Coach & Minibus Hire in Italy

La Spezia: Your Gateway to the Cinque Terre

La Spezia is the sensible base for the Cinque Terre, and the way most groups see the five villages surprises them: the road takes you to the edge, then trains and boats do the rest. A minibus makes those links easy and keeps luggage out of the picture.

Train or boat for the last stretch

Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore lie where steep, narrow lanes run out, with hardly any space to turn a bus. Riomaggiore's own 2026 ordinance says the villages are served by rail and sea from La Spezia, so the plan is simple: minibus to La Spezia or Levanto, then the train or a boat along the coast.

This year the seasonal Cinque Terre Express shuttles between La Spezia and Levanto from 14 March until 1 November, stopping in every village, on top of the ordinary regional services.

Minibus interior with individual seats
Minibus interior with individual seats

Where the minibus stops in La Spezia

Parking is limited to the city's listed bus areas. A minibus can stay all day at Park Pozzoli, on Via Carducci, or in Via Valdilocchi, where places are few. To drop people off, use the sea side of Viale Italia, near the boats to Palmaria and the villages, for up to 15 minutes, or Viale Fieschi beside the arsenal for up to half an hour. The city parking company takes bookings and payment online.

Flying in to La Spezia

Stops worth making in La Spezia

  • Museo Tecnico Navale — Naval museum at the gate of the La Spezia military arsenal
  • Lerici and the Golfo dei Poeti — Seaside town with its castle on the east side of the gulf
  • Portovenere — Fortified village at the tip of the gulf, UNESCO site together with the Cinque Terre and the islands of Palmaria, Tino and Tinetto
  • Via dell'Amore — Cliff path from Riomaggiore to Manarola, one way only, with a booked ticket and an entry time; groups up to 30 people book and pay in advance
  • Cinque Terre — The five villages of Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore, a national park and UNESCO World Heritage site; reached from La Spezia by train or, in season, by boat

Easy pickup points

  • The Cinque Terre villages (small hotels and rooms)
  • Levanto (west of the Cinque Terre)
  • Portovenere
  • Lerici and San Terenzo
  • La Spezia city centre and the station area

Rules in the villages

Manarola runs on reservations in 2026. Only one bus an hour gets in, from 08:00 until 20:00, each with a booked arrival and a matching booked departure, and a vehicle over 10 minutes late is refused. There are closed days at Easter, around 25 April and 1 May, early June and mid-August, and the 2027 rules are not out yet.

In Riomaggiore and Manarola a guided group may not exceed 25 people, loudspeakers are out, and groups may not halt on stairways or in narrow lanes. The Via dell'Amore goes one way, Riomaggiore towards Manarola, and walkers need a ticket for a set entry time; a party of up to 30 books and pays beforehand. Vernazza and Monterosso set their own rules, so check each village before you go, and check the weather too: orange alerts close the paths and stop buses.

Portovenere, Lerici and Levanto

Portovenere is about 30 minutes away and Lerici about 25. Lerici has no bus parking and asks for a transit permit by e-mail several days ahead, and for Portovenere the operator confirms where your group can step down. Levanto lets in no more than 10 tourist buses daily, and every one needs its own day permit reserved ahead.

What travellers ask us

Which airport is closest to La Spezia?

Pisa, about 85 km from the city centre, or roughly 1 h 20 min by road. Genoa's airport is about 115 km, around two hours.

Can the minibus take us right into Vernazza or Manarola?

It isn't the way to see them. Manarola allows one booked bus an hour at most, and the other villages have their own limits. The train or boat from La Spezia is kinder on everyone's day.

Can we stay in Levanto instead?

Yes. Buses going to Levanto's hotels and restaurants are among the exceptions to its daily limit, and the seasonal trains start there too.

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