Genoa’s cruise port sits on the old harbour waterfront, with ships at Ponte dei Mille or Ponte Andrea Doria. The caruggi and Piazza Caricamento are a flat 15-minute walk, and Genova Principe is a few hundred metres behind the piers. MSC and Costa start and end cruises here, so it feels like a check-in hall as much as a waterfront.
Which terminal in Genoa do MSC and Costa use
MSC and Costa use the Stazioni Marittime piers at Ponte dei Mille and Ponte Andrea Doria, the two cruise berths in the old port. The other three terminals in the concession, Calata Chiappella, Ponte Caracciolo and Ponte Colombo, are almost all ferries, so if your paperwork names one of those, check it again.
Costa names Ponte dei Mille or Ponte Andrea Doria as its Genoa berths. MSC sends guests to the same two piers and runs a valet service at the quay. You can book MSC Parking online up to 48 hours before departure; after that, you book directly with MSC Parking.
Ponte dei Mille is the larger of the two, three floors with escalators and lifts, and it can work two big ships at once, up to 10,000 passengers in a day. Ponte Andrea Doria is a two-level building handling up to 8,000 passengers a day. Check-in there is in the building beside the baggage drop, which helps if you’re dropping cases before joining the queue.
Between them the two terminals can have four large ships alongside at once, which is when the taxi rank and the waterfront fill up. Stazioni Marittime is where the major international lines start and finish, and some itineraries now join at one port and leave from another, so check whether your cruise comes back to Genoa.
Your berth can change by ship and sailing, so the pier on your boarding documents is the one that counts.
Terminal assignments and walking times by pier are broken down in the guide to the Genoa cruise port terminals.
Genoa cruise port map
Ships dock at Ponte dei Mille terminal. From the terminal, Acquario di Genova is about a 12-minute walk, Via Garibaldi about 19 minutes and Spianata Castelletto about 20 minutes. Tap a pin for directions.
- Ponte dei Mille terminalWhere ships dock
- Genova Piazza Principe stationAbout 9 min walk from the terminal
- Acquario di GenovaAbout 12 min walk from the terminal
- Via GaribaldiAbout 19 min walk from the terminal
- Spianata CastellettoAbout 20 min walk from the terminal
- Cathedral of San LorenzoAbout 21 min walk from the terminal
Walking from Genoa cruise port to the city centre
You can walk from Genoa cruise port into the city centre in about 15 minutes. From Ponte dei Mille it’s roughly 1 km, flat, along the waterfront to the edge of the caruggi and Piazza Caricamento.
The berth makes the difference, so add the walk out from your assigned berth to whatever the map says. From the public side of Stazioni Marittima beside Ponte dei Mille to Piazza Caricamento is about 1.6 km and 22 minutes via Via Adua, Via Gramsci and Via di Prè, and from the Stazione Marittima into the old town itself allow anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes depending on the dock.
Piazza De Ferrari, the central square, is roughly 30 minutes on foot. Porto Antico is 10 to 15 minutes from the terminal, the old town begins where the waterfront ends, and Via Garibaldi is another 5 to 10 minutes beyond the caruggi.
The walk is the transfer here, so there’s no port shuttle to wait for. If you’d rather ride, taxis wait beside the terminal, the metro at San Giorgio is a few metres from Piazza Caricamento, and AMT bus lines 1, 13 and 17 stop at Caricamento.
If walking isn’t on the cards, the Trenino Pippo tourist train leaves from Piazza Caricamento in front of the Aquarium, about 5 minutes from the terminal, and loops the centre in about 40 minutes with multilingual audio. The City Sightseeing hop-on hop-off bus goes as far as Boccadasse and takes about 60 minutes for the full loop.
The one bit that catches people out is arriving from Genova Principe station. It’s 200 to 400 m from the terminal area, but the route crosses busy roads, and a 350 m step-free underground link with a lift is being built to fix exactly that. Until it opens, walk between Principe and the waterfront via Sottoripa, about 12 minutes, or take the metro between Principe and San Giorgio.
If you’re working out how much of the city fits into your hours ashore, an hour-by-hour Genoa port day itinerary is the place to start.
Genoa cruise port to the airport and train station
Genova Piazza Principe is the station for the cruise terminal, 200 to 400 m from the piers. Genova Cristoforo Colombo airport is 5 to 6 km away with direct motorway access, and the Volabus runs between the airport and the city centre, stopping at Principe where city buses, the metro and taxis also stop.
By road, come off the A10, A7 or A26 at Genova Ovest and follow the signs for the port. Coaches park beside the terminal building and taxis rank next to it, with a 900-vehicle car park in front of the passenger terminal for drop-offs.
Starting or finishing your cruise in Florence? The Florence to Genoa train takes about four hours, too long for a port day but easy before or after the cruise.
Parking at Genoa cruise port
The car park tied to the terminals is the Parcheggio Stazioni Marittime inside the port at Ponte dei Mille, walkable from the check-in halls, partly covered, covered by cameras and with insurance included. Book it ahead, because it fills on busy changeover days, and leave your keys at the garage.
Bookings and rates for that car park go through Stazioni Marittime, where you can book parking with Stazioni Marittime or email park@smge.it. Expect to pay more for the cruise and ferry lots at the Stazione Marittima, less in the Calata delle Vele ferry lots if you take a multi-day rate, and a premium for a walk-up space in high summer; check the current rate when you book.
MSC’s car park is Garage Ponte dei Mille, about 100 m from the port at Via Raffaele Rubattino 9, with meet-and-greet valet: staff take the car at the ship and bring it back there. It’s open 06:15 to 24:00 with a 2.80 m height limit, check-in Monday to Saturday 07:00 to 22:00 and Sunday and public holidays 07:00 to 17:00, and it takes Costa and MSC bookings only, excluding MSC Opera sailings, mini-cruises and ferries.
Off-site, Lanterna Parking runs a shuttle bus, lets you keep your keys, and sits about 1 km from the cruise terminal and 200 m from the ferry terminal. Airparks Parkhalle is the long-stay choice: keys are handed over, the garage is staffed 24 hours, gated and covered by cameras, with a 2.00 m height limit, arrivals only between 08:00 and 16:00, collection between 08:00 and 10:30, and no bookings of fewer than eight days.
If someone is driving you, use the 900-vehicle car park in front of the passenger terminal. If you’ve booked MSC valet, drive straight to the check-in area and parking staff meet you there rather than at the garage.
Where to eat near Genoa cruise port
Eating near Genoa cruise port means the caruggi behind Piazza Caricamento and the Sottoripa arcade, about 15 minutes from the terminal on the Porto Antico side of the old town. Order at a bakery counter and eat it on the way back towards the ship.
Focaccia genovese is the thing to try. It’s thicker and oilier than the focaccia sold elsewhere in Italy, dimpled with fingertips, often scattered with rosemary or topped with onion, and it travels well if you want something for the cabin later.
There’s more to work through than one square of bread, and must-try Genoa street foods covers what locals queue for.
Acquario di Genova
The Acquario di Genova sits at Ponte Spinola 16 in Porto Antico, 10 to 15 minutes on foot from the Stazione Marittima, which makes it the big sight that fits most comfortably into a few hours ashore. It opens every day of the year, though hours shift with the season, so check before you set off.
Entry is timed. A fixed-date ticket ties you to the date and time you booked, while a flexi ticket is valid for a year and can be re-dated once up to two hours before your slot.
Only guide dogs are allowed. The aquarium car park is open 24 hours with 167 spaces and takes no reservations, so it’s not a fallback on a busy day.
Timed tickets and seasonal hours are on the Acquario di Genova website. If you’re still weighing it against the palaces, things to do in Genoa from a cruise ship sets out the timings plainly.
Via Garibaldi and the Rolli Palaces
Via Garibaldi, the old Strada Nuova, is the street where Genoa’s wealthiest families built their palaces, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Palazzo Rosso, Palazzo Bianco and Palazzo Tursi make up the Musei di Strada Nuova, with frescoed rooms and paintings.
From Porto Antico, walk the caruggi and allow 5 to 10 minutes beyond the edge of the old town to reach the street. The Card Musei, sold at the tourist office desk in the Stazione Marittima at Ponte dei Mille and at Via al Porto Antico 2, covers 25 city museums including the Musei di Strada Nuova, the Galata Museo del Mare and the cathedral treasure museum, so buy it before you set off.
The Cathedral of San Lorenzo
The Cathedral of San Lorenzo is Romanesque and sits on the caruggi route between Porto Antico and Via Garibaldi, so you pass it without a detour. Inside you’ll find what’s presented as St John the Baptist’s ashes, a replica of an unexploded wartime bomb beside the confessionals, and a museum of medieval silver and gold.
Best photo spots in Genoa
Spianata Castelletto gives you rooftops, harbour and sea in one frame, and the city lights come on around sunset; a public lift runs up from Via Garibaldi, so there are no stairs. Piazza Caricamento and the Porto Antico waterfront give you the Bigo lift, the Biosfera and the aquarium facade together.
Via Garibaldi is the one for palace facades, and Boccadasse, the fishing quarter with coloured houses, a pebble beach and a breakwater, is about 20 minutes away by car or taxi from the Stazione Marittima.
If you want the cliff walk as well as the viewpoint, walks near the port of Genoa covers the routes that start from the waterfront.
What to wear in Genoa: outfit ideas for a port day
Wear trainers or proper walking shoes. The old town is medieval alleys and stone-flagged streets, and the sights are strung together on foot, so anything with a heel will make you regret it, for men and women alike.
The Passeggiata Anita Garibaldi cliff walk asks for decent shoes and is a moderate hike rather than a promenade. Spianata Castelletto is reached by lift, not stairs, which makes it the one viewpoint that costs you nothing in effort.
For more inspiration, see these casual cruise outfit ideas for women and cruise outfit ideas for men.
Where to stay near Genoa cruise port
If you’re sailing from Genoa, stay near Ponte dei Mille: check-in and the ship are a short walk, and Genova Principe is a few hundred metres away for trains onward. The same areas work after the cruise, with the Principe side better for early trains and the Porto Antico side better for the old town.
NH Collection Genova Marina is on the waterfront, about a 5 minute walk from the terminal, with modern rooms. Hotel Bellevue is 50 m from Genova Principe and 400 m from Ponte dei Mille, with 24-hour reception, buffet breakfast, luggage storage and terraces looking over the harbour and the lighthouse. Grand Hotel Savoia is the luxury option, about a 7 minute drive away, with a spa and a rooftop terrace.
Luggage storage at Genoa cruise port
Genoa’s terminals handle bags as part of getting one cruise off and the next one on, rather than as a left-luggage service. The terminal fee covers a single bag drop for boarding and leaving the ship, plus transport from the customs halls, or from the ship, to coaches in the car parks beside the terminals.
That’s not much help if you’re off the ship in the morning with a flight in the evening. For a few hours without dragging your cases around, find a place to leave your bags in Genoa. If you’re staying at the Hotel Bellevue near Principe, it holds bags too.
How to spend a port day in Genoa
A port day in Genoa works best on foot: the Aquarium and Porto Antico sit nearest the ship, with San Lorenzo and Via Garibaldi’s palaces a short walk further into the caruggi.
Before you sail
- Book timed-entry Acquario di Genova tickets online before you travel.
- Check which berth, Ponte dei Mille or Ponte Andrea Doria, is on your documents.
- Book MSC Parking online up to 48 hours ahead if you're driving to the port.
Short port day: under 6 hours
- On dockingWalk into Porto AnticoNo shuttle neededIt's a flat 15 minute walk along the waterfront to Piazza Caricamento and the caruggi. See the guide to Genoa cruise port terminals for your berth.
- +20 minAcquario di GenovaBook timed ticketsA few minutes past Piazza Caricamento in Porto Antico. Entry is timed, so book a slot online before you go.
- +1 hr 30 minCathedral of San LorenzoWalk the caruggi towards Via Garibaldi; the Romanesque cathedral sits right on the route, no detour needed.
- +2 hrsVia Garibaldi and the Rolli PalacesA further 5 to 10 minutes brings you to the UNESCO-listed palaces of Palazzo Rosso and Palazzo Bianco.
- +2 hrs 45 minLunch in the caruggiTry focaccia genoveseOrder a slice of thick, oily focaccia genovese from a bakery near Sottoripa. See must-try Genoa street foods for more to try.
- +3 hrs 30 minWalk back to the terminalRetrace the caruggi to Piazza Caricamento, then the waterfront back to the pier, about 20 minutes.
- All-aboard minus 1 hrBack at the terminalLeave extra time if your berth is further along the quay or the road crossing near Principe is busy.
The time on the map is the whole walk, every stop added together.
Open this walking route in Google Maps
If plans change: If the Acquario queue is long, skip it and spend the extra time among Via Garibaldi's palaces instead.
Long port day: 8 hours or more
- On dockingWalk to the AquariumBook timed ticketsIt's a flat 15 minute walk along the waterfront to Piazza Caricamento; the Acquario di Genova is just beyond it. Book timed-entry tickets online before you go.
- +1 hrCathedral of San Lorenzo and Via GaribaldiWalk the caruggi past the Romanesque cathedral, then continue 10 to 15 minutes to Via Garibaldi's Rolli Palaces.
- +2 hrsSpianata CastellettoTake the liftRide the public lift up from Via Garibaldi for rooftop, harbour and sea views in one frame; no stairs involved.
- +2 hrs 45 minLunch in the caruggiTry focaccia genoveseOrder a slice of thick, oily focaccia genovese from a bakery near Sottoripa on the way back down.
- +3 hrs 30 minTaxi to BoccadasseAbout 20 minutes by taxi to this fishing quarter of coloured houses and a pebble beach. See walks near the port of Genoa for the cliff route.
- +5 hrs 30 minTaxi and walk back to the terminalAbout 20 minutes by taxi to Piazza Caricamento, then a flat 15 minute walk along the waterfront to the ship.
- All-aboard minus 1 hrBack at the terminalLeave extra time if your berth is further along the quay or the road crossing near Principe is busy.
The time on the map is the whole walk, every stop added together.
Open this walking route in Google Maps
If plans change: If taxis to Boccadasse are scarce, stay in the caruggi and revisit Via Garibaldi's palaces or the cathedral treasury instead.
With a full day you can get out of the city: our day trips from Genoa cruise port cover the Cinque Terre, Portofino and Santa Margherita, and the guide to getting from the port to Portofino works out whether the train and ferry (about two and a half hours of travel there and back) fit your time ashore. If it rains, the bad weather plan for Genoa lists the museums, covered markets and cafés within 20 minutes of the ship, and our Genoa insider tips cover the transport shortcuts and the mistakes cruisers make here.
Genoa cruise port FAQs
What port does MSC use in Genoa?
MSC uses the Stazioni Marittime piers at Ponte dei Mille and Ponte Andrea Doria, both in the old port and about 1 km from the city centre. Your boarding documents name which one, and MSC’s valet parking operates at the quay.
Is Genova the same place as Genoa?
Genova and Genoa are the same place: Genova is the Italian name and Genoa the English one, so signs, timetables and your cruise documents may use either for the same city.
Do cruise ships tender at Genoa?
Cruise ships don’t tender at Genoa; they berth alongside at Ponte dei Mille or Ponte Andrea Doria and you walk off down a gangway onto the quay, usually arriving between 08:00 and 09:00 and leaving between 16:00 and 18:00.
What is the address of Genoa cruise port?
Stazioni Marittime Genova, Ponte dei Mille, 16126 Genova (GE), Italy. The terminal operator answers on +39 010 0898335 and at mail@smge.it, which is the number to use if your question is about the building rather than your booking.
Last Updated: 29 October 2026