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Things to Do in Livorno: What Can You See on a Port Day?
The best things to do Livorno offers a cruise passenger are the Terrazza Mascagni seafront, the Fortezza Vecchia on Piazzale dei Marmi, the canals of the Venezia district and the Mercato delle Vettovaglie, a covered market opened in 1894. This guide covers each sight, the seafront and beaches, a one-day plan from the port shuttle, Livorno food tours and the day trips to Pisa and beyond.
Quick answer The sights, the food and the day trips
Livorno was made a city by the Medici in 1606, and its sights sit close together: the Fortezza Vecchia by the port, the Venezia canals beside it, the covered market and the Terrazza Mascagni on the sea. A free walk covers the outside of all four, and a food walk or a pasta class adds a guide. Pisa is 20 km away by rail if you want the Tower too.
Key takeaways
- Make pasta inside a Medici fort: Pasta-Making Class with Wine at Fortezza Nuova for 2 hours.
- Eat the city with a guide: Street Food Tour: A Tasty Local Adventure for 3 hours.
- Add the Leaning Tower: Escorted Shore Excursion to Pisa with Leaning Tower at $33 for 4 hours.
- Every day trip from the port compared on livorno florence tours.
What is worth seeing in Livorno, Italy?
The Terrazza Mascagni, the Fortezza Vecchia, the Venezia district canals and the Mercato delle Vettovaglie are the four sights to see first.
Livorno grew from a fishing village around the Mastio di Matilde di Canossa, which the Medici decided in the second half of the 16th century should become one of the main ports of Europe. The sights below come from that history.
The short list
This table lines up the main sights by what they are and what you do there. Opening hours for the forts, the market and the museums are not published on the regional tourism pages, so check them locally on the day.
| Sight | What it is | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| Terrazza Mascagni | Seafront terrace with a black and white checkered floor | Walk it and look out to sea |
| Fortezza Vecchia | Medici fort guarding the port, with the Mastio di Matilde | See the walls, check for events |
| Venezia district | Bridges and navigable canals | Walk the canals or follow them by boat |
| Mercato delle Vettovaglie | Covered food market opened in 1894 | Shop and eat |
| Museo Civico Giovanni Fattori | Civic art museum in Villa Mimbelli | Indoor stop on a hot or wet day |
Source: Visit Tuscany.
The pavilion and promenade of Terrazza Mascagni on the Livorno seafront. Photo: Piergiuliano Chesi, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Why is Terrazza Mascagni the classic Livorno view?
It is the seafront terrace with a black and white checkered floor and an open view of the sea, the view Livorno is known for.
The Terrazza Mascagni is the classic view of Livorno, a terrace open to the sea.
How to fit it in
Walk the length of the checkered floor and keep going along the seafront. The Livorno Aquarium is one of the city's museums and makes a pair with the terrace for families.
Autolinee Toscane urban line 1 runs from the station via Carducci and Grande to Italia, Ardenza Mare and Miramare along the coast. An urban ticket costs $2.22 (€2), or $3.32 (€3) from the driver on board.
Source: Visit Tuscany.
What is the Venezia district in Livorno?
It is the canal quarter next to the Fortezza Vecchia, with bridges and navigable canals that lead by boat to the Renaissance centre.
The port operator names the Venezia district as the nearby area for shops and restaurants.
Walk it or ride it
Start at the Fortezza Vecchia and cross into the district on foot. The canals can be followed by boat to the Renaissance centre, and waterways join the Fortezza Vecchia to the Fortezza Nuova.
This is also where you find most cafes and restaurants within reach of the port, so it works as the lunch stop of a Livorno day.
Source: Visit Tuscany.
Is the Mercato delle Vettovaglie worth a stop?
Yes, it is a covered market from 1894 modelled on Les Halles in Paris and described as the largest covered market in Italy.
The Mercato delle Vettovaglie, also called Mercato Centrale or Mercato Coperto, opened in 1894 on the Fosso Reale.
Where it is and what to eat
The market stands on Via Buontalenti, 57123 Livorno. Angiolo Badaloni designed it on the model of Les Halles in Paris.
Go for the food rather than the building alone. Livorno's own dish is cacciucco, the fish stew the city celebrates every year at its Cacciucco Pride festival. The market's opening hours are not printed on the regional page, so go in the morning and check at the door. For a guided version, Livorno history food and wine tasting is a 3-hour walk with food and wine tastings.
Source: Visit Tuscany.
What are the Fortezza Vecchia and Fortezza Nuova?
They are the two forts of Medici Livorno, the old one guarding the port and the new one joined to it by waterways.
The Fortezza Vecchia holds the Mastio di Matilde and took the look of a real fortification around 1500 under the Medici.
Old fort, new fort
The Fortezza Vecchia's address is Piazzale dei Marmi, the same square as the Cruise Terminal. Today it is used for events from art to music and cinema, and the Venezia district is next to it. Its opening hours and entry price are not published on the official tourism page, so check locally before you plan a visit inside.
The Fortezza Nuova is joined to the old fort by waterways. Pasta-Making Class with Wine at Fortezza Nuova is a 2-hour hands-on class inside it, with prosecco, wine and limoncello.
Sources: Visit Tuscany, Porto di Livorno 2000.
Tours That Fit
Day trips from the Livorno port when one city is not enough.
from $33
Escorted Pisa
Escorted Pisa Shore Excursion from Livorno with Leaning Tower
Escorted half day in Pisa from Livorno, about 30 minutes each way, with a Leaning Tower ticket as an option.
Check Availability
from $38
Two towns
Pisa and Lucca Bus Transfer from Livorno Cruise Port
Lucca and Pisa in one coach day: about 3 hours inside the walls of Lucca and 1 hour 45 minutes in Pisa.
Check Availability
from $978.34
Top rated private
Private Pisa and Florence Minivan Tour from Livorno Port
A private minivan for your party, priced per vehicle, with Pisa and Florence from outside and a stop at Piazzale Michelangelo.
Check Availability
from $456.06
Private Cinque Terre and Pisa Shore Excursion from Livorno
Private Cinque Terre and Pisa for up to 8, three villages by ferry, pickup in front of the ship.
Check AvailabilityWhat is Livorno famous for?
Livorno is famous as the Medici port city, for the first bathing establishments in Europe and for its fish stew, cacciucco.
The Medici made Livorno a city in 1606, after deciding to turn a fishing village into one of the main ports of Europe.
Port, sea baths and food
The very first bathing establishments in Europe were built in Livorno in the nineteenth century. Cacciucco has its own festival, Cacciucco Pride, where visitors taste it in many versions.
The museums show the other side of the city: the Giovanni Fattori Civic Museum in Villa Mimbelli, the Museum of Natural History of the Mediterranean in Villa Henderson, the Livorno Aquarium and the Jewish Museum Yeshiva Marini. The Duomo of Livorno, the Cathedral of San Francesco, had its facade rebuilt after the Second World War bombings.
Source: Visit Tuscany.
Where are the beaches in Livorno?
Livorno swims along its seafront, the coast that urban bus line 1 follows to Ardenza Mare and Miramare.
Livorno built the very first bathing establishments in Europe in the nineteenth century, and the seafront is still where the city swims.
Getting to the sea
Take Autolinee Toscane urban line 1 from the centre towards Ardenza Mare and Miramare. Buy the urban ticket before you board for $2.22 (€2), or pay $3.32 (€3) to the driver.
On a port day, keep an eye on the clock. The ride back to the shuttle point and the shuttle to the ship both take time, so leave the beach well before all-aboard.
Source: Visit Tuscany.
How to spend a day in Livorno?
Take the port shuttle downtown, walk the forts and the Venezia canals in the morning, eat at the market and finish on the Terrazza Mascagni.
The port operator runs a shuttle bus from the ship to downtown for the whole stay of the ship, and the terminal welcome desks hand out city maps.
A port-day plan
This plan keeps the walking short and ends near the bus line back to the centre.
| Part of the day | Where | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Morning | Fortezza Vecchia and the Venezia district | Next to each other, close to the port |
| Late morning | Walk the waterways to the Fortezza Nuova | The canals link the two forts |
| Lunch | Mercato delle Vettovaglie | Livorno's covered food market |
| Afternoon | Terrazza Mascagni and the seafront | The classic view of the city |
| Option | Street Food Tour: A Tasty Local Adventure | 3 hours of street food with a guide |
The hill above the city
The Montenero funicular needs an urban bus ticket for the ride to it, and the funicular ticket itself costs $2.22 (€2).
Sources: Porto di Livorno 2000, Visit Tuscany.
Is Livorno, Italy worth visiting, or should you leave on a day trip?
Livorno is worth a short day, but the port operator names Florence, Pisa, Lucca and Siena as within easy reach, and Pisa is the quickest of them.
Pisa Centrale is 20 km from Livorno Centrale by rail, and the regional train takes about 15 to 17 minutes.
Day trips from the port
These are the day trips that leave from Livorno, by price and length. The Cinque Terre day adds ferry or train tickets on top, up to 30 Euro per person.
| Trip | Price | Length |
|---|---|---|
| Escorted Shore Excursion to Pisa with Leaning Tower | $33 per person | 4 hours |
| Bus Transfer to Pisa and Lucca from Cruise Port | $38 per person | 7 hours |
| Lucca tour and Pisa Tower + WineTasting by van from Livorno Port | $179.49 per person | 7-8 hours |
| Pisa and Florence Private Shore Excursion from Livorno Port | $732 per group up to 8 | 8 hours |
| Cinque Terre and Pisa Full-Day Private Shore Excursion from Livorno Port | $456.06 | 9 hours |
The vaulted hall of the Mercato delle Vettovaglie, Livorno's covered market. Photo: Sailko, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Livorno Port Day FAQ
Is Livorno, Italy worth visiting?
Yes for a short day: the Terrazza Mascagni, the Fortezza Vecchia, the Venezia canals and the covered market sit close together. For the bigger cities, compare the day trips on livorno florence tours.
What is Livorno famous for?
Its Medici port, the first bathing establishments in Europe and cacciucco, the fish stew of its Cacciucco Pride festival. Taste the city on Livorno history food and wine tasting.
How to spend a day in Livorno?
Shuttle downtown, then the forts and canals, lunch at the Mercato delle Vettovaglie and the Terrazza Mascagni in the afternoon. A guided option is Street Food Tour: A Tasty Local Adventure.
What are the free things to do in Livorno?
Walking the Terrazza Mascagni, the outside of the Fortezza Vecchia and the Venezia canals costs nothing. More ideas for the day are on livorno florence tours.
Can I see Pisa from the Livorno port in half a day?
Yes. Pisa is 20 km by rail and about 15 to 17 minutes by regional train, or take Escorted Shore Excursion to Pisa with Leaning Tower at $33 for 4 hours.
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