Livorno travel guide
Medici canals, cacciucco and ferries to Corsica and Sardinia
Tuscany's main port, with Medici canals, sturdy fortresses and the best fish stew on the coast. Late spring and early autumn are the sweet spot. A night or two is enough, and Pisa is only 15 minutes away by train. Schengen rules give many visitors to Italy 90 days without a visa.
Livorno is Tuscany's working port on the Tyrrhenian coast, expanded by the Medici from the late 1500s as a planned town and free port. English travellers called it Leghorn. It is rougher around the edges than Florence or Lucca, and many cruise passengers only pass through, but the seafood alone justifies a night.
The best area to wander is the Venice Quarter, a grid of canals and bridges between the old fortresses and the sea. Climb onto the Fortezza Nuova for the view over the water channels, since little survives inside, then cross to the Fortezza Vecchia by the harbour. Near the port, the Quattro Mori monument shows four chained captives at the feet of a Medici grand duke.
Eat cacciucco, the thick local fish stew, at Trattoria Sottomarino near Piazza della Repubblica or at Cantina Senese in Borgo Cappuccini. Finish with a ponce alla livornese, hot coffee laced with rum. For a cheap lunch, locals grab a slice of chickpea torta. The Montenero funicular climbs to the hilltop sanctuary above town for a wide view of the coast.
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Top things to do in Livorno
Canals, fortresses and fish dinners are Livorno's strengths; leave time for the Montenero hill.
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Best time to visit Livorno
Month by month, so you can pick the weather and the crowds you want.
Mild weather for walking the canals and eating outside.
Hot, with full ferries to Corsica and Sardinia; book crossings early.
Quiet and breezy on the seafront; fish restaurants stay busy with locals.
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Getting there
Via Pisa, by train or ferry
Most people fly into Pisa's Galileo Galilei airport, ride the shuttle into Pisa Centrale and take one of the frequent trains down the coast, a trip of about 15 minutes. Trains also run direct from Florence in about 1 hour 20 minutes and from Rome. The catch is that Livorno Centrale is a long way from the centre, so plan on a bus.
- Pisa airport (PSA)
- Shuttle to Pisa Centrale, then about 15 minutes by train
- Livorno Centrale
- Well east of the centre; city buses run in to Piazza Grande and continue to the port
- Ferries
- Direct routes to Bastia, Olbia, Golfo Aranci and Palermo; a summer service to L'Ile-Rousse
- Cruise terminal
- Port shuttle into the centre; trains for Pisa and Florence from Centrale
- By sea, ferries link the port with Corsica, Sardinia and Sicily, and cruise ships dock here for day trips inland.
- Book summer ferries early, as sailings to Corsica and Sardinia fill up.
- Cruise passengers in a hurry should share an early taxi from the ship straight to the station.
Where to stay
Venice Quarter canals or the Viale Italia seafront
Livorno's hotels are mostly plain and practical, so choose by location. Around the Venice Quarter the canals and fish trattorias are outside the door, though some nearby streets feel scruffy late at night. Viale Italia is breezier and close to the Terrazza Mascagni, but a bus or bike ride from the centre.
- Venice Quarter
- Canals and old streets, close to the fish restaurants
- Viale Italia
- The seafront road south of the centre, quieter and breezier, near the Terrazza Mascagni
- Central streets
- Plain, friendly hotels such as Hotel Europa, near the main sights
- With an early ferry, stay close to the port.
Getting around
Bus 1 and bicycles
Once you are in the centre, almost everything is reachable on foot or by bike. Livorno is very flat, and cycling is nearly as common as in the Netherlands. Bus 1 shuttles between the station and the port, and an Autolinee Toscane urban ticket covers 70 minutes of travel.
- Bus 1
- Shuttle between the railway station and the port
- Bikes
- Rentals at Green Bikes on Scali del Corso in the Venice Quarter
- Montenero funicular
- Up to the hilltop sanctuary above the city
- Driving is a poor idea: the municipal police are quick to ticket badly parked cars, so leave the car in one of the large car parks or at your hotel.
- Look both ways on pavements: locals cycle on sidewalks and against the traffic on one-way streets.
Know before you go
What makes Livorno worth the trip, and what catches visitors out.
Why travelers love it
- The Venice Quarter at dusk, with boats tied along the canals below the old palazzi.
- A bowl of cacciucco, the tomato-rich fish stew the city claims as its own.
- The Montenero funicular, one of the few still running in Italy, up to the hilltop sanctuary.
Good to know
- Watch for bikes on the pavement: locals cycle on sidewalks and the wrong way down one-way streets.
- Call Trattoria Sottomarino ahead, as the small trattoria fills quickly and keeps its own weekly closing days.
Trip fit
BookingMentor editorial ratings out of 5, based on a first-time visitor's experience.
Weather in Livorno, month by month
Livorno's long-term averages load month by month below. Summer ferries to Corsica and Sardinia book up early.
Climate figures are approximate long-term averages for Livorno (Consorzio LaMMA, via Wikipedia).
The Quattro Mori, Fortezza Nuova and the Montenero funicular
Start the day at the port with the Quattro Mori and the Fortezza Vecchia, then the canals of the Venice Quarter and the ramparts of the Fortezza Nuova. After a cacciucco lunch, go south along the seafront to the Terrazza Mascagni and ride the Montenero funicular up to the sanctuary.
Start at the port with the Quattro Mori, the four bronze captives at the foot of the statue of a Medici grand duke, then walk along the harbour to the Fortezza Vecchia. Cross into the Venice Quarter and wander its canals and bridges; rent a bike at Green Bikes on Scali del Corso if you want to cover more ground.
Climb the ramparts of the Fortezza Nuova before lunch for the view over the water channels. Eat cacciucco nearby at Trattoria Sottomarino, after checking it is open that day. In the afternoon, take a bus or bike south along the seafront to the Terrazza Mascagni, then ride the Montenero funicular up to the sanctuary for the panorama over the city and the coast.
Back in town, end the day with fish and a ponce alla livornese.
Cacciucco, torta di ceci and a rum-laced ponce
Livorno's dish is cacciucco, a fish and shellfish stew in tomato broth over garlic toast. Trattoria Sottomarino and Cantina Senese are the addresses locals name, the second also for squid-ink riso nero. On the street, eat torta di ceci in bread, and end dinner with a ponce alla livornese, hot coffee with rum.
Livorno's dish is cacciucco, a dense stew of several kinds of fish and shellfish in a tomato broth, poured over toasted bread rubbed with garlic. Trattoria Sottomarino on Via dei Terrazzini, near Piazza della Repubblica, makes a famous version; ring before you go, since it shuts on set weekdays. Cantina Senese in Borgo Cappuccini is the other address locals name, also good for riso nero, risotto turned black with squid ink.
For something more inventive, Osteria La Volpe e l'Uva in the Venice Quarter mixes Livornese and Tuscan classics with new ideas. Il Tegolo on Piazza Garibaldi specialises in oysters and caviar.
On the street, look for torta di ceci, a thin chickpea pancake eaten in bread. After dinner, order a ponce alla livornese, hot coffee with rum, the classic way to end a meal here.
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How we research our Livorno travel guide
Ferry routes from Livorno, train links from Pisa airport and Autolinee Toscane tickets are updated when sailing schedules change. References are the city's visitor site and Italia.it.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Quick answers to the questions travelers ask most before visiting Livorno.
Getting there
Yes. Take the shuttle from the terminal to Pisa Centrale, then a southbound train that covers the rest in about 15 minutes. Florence airport is a much longer trip.
Take the bus. The station sits well away from the canals, and the ride in takes around 20 minutes, while bus 1 continues to the ferry port.
Most people fly into Pisa's Galileo Galilei airport, ride the shuttle into Pisa Centrale and take one of the frequent trains down the coast, a trip of about 15 minutes. Trains also run direct from Florence in about 1 hour 20 minutes and from Rome. The catch is that Livorno Centrale is a long way from the centre, so plan on a bus.
General
Yes. Take the port shuttle into town, then a bus to Livorno Centrale; trains to Florence take about 1 hour 20 minutes. Choose Florence or Pisa rather than trying both.
Chickpea torta is a street snack sold by the slice and stuffed into bread at lunchtime. The ponce, hot coffee with rum, closes dinner at almost any trattoria, from Sottomarino to Cantina Senese.
Bastia, Olbia, Golfo Aranci and Palermo have direct sailings, and in summer a boat also runs to L'Ile-Rousse in Corsica.
For food lovers, yes. Evenings in the Venice Quarter and a cacciucco dinner beat a night in Pisa, which is only a short train ride away for the Leaning Tower.
Yes, by reservation only. It is the oldest English cemetery in Italy, a reminder of Livorno's role as a port of call for Grand Tour travellers.
Very. The city is flat, and Green Bikes on Scali del Corso rents bicycles. Just watch for locals riding on pavements.
A small district of canals and bridges between the old town and the sea, built for merchants and their warehouses. It is the most pleasant part of the city to wander.
Once you are in the centre, almost everything is reachable on foot or by bike. Livorno is very flat, and cycling is nearly as common as in the Netherlands. Bus 1 shuttles between the station and the port, and an Autolinee Toscane urban ticket covers 70 minutes of travel.
Booking
Very likely, if it is badly parked: enforcement here is quick. Leave the car in a large car park or at the hotel and explore on foot or by bike.
Timing & weather
The best time to visit Livorno is Apr to Jun, Sep to Oct. Warm days by the sea, without the peak-season ferry crowds.
- Best overall: April - June, September - October (Mild weather for walking the canals and eating outside)
- Summer: July - August (Hot, with full ferries to Corsica and Sardinia; book crossings early)
- Winter: November - March (Quiet and breezy on the seafront; fish restaurants stay busy with locals)
Visa & documents
Schengen rules apply in Italy. Citizens of the EU and of many other countries, including the US, UK, Canada and Australia, can visit visa-free for up to 90 days in any 180-day period; other nationalities need a Schengen visa. The EU's Entry/Exit System (EES) records non-EU travelers' fingerprints and a photo at the border.
Health & safety
Violent crime against visitors to Italy is rare. Pickpocketing is the main problem, especially on buses and metros in Rome (bus 64 is notorious), at Roman and Florentine sights, and at Termini and Naples Centrale stations. Wear your bag across your body and zip it, and use only licensed white taxis or official ride apps.
