars and the shuttle.

 

You could not walk out. About a mile to port exit. So you either took a ship tour, arranged a private tour ahead or took the shuttle to the port exit. We were told that unless they were registered with the port that no vehicles could enter and come dockside.

 

I am beginning to think it depends on WHERE in this vast huge port you are docked that determines who and what can get in and dockside.

 

Now - for us once you took the shuttle to the port exit (secure area) there were taxis. But this was a l-o-n-g way from our gangway.

[cruisemom42]

Hank go back and read the VERY FIRST POST. No taxis. Bus tour, private tour or shuttle to get out of port area.

 

While I have only been to Livorno once there were no taxis at the ship. There were tour buses (ships tours) private tour vans/cars and the shuttle.

 

You could not walk out. About a mile to port exit. So you either took a ship tour, arranged a private tour ahead or took the shuttle to the port exit. We were told that unless they were registered with the port that no vehicles could enter and come dockside.

 

I am beginning to think it depends on WHERE in this vast huge port you are docked that determines who and what can get in and dockside.

 

Now - for us once you took the shuttle to the port exit (secure area) there were taxis. But this was a l-o-n-g way from our gangway.

 

 

 

I think you may be confused?

 

In Livorno, the shuttles generally run to the town center in Livorno (not the port exit), and from there it is possible to get a bus or maybe a taxi to the train station.

 

However, in the past, there have been taxis for hire near the ship, mostly looking for full-day fares (e.g., to take you to Florence or Tuscany, not to the train station). If persistent -- or by engaging the coordinator -- you could get them to take a taxi-load for around 20 euro to the train station.

 

There weren't an unlimited supply of them, however, and once they were gone, they were gone. My sister sails on Celebrity (which I know you generally use) and has confirmed this, along with frustrations about not being able to convince a taxi to take them to the train station....:cool:)

 

My question -- which still hasn't been fully answered -- is whether it is a NEW policy that taxis aren't allowed where they were allowed before. Or...whether the OP simply didn't see any taxis as they may already have been hired by the time he/she got off the ship and looked around.

 

It would be nice to have some additional reports to see if others are experiencing the same dearth of taxis.

 

I do agree the port of Livorno is confusing and not user friendly. Once I was docked there on a (very) small ship. We were near the ferries rather than the big cruise ships and were very near the exit. However, it was not the MAIN exit and there were no taxis. We had to stop into a small bar and get the manager to call a taxi for us to get to the train station....

[Hlitner]

Regarding Cruisemom's post above, we recently talked with friends who were on a Princess cruise last month and hired a taxi at the pier in Livorno. But Cruisemom raises a great issue which we have oft talked about on this board. Most of the taxis that are at the pier are looking for full-day fares (i.e. to Florence, Sienna, etc). Getting a taxi to go to the local station can be a problem, but we have a strategy that has always worked for us (and from many others that post on CC). So I will post suggestions.

 

The first rule is you want to get off the ship as soon as possible (we sometimes will try to be among the first off the ship when she is cleared). As soon as you are off the ship go to the taxi queue and assertively (but always politely) make it clear that you need a taxi to the local station (Stazione). Most of the taxis will ignore you but there are usually one or two that will offer to take the short haul. There is usually an Italian man trying to organize things and this often results in filling a taxi (or larger van taxi) for the ride to the station. At that early hour some taxis are willing to take the short haul because they have plenty of time to get back to the port and later pick up a full day hire.

 

If none of the taxis are willing to go to the station just ask the drivers if they can call a taxi to take you to the station (we have had this happen several times). We have sometimes made the early 7:43 train (to Florence) and otherwise aim for the 8:12 train. That 8:12 is actually a faster "Veloce" train and gets you to Florence at 9:32 (only 10 min later then the slower 7:43 train)

 

As Cruisemom said, it can be harder to get a taxi at a later time since many of the local taxis are already gone for the day (with tours). There are always a few taxis around in Livorno, but there is no guarantee that you will find one after 9 (unless you telephone).

 

The other strategy involves getting back to the port. There are usually not enough taxis at the station to handle all the fares....especially late in the afternoon. So when we return on a late afternoon train DW and I are always among the first off the train and then we walk as quickly as possible through the station to be among the first out to the curb to grab one of the taxis. If you miss all the taxis then you are going to have to wait until some return.

 

Hank

[texancruzer]

Nope not confused.

 

We were on Royal Caribbean when we visited Livorno. No taxis that we saw at the dock.

We were not the earliest off the ship - But there were no taxis we could see from our balcony or when we left. Just buses and a few vans for private tours. Perhaps if there were earlier they were all gone but I don't think so or we would have seen them from our balcony (we faced into Livorno).

[cruisemom42]

Getting a taxi to go to the local station can be a problem, but we have a strategy that has always worked for us (and from many others that post on CC). So I will post suggestions.

 

Hank

 

Now you've gone and given out all the best tips -- we'll never get a taxi in Florence with everyone "in the know". ;)

Edited March 17, 2015 by cruisemom42

[Hlitner]

Now you've gone and given out all the best tips -- we'll never get a taxi in Florence with everyone "in the know". ;)

 

LOL. You have not been on our cruises. Most passengers cannot even walk down a flight of steps (even the very healthy passengers) and will wait 15 min for an elevator rather then use their legs. When these same people get to the Livorno train station we are half way to the train station exit (where the taxis wait) while these folks are still getting up from their seats.

 

On another board we were talking about getting rental cars at the French port of Le Havre. The two options are to rent a car from the soul dealer that is inside the port (close to the ship) or walk 20 minutes and rent a better car for about half the price (you save around 50 Euros). Several posters said they would pay the extra money rather then take the nice stroll. Do you think these kind of folks are going to "walk fast" anywhere other then to the buffet line?

 

 

Hank

[dodger1964]

It's the taxi drivers I blame here, or the lack of enforcement by the regulating authority. We had two choices

 

1) Port/Cruise run shuttle into central Livorno; €10/ea return IIRC; or

2) Taxi, who wanted €25 for the 4km trip to Livorno Centrale; which is WAAAAY more than it should cost (should be about €10 for that distance)

 

#1 is reasonable enough (normal overpriced cruise shuttle), but the taxis having you by the short and curlies really pissed me off. The port/tourist/taxi authorities not holding the taxis accountable is the issue.

 

We used option #3 the last time we were there a couple of years ago.

 

 

We rented a car from Hertz and it was right next to ship when we got off. Very easy and relatively inexpensive. Brought back to the ship, left keys in it and walked back on board...very easy!

 

That port would be a challenge to walk...it must have been a mile just to get out of it, and then you still weren't that close to much.

[Hlitner]

We used option #3 the last time we were there a couple of years ago.

 

 

We rented a car from Hertz and it was right next to ship when we got off. Very easy and relatively inexpensive. Brought back to the ship, left keys in it and walked back on board...very easy!

 

That port would be a challenge to walk...it must have been a mile just to get out of it, and then you still weren't that close to much.

 

Times have changed as has port security. In the Port of Civitavecchia they do not now rental cars inside the port so the local agencies do not deliver or pick up at the pier. There is a free internal port shuttle bus which will get passengers to the port entrance, and at that point they need to walk (or find a taxi) to go anywhere. The Port of Livorno, on the other hand, does allow rental cars to be delivered and dropped at pier-side.

 

Hank

[Dunmore2]

Celebrity.

[CathyCruises]

LOL. You have not been on our cruises. Most passengers cannot even walk down a flight of steps (even the very healthy passengers) and will wait 15 min for an elevator rather then use their legs. When these same people get to the Livorno train station we are half way to the train station exit (where the taxis wait) while these folks are still getting up from their seats.

 

On another board we were talking about getting rental cars at the French port of Le Havre. The two options are to rent a car from the soul dealer that is inside the port (close to the ship) or walk 20 minutes and rent a better car for about half the price (you save around 50 Euros). Several posters said they would pay the extra money rather then take the nice stroll. Do you think these kind of folks are going to "walk fast" anywhere other then to the buffet line?

 

 

Hank

Hank, I assume you are talking about Europcar being the agency closest to the port? We rented a car for our port stop later this month (great that I can say that now!) for 50€. Ae you saying that if I walked twenty minutes I'd get it for free?! ;)

 

We are taking another couple on a brief tour of Etretat, Honfleur, etc so we had to get a bit larger vehicle, but it will still be a cheap day for the four of us!

[Bobal]

I am wondering if any other cruise line besides NCL has this issue? I've never heard Of it on Celebrity, for instance. . .

 

Yes, Royal Caribbean have exactly the same issue - and the buses are RC buses, not port buses. We were charged $12 per person when we were there over 6 years ago - so that was $48 dollars for our family of 4 just to get out of the port. The annoying thing is that the bus drops you in the centre of town and the station (to Pisa and Florence) is 1.5 miles outside town, and another bus-ride away.

 

The ship shuttles do not take you to the bus station - lost revenue on excursions!! and the taxis do not want to take you as they want a more lucrative fare.

 

We've called in Livorno twice since then and stayed on the ship.

 

So to answer the OP - YES I feel angry at being held hostage in Livorno and have been very pleased to see two of our cruises change from Livorno to La Spezia as a port of call.

Edited April 1, 2015 by Bobal

[michelle028]

Yes, Royal Caribbean have exactly the same issue - and the buses are RC buses, not port buses. We were charged $12 per person when we were there over 6 years ago - so that was $48 dollars for our family of 4 just to get out of the port. The annoying thing is that the bus drops you in the centre of town and the station (to Pisa and Florence) is 1.5 miles outside town, and another bus-ride away.

 

The ship shuttles do not take you to the bus station - lost revenue on excursions!! and the taxis do not want to take you as they want a more lucrative fare.

 

We've called in Livorno twice since then and stayed on the ship.

 

So to answer the OP - YES I feel angry at being held hostage in Livorno and have been very pleased to see two of our cruises change from Livorno to La Spezia as a port of call.

 

 

Thx to the OP who told us about the $12fare to leave the port. What a surprise, in any case which bus do you take to get to the train station? I want to do Florence and Pisa but debating if I should pay $129pp through Ncl or plan it in my own using the trains. Let me know how easy do you think it is. We are four adults. Thanks!

[Level six]

Thx to the OP who told us about the $12fare to leave the port. What a surprise, in any case which bus do you take to get to the train station? I want to do Florence and Pisa but debating if I should pay $129pp through Ncl or plan it in my own using the trains. Let me know how easy do you think it is. We are four adults. Thanks!

 

If you take the $12 pp NCL bus, it will take you to the train station. Try to get on the first bus out of port in order to make the first train to Florence. It is easy and very cheap to do it that way. I think it is 12 euro RT, but, I am not really sure. We just went to Lucca and Pisa and it was only like 4 euro RT on the train. You would need to get the details from someone else who actually went to Florence, as I don't want to give you the wrong information. Several fellow passengers went on the train and had no problem at all. Also, some passengers had arranged tours that were about $50pp, so that is another option. Have a fun trip, you will love it!

[Hlitner]

Instead of waiting around for a bus simply try and get a taxi to take you an some others. The taxi fare is about 25 Euros, but this can be split among all the passengers. You will likely be at the train station before a bus even leaves the cruise pier. I cannot speak about NCL, but most of the buses from the port do not go anywhere near the train station. They usually drop their charges at a central city location that I more then 1 mile from the train station. And we have been to the port many times when the first bus does not even depart the pier until around 8:30!

 

Hank

Edited April 4, 2015 by Hlitner

[dogs4fun]

I cannot speak about NCL, but most of the buses from the port do not go anywhere near the train station. They usually drop their charges at a central city location that I more then 1 mile from the train station.

 

Hank

We docked at the port of Livorno, NCL Spirit, 2013. NCL shuttle drop-off was nowhere near the train station - you had to catch a city bus to the train station which is, as Hank stated above, in excess of a mile from the shuttle drop-off.

Because of this, we opted for a shared taxi.

Can't speak to whether or not NCL is offering shuttles to the train station now.

Edited April 4, 2015 by dogs4fun

[Level six]

Hank does make a good point, but, there were no taxis in port when I was there unless they were prebooked. The NCL shuttle DOES (or did on FEB 16, 2015) take you to the train station.

The head of the Hotel operations on the Jade, Jovi, said that unless you were on a NCL shore excursion, had a prebooked tour with a licensed guide(taxi) or took the shuttle, there was no way to leave port. I spoke with him at length about this, whether it is different for every sailing, I don't know, but that is the way it was on the Jade in Feb 2015. So, I am not sure why there are so many different ways to leave port at Livorno. Some on Celebrity leave with out paying, some have taxi, some can walk out (at least from all that has been posted here). I am just telling you that this is the way it was done on my sailing. Hopefully it will help.

[scottbee]

On our last (Celebrity) visit to Livorno, the bus dropped you in the middle of Livorno and it was a €1 bus ride from there to the station. Taxis wouldn't even talk to you for less than €25

[Hlitner]

On our last (Celebrity) visit to Livorno, the bus dropped you in the middle of Livorno and it was a €1 bus ride from there to the station. Taxis wouldn't even talk to you for less than €25

 

Yep, but with 4 in a taxi the cost is a little more then 6 Euros per person (cheaper then the bus) and you go directly to the station. The last time we used a taxi in Livorno they squeezed 8 of us in a van/taxi and our cost was about 3 Euros per person. It does not always work out this way, but its nice when it happens.

 

Hank

[michelle028]

Thx for your help everyone

 

I should have been clearer....ncl has an excursion it's called Florence and pisa on your own for 129$ pp. it says transfer by motor coach and you get dropped off in each place to explore on your own.

 

I'm just wondering would it be less hassle to do it this way even though it's more expensive? Has anyone done this excursion recently.

 

Or is manageable to do both places on my own and make it back to the ship at least an hr before it departs?

 

I had no prob finding my way around Rome but I had a hotel over there. So that's why I'm debating on what I should do. Thx for any advice you have! Going in August if that makes a difference.

[insanemagnet]

Thx to the OP who told us about the $12fare to leave the port. What a surprise, in any case which bus do you take to get to the train station? I want to do Florence and Pisa but debating if I should pay $129pp through Ncl or plan it in my own using the trains. Let me know how easy do you think it is. We are four adults. Thanks!

 

To (hopefully) clear some confusion.

 

The majority of berths at Livorno (42 to 47) require a bus to take you out of the port, because the berths are in the industrial area. There are some berths near the ferry terminal that are used by smaller cruise ships where you can simply walk out (61-62). You can see on the timetable which berth your ship is allocated - http://www.portolivorno2000.it/en/cruises/timetable and a map of the berths here - http://www.portolivorno2000.it/en/port

 

For most of the cruise ships that require a bus to get out of the port, the bus drops you outside the tourist office here - https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=43.550689,10.308983&num=1&t=h&z=20 and it would be a 2.4 km walk (30 minutes) to the train station. There are buses that run to the station from there (Bus 1) that takes about 10 minutes, and runs about every 15 minutes. You need to buy a ticket before you get on the bus from one of the news stands/tobacconists, and then validate it on the bus.

 

There is an hourly train from Livorno to Florence (08:12, 09:12. 10:12, etc plus an 08:52) that costs €9.20 each way (there is a very occasional faster and more expensive service). You must validate your ticket in one of the yellow boxes on the station before you get on the train. The train take about 90 minutes. You can see the times here http://www.trenitalia.com/ (put in Livorno Centrale to Firenze S. M. Novella)

 

More information here - http://www.livornonow.com/travelling_to_florence_by_train_from_livorno which also mentions a direct bus service to Florence - http://livornonow.com/direct_bus_service_from_livorno_to_pisa_and_florence

[Tennant]

Anyone cruised with holland america? Just wondering how much their shuttles are. And thanks insanemagnet, your information was very helpful!