Cinque Terre by Train from La Spezia: Which Card, Which Order, Which Villages
Updated October 20, 2026 · 5 min read
For most visitors the regional train from La Spezia is the simplest way to reach all five villages, and you only need the Treno card if you also want the coastal paths or plan many hops in one day. The villages themselves are free to walk around; the card pays for trail access, local buses and unlimited second-class regional trains between La Spezia and Levanto.
The order of the villages
Heading north from La Spezia the stops come in this order: Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso al Mare. Riomaggiore is the first and closest; the GetYourGuide listing for the La Spezia–Riomaggiore train ticket gives the ride as 8 minutes and starts from €3.11. Vernazza is listed at about 20 minutes from €3.45, and the La Spezia–Monterosso ticket at 20 minutes from €4.03. Treat those as the order of magnitude, not as a timetable: check departures on Trenitalia on the day.
A sensible first day is to ride straight to Monterosso or Vernazza early, then work back south. Both are at sea level, so you arrive without a climb, and the crowds thicken later in the morning.
When the Treno card pays off
The park sells two cards. The Trekking card covers the paths: in 2026 the park lists €10 for an adult day on a quieter day and €15 on the busiest, with lower child and senior rates. The Treno card adds unlimited regional trains in second class between La Spezia and Levanto and costs €22 to €35 for one adult day, depending on how busy the park expects the day to be. Both are sold online at the park’s own card site and at its information points.
Do the arithmetic before buying. If you only ride the train and wander the lanes, a handful of single tickets will usually cost less than the Treno card. The card starts to make sense when you walk a paid section (for example Vernazza to Monterosso), ride the train between most of the villages, and use the park buses, all on the same day. Cards are named and only valid for the days printed on them; check the park’s page for the child age bands rather than trusting any summary, ours included.
Where the train is not enough
Corniglia is the only village not on the water. Its station sits at the bottom and the village is up a long staircase of roughly 380 steps; a park bus also runs up, which the card covers. Plan for that if anyone in your group finds stairs hard.
The coastal path between Manarola and Corniglia has been reported closed after landslides, with a higher route through Volastra as the alternative, and trail status changes at short notice. The park publishes weather and hydrogeological warnings and sometimes advises against using the trails altogether. If you came to hike, read our guide to hiking the Cinque Terre and check on arrival.
Trains also get crowded in high season, and a train is not a view of the sea. If the coast from the water is what you want, compare it in Cinque Terre by boat or train.
A guided train day instead
If you arrive on a cruise ship with a fixed return time, the shore excursion to Cinque Terre by train runs about 7 hours from the La Spezia cruise terminal, costs from €59 and has 1,348 reviews with an average of 4.1 stars. The small-group tour with limoncino is 8 hours from €72 and averages 4.4 stars. Whether the guide is worth the difference over a Treno card is covered in guided tour or go alone. All train options are on our Cinque Terre by train page.
Do you need a car?
No, and for the villages it is usually a disadvantage: the roads are narrow and parking is scarce. If your trip also takes in the wider Ligurian coast, you can compare car hire in La Spezia and check the deposit, fuel policy and excess with the provider before booking. Leave the car at your hotel or in La Spezia on the day you visit the villages.
