DH & I going to Florence in September with another couple. Our friends want to stay in the "outskirts" of Florence so we don't have to drive "all the way into town" every time we go somewhere. We want to spend less time in the car, stay closer to the middle of town, and be able to walk to restaurants, etc. We will use the car to go to other towns in Tuscany. Last time we were there we stayed in Siena and took busses which we thought worked out fine. So the advice I need:
Are there "suburbs" where we could find a hotel and restaurants within walking distance? If yes, I'd appreciate recommendations!

ttt

Why don't you take a look at hotels in Fiesole? What kind of hotel budget do you have?

I would also look into hotel in the Oltrarno, south of the Arno River; the drive out of town from there will not be too bad. See if the Hotel Silla has parking.

Another vote for Fiesole.

It's 20 min by bus to the SMN train station.

Personally, I prefer to stay in the city, but if you're sold on the idea of the "outskirts," the Oltrarno district seems like a good compromise.

There's a large public parking lot in Oltrano district's western end, quite close to the Pitti Palace - i saw it last January but wasn't driving. Otherwsie driving on the narrow streets of this old district seems tough.

But the parking lot is on the edge of it all with easy access out of town.

We recently took the bus from Florence to Siena for a daytrip. I think we left Florence around 9am or so.

I could not believe the traffic coming into Florence. It looked like the LA Freeway during Friday night commute.

And on our way back to Florence, same thing. Traffic coming out of Florence was a logjam.

I guess you just need to figure out how many days you'll actually be coming to Florence vs. Siena or other towns outside the city.

Happy travels!

I know, the traffic will be bad at times which is why we'd rather not have a car the whole time, but our friends do. So we're trying to compromise. Personally, I'm happy if I don't drive at all on most vacations!

Our hotel budget is under 125E per night per couple. Thanks for your replies, I'll look into your suggestions!

Look at www.florenceflat.com.