Hi W,

When we did that trip, I just went to the bus station about 30 min before departure time and bought two tickets.

Thanks Ira. I don't know if it matters but was that in high or low season?

Hi W,

September

I don't believe that the bus tickets reserve you a seat on a particular bus. The tickets are for ANY bus between Siena and Florence, with seats available on a first come, first served basis.

Does anyone know of an online bus company for Italy? I can say that it has always been a challenge to find bus sites because there are so many local companies.

worldinabag, same day bus or train are normally not problems. Hub and I often went a day ahead just to be safe but unless there is a special occasion, you should be OK. Maybe avoid commuter times?

Did you try SITA?

Hello worldinabag,
It is the SITA and TRA-IN buses (not SENA) that run between Siena and Florence. There are many departures on weekdays.
I do not know if it is necessary to book tickets online ahead of time, hope our Tuscan experts will chime in.

Try

http://www.sitasudtrasporti.it/

I tried to get to the siena page but my Italian is SO rusty. Did get a comment in English that it was necessary to defeat my pop-up to print the ticket. Maybe you CAN do this online in advance.

Can anyone help?

I'm not aware of any online tickets for Sita buses. I've always bought my ticket either the day before or a few minutes before. The only express buses I know of are the Sita buses.

Here's a list of places to buy tickets in the Siena province. The picture at the top is the office in the underground at Piazza Gramsci. If you scroll down the list, you will find the rest of the locations to purchase in Siena.
http://www.sienamobilita.it/biglietterie.html

Sena does not run a bus from Siena into Florence (it stops a good distance outside of Florence on the autostrada) so you don't want to take Sena.

>>>Does anyone know of an online bus company for Italy?<<<

There are dozens of bus companies, some public, some private. You have to either search by name of company (Sita, Sena, Curreri, etc.) or regional transport websites such Siena Moblilita (transport for the province of Siena in Tuscany).

I forgot to say to go to the very last entry on the page and siena is there. kybourbon and worldinabag, is your Italian good enough to give the site I found a try?

TDudette - Sita sud (sud = south) is for some southern regions (Baslicata, Puglia and Campania), not Tuscany.

Check out the site and go to the very end. It looks like one can make reservations.

Thanks to all. Well fortunately I speak Italian so I could follow the sites! Seems the consensus is to buy the tickets there. KY wrote - "The picture at the top is the office in the underground at Piazza Gramsci". Our hotel is around the corner from tht Piazza so looks like I'll buy them there.

Good luck and have a happy trip.

Thanks T

The thing about regional bus companies in general is, if it looks like the crowd is too big for the bus, they just add another bus. I don't know if SITA does that, but I've taken that Siena/Florence route a couple times in the summer season and I wouldn't worry about not getting a ride.

The usual practice is to buy an undated/untimed ticket when convenient. Then when you board, you validate your ticket by punching it in the little yellow box (sometimes its on the bus, sometimes its just outside). This puts a timestamp on it so you can't use it again.

The train system works this way too, except it is sometimes possible to go online and pay extra for a reservation that guarantees you a seat (or a seat in first class). I've never found it necessary.

Public transportation in Italy is often run on the honor system: quite often there is no-one there to take or check your ticket. But they do have spot-checks, and if you are caught riding without a valid (or validated) ticket you have to pay a big fine.

The Piazza Gramsci is the central bus terminal so you will see lots of buses to lots of places - make sure you have the right "platform." As so many others have said, just get the tickets there- it's no big deal.

You mention that you are staying just around the corner. Two hotels fitting that description that come to mind are the Jolly and the Chiusarelli. If the former, be aware that it is popular with tour groups and some rooms face the football stadium which can be noisy if it is a gameday. If the latter, make sure that you have a room facing the rear. The rooms facing the very busy road get a lot of traffic noise day and night. Otherwise the Chiusarelli is a nice place - we stayed there once after moving from a hotel inside the walls that was awful so needed a place right away.

Great info thanks. Basing, my hotel is the Cannon D'oro. Here's a map - http://www.cannondoro.com/mappa.htm. I hope I read my maps right! It is near the Piazza?

Bought them that day--late June--from Rome to Sienna and Sienna to Florence. No problems. Buses were not full at all.

world - I don't know that hotel, but the location inside the walls should be very good. An easy walk to most everywhere. The hotels I mentioned are just outside the wall. Siena is very walkable so you are in good shape for sightseeing in the city. I don't know how long you plan to stay in Siena, but you can even take the bus to some of the hill towns - the buses are cheap.

If you want to take a break from Italian food, there is a very good Chinese restaurant in Siena. Facing the Tower in the campo, take the first street on the right of the Tower and walk (I think) about 500-1000 yards. It is on your right. I always like trying a Chinese restaurant in other countries because
just like in the US, they take some food cues from the host country.

Cannon D'Oro isn't far from Piazza Gramsci. The pedestrian area starts as you leave Piazza Matteotti. If you get a chance about dusk, walk down to San Domenico and via Camporegio around the corner. There are several restaurants with outside tables and a fabulous view of the Duomo which is lit up at night. There are several price ranges and one has better views than the others. Your map link doesn't show the Duomo, but it's very close. It also doesn't show Camporegio connecting to the next cross street (C TA S Antonio?), but it does.

Thanks Connie. And thanks Basing and KY for the food tips. Included in my notes.

The bus from Siena to Florence may fill up as it makes stops along the way (unless you take the express bus), but seats aren't a problem. You can buy tge tickets any time in advance of your trip, but I wouldn't worry about it until you're in Siena. Go underground at Piazza Gramsci and it shouldn't take more than a few minutes.

Since you're staying nearby (probably very close), there's a small grocery store on the main walk into town in Siena on the right-hand side that makes some of the best pizza we had on the trip. They are always busy at lunch with locals, and there's a big picture window where you can watch them work from te road. We loved it! I will look for the name of the place and post it when I find it.

Thanks Kent. I'll include your info on the pizza store in my notes. If you find the name that's appreciated.

I would like to take a day trip from Florence to Siena. Where do I buy bus tickets in Florence? Can I buy a round trip ticket so I don't need to buy a return ticket in Siena? Anything else that would be helpful for me to know to get there and back?

The SITA bus station in Florence is right next to the Florence SMN train station. However, you CANNOT see the SITA bus station sign from the train station. On google map, here is the bus station entrance:
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=43.775355,11.246808&hl=en&ll=43.775641,11.247457&spn=0.00392,0.009785&num=1&t=h&z=17

You buy tickets at the ticket counter inside the bus station.

In Siena, they drop you off here:
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=43.322739,11.327831&hl=en&ll=43.322641,11.32773&spn=0.003949,0.009785&num=1&t=h&z=17 The ticket counters are BELOW the bus station. The stairs to go below are not in the bus stop island but along the sidewalk in front of the buildings surrounding the Piazza.

Thank you so much! Should I buy the return ticket from Siena to Florence before I leave Florence, or in Siena when I get there?