Hi everyone,
My wife and I are going to be in Florence for 7 days next month. We're trying to figure out what to do with the time, without renting a car.
We thought about trying to find a villa or a B&B on the outskirts of the city that would give the feel of not being in the city the whole time but that would give us access to the city and access to some of the surrounding towns via the bus.

Any thoughts or suggestions on this?

Thanks for the help!

There's a lot of art in Florence and a lot of really interesting architecture. I still treasure the look on my teen age daughters' faces when they saw the Duomo, The Birth of Venus, and the statues of David and Mary Magdalene. In addition, Florence is close to Sienna and Pisa. Also, if you're willing to spend three hours on the train (going and returning) or to stay overnight, there's Rome. I don't think you'll run out of things to do.

I recently stayed in a B&B about a mile north of the train station - near the Fortezza or Castello or whatever it's called.

I paid 35 euros (was in winter) and found it to be a very clean place with owners who were trying so hard.

Breakfast was served in the room and it was a cornucopia of filling food and drink.

Can't remember the name but Google Florence Bed-and-Brakfasts you'll get lists.

I enjoyed staying in a 'real' part of town with nearly no tourists but still just a short walk or bus ride from everything.

You had better get going on finding a place, I think. Florence is VERY crowded most of the year, and I would not trust that October will not be.

Here are some apt. and villa websites. You might look for places in the Oltrarno or up on the hill above that side of the Arno.

Note: I don't know wht these URLS show up twice in the posted version of my message -- can anyone explain that?

http://www.florenceapartmentrentals.net/
http://www.sleepinitaly.com/
http://en.venere.com/
or for hotels, http://www.ahotelinitaly.com

Charnee

OK, so it didn't show up twice in the final version -- only on the preview.

Charnee

I think you'd be better off in the center of Florence: more access to transportation. Since cities don't seem to appeal to you, consider spending a night or two in Siena (you can bus to San Gimignano) or Lucca. It's better to take the bus from Florence to Siena whereas the train is easy for Lucca.

I agree with Mimar about staying in Florence proper. I have stayed with Gianna Galeota, a wonderful lady who owns two apartment buildings with 12 or so apartments in them. They are all great. I have stayed with her 4 times and even had my wedding in FLorence this past May and rented out almost all of her apartments for my guests to stay in (I didn't pay for them, but made the arrangements www.florenceapartmentrentals.net and www.sleepinginflorence.com
I highly recommend them. They book up quickly though, so if you're interested, you should make your plans soon!

Hi S,

Florence is a very nice city and the historic district is fairly small.

I would stay in town.

What's your budget?

We booked a great apartment in Florence . centrally located and you save $$$ (nice with high euro) by cooking in the aprtment. There are many sites with appts to choose from

I would stay in town, but if you want to be outside the city yet close, look at Pensione Bencista or Villa Fiesole in the town of Fiesole. There is frequent bus service between Florence and Fiesole.

Look at this

www.firenzeloft.com

We stayed there for a week. Near the train station, walking distance to all of the sights. Very quiet. We loved it.