Flying into Bologna vs. Florence
 

Hello- <BR> <BR>We are beginning to nail down some of the details on a last minute trip to Tuscany. We're looking at airfare, and finding that it's somewhat cheaper to fly into Bologna than Florence. We will be renting a car in whichever city we fly into and heading to Tuscany. I'd like to know if anyone has any experience with flying into Bologna? How is the airport to navigate? We're not concerned with the longer driving time to Tuscany as we can't check into our apartment until late in the day. Any advice would be appreciated. <BR> <BR>Thanks- <BR>Tracey

Bologna is great to fly into. The airport is much larger and more, shall we say, organized than Florence. And it's easy to navigate. Highly recommended. I much prefer Bologna to any other airport in Italy. <BR>

That's great to hear about Bologna airport, as we'll be flying in this September. Tracey, be aware that there is a 12% surcharge to pick up a car at the airport in Italy! We are getting around this by taking a taxi from the airport to the city office (the airport in Bologna is about 4km from downtown). <BR> <BR>We flew in and out of Florence last year, and I have to agree with "Santa Chiara" - rather disorganized. But, being so small, it was manageable.

Go with Bologna. I flew into Florence my last trip, and was SUPPOSED to depart from there as well, but after we all sat around waiting to go through security immediately prior to boarding, we were suddenly informed that the flight was not happening due to fog. They bussed us to Pisa, which took an hour and a half (how, I'm not sure - should have been about a 40 minute trip.) Then we sat around for a while before we finally took off for Munich.... Needless to say, I missed my connection. (By about 20 minutes, God forbid they hold the flight.) After much confusion, I ended up having to fly back to Zurich, and from there eventually onward towards home. <BR> <BR>I understand this sort of thing is fairly common for the Florence airport. Bottom line: what should have been more convenient ended up being a major hassle, and an already long trip was made many hours longer. I'll definitely check Bologna for next time, and/or Milan, which has worked well in the past.

Me again. I have to echo Lesli's experience. I was supposed to fly into Florence many years ago but was rerouted to Bologna because of fog, then had to take a bus (provided by the airline) to Florence. Trust me on this folks. Bologna is the preferred, in my experience, airport to fly into.

Until just a few years ago, Florence was an airport for private planes and charters only. It is very small and just can't keep up with the demand. Bologna requires that you drive across the mountains but it is autostada and quite pretty. The airport, as reported above, is very easy. The other alternative is Pisa which functions fairly well also. From Pisa you can drive to Lucca and then over to Florence that way on the A11. The distances should actually be about the same.

Thanks so much for all the advice. We went ahead and got our tickets and will be flying into Bologna. Thanks too for the heads up on the airport surcharge when renting a car. We'll definitely pick up the car in town. We're going through AutoEurope, so I'm assuming this won't be a problem. <BR>Ciao!

Tracey, that depends on what time you arrive and what day! For example, we're arriving around noon on Saturday. The in-town office closes at noon, so we're paying extra for them to wait for us at the office. Since we're taking a car for 3 weeks, with a taxi it is still cheaper than another 12%! Do the math and figure out the costs. Depending on when you arrive and how long you're renting for, the costs may even out, in which case you should just get it at the airport.

Paul- <BR>Thanks again for your info. We're arriving in Bologna on a Friday and will be spending the night in a hotel, as our apartment in Tuscany won't be ready until Saturday. So, as long as we don't oversleep due to jet lag, I think we can make it to the in town office by noon! We're taking the car for 2 weeks, so I'm glad to be saving 12% on that. You've been a real help!

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