Port change for Florence

[NCteacherlovescruising]

I got an email today from Celebrity saying they are changing our port from La Spezia to Livorno due to port congestion. It appears this is good news since it’s much closer to Pisa and Florence. If this is true, why isn’t that their first choice for ports?  Am I missing something?  

[John Bull]

La Spezia is popular for places like Cinque Terre and Portofino.

So if it's Florence that you want you've lucked-in.👍

 

Direct (hourly, I think) trains to Florence (Firenze S M Novella) from Livorno Centrale.

And that station in Florence is right adjacent to the historic area.

 

Alternatively more-frequent trains for the much shorter distance to Pisa.

 

Or if you are the type who are happy with whistle-stop visits you can stop-off at Pisa on the way back from Florence, your Livorno - Florence train ticket allows you to break your journey at Pisa.

 

The only difficulty is getting from the port to Livorno Centrale.

The part of the port where larger cruise ships berth is secure, you need to leave the port by vehicle.

There are taxis (some can carry 😎 and the station is about 20 minutes away, but there's often difficulty in getting drivers to agree to a station run - they tend to look for jucier work.

Like most cruise lines, Celebrity will provide a payable shuttle to the city centre, but that's not convenient to the station and you need a local bus from the shuttle drop-point to the station - so you'll be travelling two sides of a triangle.

 

There are also bus tours to Florence and to Pisa, hopefully others can give you the information.

 

My info. is several years old, so its pointless for me to quote fares but it's quite pocket-friendly.

 

JB 🙂

Edited January 20, 2023 by John Bull

[marazul]

3 hours ago, NCteacherlovescruising said:

I got an email today from Celebrity saying they are changing our port from La Spezia to Livorno due to port congestion. It appears this is good news since it’s much closer to Pisa and Florence. If this is true, why isn’t that their first choice for ports?  Am I missing something?  

You are not missing anything.  Livorno is the most popular port in area because it is closer to Florence. Because of the huge number of ships that dock there, many cruises stop at La Spezia. So adjust your tours accordingly.  You'll be fine.

 

PS- I am out of covid jail and will check back from time to time if you have more questions. 

Edited January 21, 2023 by marazul

[John Bull]

12 hours ago, John Bull said:

There are taxis (some can carry 😎 and the station is about 20 minutes away,

 

JB 🙂

 

No, I wasn't drunk. That was stupid Bill Gates and his short-cuts.

That was the figure 8 followed by close-brackets, which Mr Gates decided would be an emoticon.🙄

So to clarify,.............. some taxis carry eight, sunglasses are not mandatory 😏

 

JB 🙂

[edinburgher]

If this is true, why isn’t that their first choice for ports?

 

You will likely never know the reason for the change, but la Spezia is often used when Livorno is full on the requested date.

 

It may be that Livorno did not have a spare berth on  the day Celebrity tried to book it for, so they took L.S. instead, but maybe one of the pre-booked ships had a change of itinerary and a berth in Livorno oame available. 

 

i have no idea, this only a guess.

Edited January 21, 2023 by edinburgher

[slidergirl]

At least you weren't expecting Venice and getting Trieste instead...

[pfopma]

I'm on that Celebrity Cruise and it sucks because our focus was on the Cinque Terre. Now looking at Excursions that will take us there but it's a 1.5 to 2 hr one way trip from Livorno to CT. Genoa will be a little close but not a lot of non-ship options that I can find. Celebrity hasn't put up their Genoa shore excursions yet. 

Edited January 26, 2023 by pfopma

[GreenFamily]

Did you see this thread? 

 

[NCteacherlovescruising]

7 hours ago, GreenFamily said:

Did you see this thread? 

 

No, but we plan to go to Florence, not Cinque Terre. 

[marazul]

2 hours ago, NCteacherlovescruising said:

No, but we plan to go to Florence, not Cinque Terre. 

NC - Pisa and Lucca would be a great option for your second day. Easy to do by train.

[GreenFamily]

19 hours ago, GreenFamily said:

Did you see this thread? 

 

Sorry, this was meant for @pfopma

[NCteacherlovescruising]

15 hours ago, marazul said:

NC - Pisa and Lucca would be a great option for your second day. Easy to do by train.

We’re doing a private excursion with Rome in Limo to both, as well as a winery visit. 😜

[marazul]

6 minutes ago, NCteacherlovescruising said:

We’re doing a private excursion with Rome in Limo to both, as well as a winery visit. 😜

Awesome! Back to your original winery plans. 😄

[NCteacherlovescruising]

1 minute ago, marazul said:

Awesome! Back to your original winery plans. 😄

Of course!  Visiting a winery on this trip is a high priority. One day doing that and the next in Florence. 

[marazul]

3 hours ago, NCteacherlovescruising said:

Of course!  Visiting a winery on this trip is a high priority. One day doing that and the next in Florence. 

Nice. Just a thought.  Florence is farther away from Livorno and there is so much to see... Would you consider going to Florence the first day so you can see more and maybe have a nice dinner there? You have plenty of time for Pisa, Lucca and winery the second day. 

Edited January 29, 2023 by marazul