best way to go from Tuscany to Venice - train or car?
Jun 3rd, 2008, 05:55 PM
#1
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best way to go from Tuscany to Venice - train or car?
We finish a week in Certaldo(between Florence and Siena) with a rental car and travel next to Venice - There is no penalty for dropping the car anywhere there is an Autoeurope office - My question is whether it would be better to drop in Florence and train to Venice, or drive to Venice as close as we can get, and then train/boat to the hotel - The train would probably be more relaxing, but despite the gas and tolls, we like the freedom to meander at our own pace -On the other hand,it looks like it is mostly a straight shot highway, and we will be eager to get to Venice ASAP - Thanks for any ideas either way - Bynar
Jun 3rd, 2008, 06:16 PM
#3
I've done the drive the other way. We did have a car because we wanted to investigate the Palladian villas in the countryside, and we stayed overnight in Vicenza. If you are going to drive straight through and get to beautiful Venice, I would definitely take the train.
Jun 4th, 2008, 07:42 AM
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If you are going directly to Venice, then take the train. The autostrada gets very busy and stressful the nearer to Venice you get. There can be huge tail-backs to get off the autostrada at Mestre, depending on time of day.
Jun 4th, 2008, 07:52 AM
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We drove from Radda to Venice and dropped the car at the Piazzale Roma AutoEurope office. I think I wasn't paying atention to the map directions (had printed out via michelin) and forgot i had a page 5. We turned the wrong way and got lost in Maestre. Just make sure you have good directions since Piazzale Roma is not marked as a destination (I had thought it would be). We had no traffic problems but we traveled on a Saturday.
All the car rental companies are together on the right hand side of the road as you approach then you cross the street to catch the vaperetto (very easy). The drive was weird----very flat and smoggy, but easy and i would do that rather than take a train.
Kathy
All the car rental companies are together on the right hand side of the road as you approach then you cross the street to catch the vaperetto (very easy). The drive was weird----very flat and smoggy, but easy and i would do that rather than take a train.
Kathy
Jun 4th, 2008, 11:05 AM
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Hello bynar, my Italian friends in Italy who live a bit north of Venice and have lots of family members in Florence always use the train when going back and forth to Florence except for the exception of one man. If you are planning on just getting to Venice without plans to stop along the way I would without a doubt take the train. You want to get off at the Santa Lucia Train Station with is in Venice proper and is located right along the Grand Canal.
Jun 4th, 2008, 02:03 PM
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If you train to Venice, is it necessary to have reservations/tickets ahead of time or can one wait to last minute? I'm asking because we are not positive which day we will leave Florence... depends on a couple things.
Also, do you know if most hotel concierge can make these arrangements?
Also, do you know if most hotel concierge can make these arrangements?
Jun 4th, 2008, 02:20 PM
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So, you would have them drive to the Florence airport to drop the car---taxi to the station, and then train to Venice. Three modes of transportation all with luggage. I would drive it every time. You can drive it in 4 hours---the other will take you more time and requires running on their schedule.
Jun 5th, 2008, 04:49 AM
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We did this drive last month. It was 4 hours from Cortona to marco polo airport in Venice. It was a Saturday and traffic was not a problem.
The toll was 20 euros. The ferry from the airport to the lido was 12 euros each. Might be cheaper depending on where you're staying. The gas worked out to about 35 euros.
The train from Cortona would have been 80 euros for us, assuming we switched to the Eurostar in Florence.
We wanted to take the train, but we had kids with us and driving made more sense. If I didn't have kids with me I would have taken the train.
The toll was 20 euros. The ferry from the airport to the lido was 12 euros each. Might be cheaper depending on where you're staying. The gas worked out to about 35 euros.
The train from Cortona would have been 80 euros for us, assuming we switched to the Eurostar in Florence.
We wanted to take the train, but we had kids with us and driving made more sense. If I didn't have kids with me I would have taken the train.
Jun 5th, 2008, 12:39 PM
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bobthenavigator - I agree with you. We will be travelling from Montepulciano to Venice on a Saturday and finally decided that driving was the way to go. We can leave when we choose because we will not be tied to a train schedule; we will not have to deal with getting from the car rental drop-off to the train station and then finding the right track/train; and we can stop along the way if something looks interesting. And I can't even imagine how irritating it would be if there was a traffic issue on the way to Florence that would cause us to miss our train.
Also, by the time we drive to Florence, we'll be 1/3 of the way to Venice! Why not keep on going?!
While it would be nice to sit on the train and watch the world go by, we would rather have the freedom to go where and when we choose.
To the OP - this is a decision only you can make. What works for us may not work for you. Do what makes you happy!
Also, by the time we drive to Florence, we'll be 1/3 of the way to Venice! Why not keep on going?!
While it would be nice to sit on the train and watch the world go by, we would rather have the freedom to go where and when we choose.
To the OP - this is a decision only you can make. What works for us may not work for you. Do what makes you happy!
Jun 5th, 2008, 07:09 PM
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You could also drive to Bologna, drop the car there and catch the train. I haven't done this, but I considered it because I didn't want to drive into Florence. I seem to recall the drop off site was easily accessible to the Bologna station.
Jun 5th, 2008, 07:55 PM
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Well , you have all confirmed my impression - It is not a no brainer - Each method has advantages and disadvantages - The ease of coming and going as we please without schedules, to say nothing of lugging our stuff around from car to taxi to train, tip me towards driving (As pointed out by others, Bob the Navigator is usually right) - But I'm teased by the idea of splitting the difference, and hopping a train in less busy Bologna or Padova - This talk site has been terrific, for this and many previous issues - After months of reading, thinking, planning, we are finally less than a week from blast-off - Thanks to all for the feedback - I promise reports of hiking the CT, our 1 week organic vegetarian cooking class in Tuscany, and our too short final 2 days in Venice - Bynar
