Florence Day Trip Help Needed
 

Greetings

We are off to Firenze on Feb. 25 for seven nights. We make this trip repeatedly, and part of it is for business. This year, due to the USD to Euro exchange rate, and the approaching wedding of our daughter, we are counting our pennies.

We would like to take a day trip or two, but we are not willing to spring for a driver. This complicates things, because we have done many of the usual trips, some for multiple nights: we spent time in Siena, Lucca and Pisa.

So, we are looking for trips that we can make with public transportation, and we would prefer that transportation time to be no more than an hour. We are thinking of
Arezzo
Volterra
Cortona
San Gimignano (my husband hasn't been there)
Bologna
what about Prato or Pistoia?

If anyone has visited any of the above from Florence, we would love to hear about it.

Feedback in general is appreciated, and any transportation advice would be very welcome.

Also, although Bologna is on our list (is it too much for a day trip?) we are pretty much confined to Tuscany, so Tuscan towns are what we are limited to.

Thanks for any help.
Debbie

Hi tuscan,

We did a daytrip to Bologna from Florence and enjoyed it very much.

See my trip report
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34451044

Tuscan - Bologna, Arezzo and Cortona are easy enough by train, though Cortona will take over an hour.

Cortona station is a 10 mins bus ride from Camucia-Cortona station, though you may have to wait for a bus connection.

There's no train to San Gimignano so you will have to travel by bus. Take the Florence-Siena bus and change at Poggibonsi for the connecting bus to San Gim. Here are the timetables:

http://www.sienaweb.it/territorio/trasporti/rapida.htm

http://www.comune.poggibonsi.siena.it/citta/giro2/

I don't think Volterra will be a viable day-trip from Florence. I'm not sure if there's a bus, but by train it's a 3 hour+ journey each way via Cecina.

Hope this helps ...

Steve

Dear Ira and Steve

You were both quite helpful; thanks loads.

Right now, I'm thinking Pistoia looks rather interesting, and seems easy to get to. And Arezzo, because I am dying to see the Piero della Francescas.

Ira, you noted in the first part of your report that you had a few meals in Fiesole; unless I read the report incorrectly. Do you have any recs? The V. San Michele will be closed and isn't in our budget anyway. ;-)

Steve, the bus tips are great. I was in S. Gimignano some years ago, and enjoyed my time there, but I don't know if I'm dying to go back... what do you think? We love art and history, and as I recall the town was filled with interesting architecture, but I don't recall going to see any works of art.

Oh well, I will soon decide.

It works out much better for me for the business end of the trip if I stay within Tuscany's borders. However, Bologna sounds very interesting...

Cant speak on the distance from Firenze, but the wife and I did a northern Italy trip last October. We LOVED Bologna. A bigger city compared to some you listed, but really cool. I'd go back there in a second. Look for the hotel Roma. Great location, not too expensive. Enjoy :)

Tuscan - I gave you the wrong link for the Florence-Poggibonsi bus - sorry.

[The first link I gave you - Sienaweb - is the rapid Florence-Siena service which doesn't stop in Poggibonsi - so forget that one].


You can find both the timetables you need (connecting at Poggibonsi for SAN GIMIGNANO) on the second link:
http://www.comune.poggibonsi.siena.it/citta/giro2/

.....

If you want to go to VOLTERRA you can get there by bus in 2 hours, with a change of bus (connecting service) at COLLE VAL d'ELSA.

You can find timetables at:
http://www.arcetri.astro.it/~agn6/orario_sita.pdf

The best departure time from Florence is 08.40, arriving Volterra at 10.35.

The return bus leaves Volterra at 13.15 or 17.20, again with a connection at Colle Val d'Elsa.

.....

For CORTONA - check at Cortona station where the bus stop is for the bus up to Cortona.

It used to leave from outside the station, but 6 months ago when I went I was directed to another bus stop 200 yds away on the main road.

Hope this helps ...

Steve