---
title: "Backpack: Two Days by Rail From Paris to the Cinque Terre of Liguria"
description:  No direct train links Paris to Cinque Terre, and that turns out to be the appeal rather than the obstacle. A two-day rail itinerary through the Alps to Ital...
author: Dr Marina Nani (Editor-in-Chief)
date: 2026-08-07T17:00:00.000Z
updated: 2026-10-22T11:07:01.591Z
canonical: https://richtravelmagazine.com/article/backpack-two-days-by-rail-from-paris-to-the-cinque-terre-of-liguria
image: https://cdn.nanimediahouse.com/caption (1).jpg
categories: Destinations
content_type: Guide
region: Italy
publication: Rich Travel Magazine
access: members
schema_type: Article
---

---

There is no direct train from Paris to the Cinque Terre, and once the journey is underway, [that absence stops feeling like an inconvenience](https://richtravelmagazine.com/article/meaningful-trip-to-andorra). It becomes the point. The route runs south-east out of Paris Gare de Lyon, climbs into the foothills of the Alps, crosses into Italy and only then turns toward the coast, arriving eventually at a string of five villages so compact that [cars were never really invited in the first place](https://richtravelmagazine.com/article/italy-road-trip-venice-como-cinque-terre-florence-val-dorcia). It is a journey best taken slowly, in the middle of what European rail is calling its biggest year of expansion in decades, with new night trains and high-speed links reshaping the map on either side of this particular route.

## The route

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