Shore Excursions La Spezia Carrara Genova

SP01 - Florence & Pisa

A trip to Tuscany is not complete without a visit to two of the most beautiful cities in Italy – PISA, once a thriving maritime port with a great navy (it was only in 1998 that the original harbour of Pisa was discovered just 500metres from the Leaning Tower!) and FLORENCE, a great Renaissance city over 2000 years old and the cultural heart of Tuscany.  

Your personal driver will collect you directly from your ship for the hour drive to the centre of Pisa - see the Leaning Tower (1173-1350) and marvel at the stunning setting of the Campo dei Miracoli where the Baptistery took 242 years to complete and where it is said that Galileo Galilei was baptised in 1564.  You’ll also drive through Piazza dei Cavalieri and the renowned university Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa before departing the city for the hour and twenty minute drive to the centre of Florence where your driver will be at your service throughout the day to show you the renaissance highlights which start as you approach the city to breathtaking views across the River Arno from Piazzale Michaelangelo before making your way into the heart of history.  You could, if you wished, take a 20 minute detour around Florence through beautiful Chianti countryside filled with vineyards and olive groves – just let your driver know what you would prefer to do.  Once in Florence, discover the city’s prominent landmarks without too much walking – your driver will give you some background information about the history and monuments - Discover the splendid piazzas of Santa Croce and its gothic church where Michelangelo, Galileo and Dante are buried, Piazza del Duomo, Piazza della Repubblica, Piazza della Signoria and its Palazzo Vecchio, stroll amoung the narrow streets past the lively and colourful market of San Lorenzo (renowned for its leather) and the Medici Chapel to La Loggia dei Mercanti, Orsanmichele and the enchanting Ponte Vecchio reaching across the River Arno to the Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens.  Florence’s museums, palaces and churches contain more good art than perhaps any other city in Europe and highly recommended are the Uffizi (for Botticelli’s Birth of Venus and Primavera), and the Accademia (for Michelangelo’s David).  At no extra cost, we can assist in ensuring pre-booked museum tickets so you won’t have to waste time standing in line.  Plan to depart Florence at around 3:15pm for the two hour journey back to your ship at the La Spezia docks.

SP02 - Lucca & Pisa

Get a true feel for Italian living as you discover the enchantments of some of Tuscany’s smaller towns. 

Your personal driver will collect you directly from your ship for the hour drive to the centre of PISA, once a thriving maritime port with a great navy - it was only in 1998 that the original harbour of Pisa was discovered just 500metres from the Leaning Tower!  See the Leaning Tower (1173-1350) and marvel at the stunning setting of the Campo dei Miracoli where the Baptistery took 242 years to complete and where it is said that Galileo Galilei was baptised in 1564.  Then it’s on to LUCCA (30 minute drive) where you can enjoy the city taking you back in time to 180BC when Lucca was founded as a Roman colony.  Your driver will take you around the outside circle of the medieval walls (built between 1504-1645) and then you will wind your way into the heart of the city to discover the anfiteatro, an arena shaped piazza, the church of San Michele in Foro (where Puccini began his musical career as a choirboy), the 11^th century Cathedral of San Martino housing the Volto Santo, a cedar-wood crucifix said to be a true portrait of Jesus sculpted by Nicodemus, an eyewitness to the crucifixion, Matteo Civitali’s marble tabernacle the “Tempietto”, the Tomb of Illaria del Caretto (1408) by Jacopo della Quercia and Tintorettos’s “Last Supper”.  After lunch why not take a 20 minute drive to the local vineyards where you will be able to enjoy countryside views and at the same time taste some of the wines that this area has to offer.  Many of the local vineyards also produce their own olive oil.  Alternatively, if you wish to spend more time in the city centre,  one of the best ways to gather in the sites of the city centre is to climb the Guinigi Tower (tree topped) for views across Lucca towards the hills.  Stop for some of the best gelato in town before your driver takes you on the hour journey back to your ship in La Spezia.

SP03 - Cinque Terre & Portovenere

Adventure along the Ligurian coastline past the ancient waterfront of PORTOVENERE, a colourful fishing village, to the enchanting stretch of protected rocky coastline with the five dramatically situated villages of the CINQUE TERRE, a landscape so unique that in 1990 it was listed as a world heritage site under the protection of UNESCO. 

Your personal driver will collect you directly from your ship for the half hour journey to PORTOVENEREwhere you can enjoy stunning sea views from the promotory where the little church of San Pietro stands and where Byron spent many of his days.  From Portovenere, your driver will take you on to RIOMAGGIORE, the fist of the Cinque Terre villages named after the brook (rio) that flows down to the beach in a deep winding gully.  He will guide you to the famous VIA DELL’AMORE a beautiful 30 minute leisurely and flat walk along the cliff where sea and land blend in together in a dramatic and panoramic way.  On your arrival at MANAROLA (past hillsides planted with vines producing the sweet wine “Sciacchetrà) we would suggest using the ferry to get to VERNAZZA.  We will help to purchase ferry tickets and recommend a day pass which allows you to go on and off any boat at any of the Cinque Terre villages throughout the day.  We also provide a map and a time-table for returning boats.  Vernazza is a wonderful lunch stop with several characteristic restaurants facing the main square and looking out to the sea and harbour.  After lunch take the ferry to MONTEROSSO (the largest of the Cinque Terre villages) where your driver will be waiting for you for the 25 minute drive to CORNIGLIA, the oldest village named after a Roman settler and often celebrated in Boccaccio’s and Carducci’s works because of its excellent wine “Vermentino”.  Set atop the cliffs, it is a natural terrace on earth with spectacular views!  The journey back to your ship at La Spezia/st1:place> is about 45 minutes.

SP04 - Design your own Tuscan/Ligurian Tour

Everyone has their own special reason for coming to Italy  – there are things you may want to see and do that are not mentioned in one of our pre-arranged tours.  Many of our clients are looking for relatives or visiting old friends, many are food and wine enthusiasts and are looking for a particular experience, some are interested in exploring in the footsteps of Leonardo Da Vinci through the marble quarries of CARRARA and the sculpture town of PIETRASANTA, others have always dreamed of walking the Vasari Corridor in FLORENCE.  The area around Liguria and Tuscany holds an abundance of treasures – Renaissance FLORENCE filled with art and steeped in history, maritime PISA with the splendid Leaning Tower, enchanting LUCCA surrounded and protected by its medieval walls, delightful fishing villages of PORTOVENERE and the CINQUE TERRE, the lively beach resort of FORTE DEI MARMI renowned for its boutiques, restaurants and the summertime haunt of many Italian TV and film personalities, BOLGHERI wine estates producing SuperTuscan wines that look out over to sea views across to the island of ELBA where Napoleon was exiled in 1814.  From history, art, culture and tradition to food and wine ... let Shore Excursions Italy take you on a personal adventure.  Our drivers will meet you directly from your ship at the dock at 8am and will be at your complete disposal for up to a 9 hour service, returning you to your ship at the end of a fulfilled day of discovery.

Contact us now for other tour suggestions that include:

SP05 - Golf in Tuscany

SP06 - Pisa, Lucca and the Carrara Marble Quarries

SP07 - Supertuscan Tour of Bolgheri

ALL OF THESE TOURS ARE AVAILABLE FROM THE PORTS OF LA SPEZIA, CARRARA AND GENOVA/GENOA

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