mamamia66

We will be leaving Southern Tuscany early Sat morning & would like to park somewhere outside of Florence (not too keen on city driving) and take the train into the city for the day before continuing on to Milan airport hotel. Does anyone have a suggestion of an easy on & off point with train nearby?

zeppole

There is paid parking near the train station.

http://www.firenzeparcheggi.it/index...&Itemid=39

zeppole

Oh, sorry. I misunderstood your question. My map shows parking places inside Firenze.

You might try parking at the airport in Firenze, and using the airport shuttle.

TuckH

We've driven to the Piazzale Michelangelo and walked into town so I'm not familiar with the train idea.

Just a thought - it might be easier to take a bus from a nearby town that's on your route towards Malpensa.

flanneruk

You need to double check this with someone with more recent experience, as parking costs and limits are changing all the time.

Last time we had your prob, we turned off the A1 at the Calenzano/Sesto Fiorentino junction. We then followed signs for Pratignone, looking carefully for the station sign (often, just "FF.SS&quot: there was nearby parking - but not a huge Park & Ride. About a mile off the A1 at most: closer to a kilometre. Trains take about 20 mins into SMN. There's a handy timetable at www.trenitalia.com/Allegati/Orarietto_FI_LU.pdf

There are two other stations close to the A1 on this line (Sesto Fiorentino and Il Neto) with slightly more frequent service. I honestly don't know if they're handier, or which has the easier parking.

mamamia66

Thanks for the info Flanneruk. We just bought a GPS with European maps. I wonder if that would lead us to the nearest train station?

ellenem

Do check train schedules--the nearest train station may not have the best schedule for you.

mamamia66

How would I check train schedules ahead of time?

LoveItaly

Hello mamamia, I just quickly scanned your thread..but to look up train schedules in Italy here is the English language version of the Trenitalia website.


http://www.trenitalia.com/en/index.html

I hope that provides the information that you need.

mamamia66

Thank you!!

flanneruk

"How would I check train schedules ahead of time?"

By reading the Florence-Lucca timetable I referred you to.

mamamia66

flanneruk, sorry, I thought that was just for the station you went out of. I went back & tried to figure it out but I don't understand what numbers at the top are referring to. Advise?

TuckH

mama - why don't you do the sensible thing and take a bus (as I've suggested above)?

Surely there is frequent bus service into Florence from the outlying towns and villages...

zeppole

Tuck,

In the place where I live, one might assume that any old town near Genova would have a bus going into Genova. But some close-in towns are in a different zone, and you have to switch buses. And bus service can be spotty -- meaning, they only run frequently in early morning or late "rush hours" -- or else you can end up on a milk-run that loops all over the hills before reaching the city. You feel like you could walk faster.

My reason for suggesting the airport parking lot at Firenze is the certainty of finding both easy parking and a direct bus, from 5am to midnight, 7 days a week, to the center of Firenze.

mamamia66

Would the airport be out of the way when driving from southern Tuscany to Milan? If not, we are fine with that. We don't want to backtrack either due to the long drive to Milano.